The match of the day
Only one meeting on the program this Thursday. Six days after its sluggish success against Uruguay 27-12, the Blues rub Namibia this Thursday at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille for their third match of Pool A. Fabien Galthié had announced the composition of the team on Tuesday. Victory is imperative for the XV of France. The Blues must also go for the offensive bonus, which had eluded them last Thursday in Lille, avoiding injuries at all costs.
To discover
- World Cup 2023: Schedule and results
- World Cup 2023: rankings by Pools
Schedule and broadcast channel
France-Namibia (Group A): 21pm (France 2
)The news of the Blues
During the last training of the XV of France in Rueil-Malmaison, before joining Aix-en-Provence, Fabien Galthié launched a small pique to the hopes of the Stade Français who came to oppose the Blues. "Put me the best players in receivers, stop putting me painters in receivers, said the coach tricolor before the start of the session. Put me guys awake, not sleeping ones... A dexterous guy, not a penguin." Remarks quickly escalated in recent hours before the expected reaction of the Ile-de-France club through Boris Bouhraoua.
Guest of the show Bartoli Time on RMC last night, the assistant coach of the Stadistes quickly defused the controversy: "The training was not even started. It was important for me to speak because I find a little unfair what is happening, and this current controversy, he assured. I was lucky enough to be here this morning (Sunday). I was next to Fabien and I can tell you that it would be a great mistake to summarize everything that has happened since last Monday with these few words. We've had the chance to work with the XV de France for a very long time. To sum up a very rich training sequence for the XV of France and obviously for our young players at Stade Français and for the staff, I am quite disappointed. Fabien, we know him very well, it was really a joke.
»"We even laughed about it between us, even said Bouhraoua, confirming that the young players of his club had not been offended by Galthié's remarks. Frankly, nothing happened. He came to us at the end thanking the young people, saying that they had worked very well and that was the purpose of the day." The slight controversy now extinguished, there is no doubt that the hopes of Stade Français will return to cross swords with Antoine Dupont and his partners.
Today's Statement
It comes from South Africa coach Jacques Nienaber, who spoke about the clash against Ireland on Saturday night at the Stade de France on behalf of Pool B: "I would not say that I am nervous, I can't wait. It will be a real test match. He is the number 1 against the world champion. It will be a clash between two experienced and serene teams, two very complete teams." No doubt this match will be like a final before its time.
The player to watch: Johan Deysel
Johan Deysel, the captain of the XV of Namibia, will be one of the most "French" Namibians this Thursday against the Blues. Deysel spent his last five seasons in Pro D2 at Colomiers, a historic club in the Southwest. "I spent five incredible years, I had my two children here and people are really friendly, generous, I will always come back with pleasure," said Johan Deysel, who will celebrate his 32nd birthday on September 26. The Namibian arrived in France in November 2018, from South Africa where he played with the Durban Sharks.
Stat of the day: 18
Australia sanctioned 18 times. The Wallabies conceded no less than 18 penalties on Sunday in their last group match lost against Fiji (22-15). It is simply the team that has been sanctioned the most in a single game this year. The last time the Australians were so fouled was in 1999, during their match against the United States (20 fouls).
