[2016 RBS Six Nations] Round 1: France vs. Italy (06/02/2016)

[TRF_heineken]

Venue: Stade de France
Time: 14:25 GMT​

Teams

France: TBA

Italy: TBA

 

[valley commando]

If France get off to a flyer as they should, momentum and the confidence it creates will make them dangerous.

 

[gaston le gaff]

to the opposition or themselves!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[JJFlash]

It's important to begin wel,l so I'd like to see a half-back pairing of Bézy and Plisson guiding France to a big win.
Bézy would be the first choice kicker - he's on form for Toulouse and then as valley commando rightly says, confidence will build in readiness for Ireland the following Saturday. They are fortunate having their first two games at home, too.
However, their third game is a Friday night game in Cardiff, and I don't see them winning that. We'll see.

 

[Every Time Ref]

Always a game I surprisingly look forward to this one, fuelled by Italy's strange ability to turn France over. Maybe not so strange if you take into account how poor France have been last few years ,but still.

Bit of an unknown quantity this year, could be interesting. What is the French 23 likely to be, anyone know? Very different from the PSA era?

 

[JJFlash]

There will be some new faces, for sure. Dusautoir, Papé & Szarcewski have retired from international rugby.
No Bastareaud . There's a new captain, Guirado the Toulon hooker and I hope we'll see Sébastien Bézy and Jules Plisson.
It's a new dawn for French rugby and if they can win three matches, then it'll be a good start.

 

[The Jones Boy]

France by 12

 

[LiRFCMatt]

France will need a big win to get them going in this tournament, but I don't see them challenging the big 3 just yet. Still, they should coast to a comfortable 20 point victory I would hope, although I have a weird wish to be the only person in the bar here in Poitiers celebrating an Italian win.

 

[AzaMatt]

France will need a big win to get them going in this tournament, but I don't see them challenging the big 3 just yet. Still, they should coast to a comfortable 20 point victory I would hope, although I have a weird wish to be the only person in the bar here in Poitiers celebrating an Italian win.

an italian win would be awesome although i cant see it happening, at most it will be a narrow victory for france

 

[Tony Manx]

Italy have taken more steps backward than forward over recent years and, although they have found the odd decent player, player standards are lower now what with age and retirement!

Even that icon of Italian rugby, Parisse, is getting long in the tooth and does not have the same ability to be everywhere in attack and defence quite like he used to!

It will take a sizeable failure of the French players to play to their abilities or as a team for the Italians to win this one!

Personally, I do not believe an Italian win is good for this 6N which needs a resurgence from the French after two appalling coaches......albeit Noves has not really been cutting the mustard over the last few years either!!!

 

[gaston le gaff]

Guy Noves first selection for the 6 Nations game v Italy on Sat in Paris. 4 new caps in the starting XV +3 on the bench
i think a win with efficency will be acceptable for this first game under the new coach.

Le XV de départ: Médard ; Bonneval, Fickou, Danty, Vakatawa ; (o) Plisson, (m) S. Bézy ; Lauret, Picamoles, Chouly ; Maestri, Jedrasiak ; Slimani, Guirado (cap), Ben Arous.

Les remplaçants: Chat, Atonio, Poirot, Flanquart, Y. Camara, Machenaud, Doussain, Mermoz.

 

[Mumbles119]

Looking forward to seeing Danty and Lauret in action for this one

 

[JJFlash]

I like the look of that team! Let's hope that, irrespective of how they play on Saturday - and they surely won't lose, Novès will keep with this team (barring injuries) for the next 2 or 3 matches.

 

[gaston le gaff]

Just to be fair and sporting here is the Italian starting team and bench

Le XV de départ: Odiete ; Sarto, Campagnaro, Garcia, Bellini ; (o) Canna, (m) Gori ; Zanni, Parisse, Minto ; Fuser, Biagi ; Cittadini, Gega, Lovotti.
Les remplaçants: Giazzon, Zanusso, Castrogiovanni, Bernabo, Van Schalkwyk, Palazzani, Haimona, McLean.

​

- - - Updated - - -

I like the look of that team! Let's hope that, irrespective of how they play on Saturday - and they surely won't lose, Novès will keep with this team (barring injuries) for the next 2 or 3 matches.

there is a good chance that FTD will play the next game at 10!!!

 

[FrenchFan]

Guy Noves first selection for the 6 Nations game v Italy on Sat in Paris. 4 new caps in the starting XV +3 on the bench
i think a win with efficency will be acceptable for this first game under the new coach.

Le XV de départ: Médard ; Bonneval, Fickou, Danty, Vakatawa ; (o) Plisson, (m) S. Bézy ; Lauret, Picamoles, Chouly ; Maestri, Jedrasiak ; Slimani, Guirado (cap), Ben Arous.

Les remplaçants: Chat, Atonio, Poirot, Flanquart, Y. Camara, Machenaud, Doussain, Mermoz.

Poor backrow IMO. Lauret is a good T14 soldier but not an international - poor pick with Camara and Burban available.

Chouly is the biggest howler by a mile. He was shockingly poor at the WC v Ireland. Mr Transparent. In poor form for his club since and bears no small responsibility in CLermont not being as dominant at the breakdown and poor line-outs and getting knocked out by Bordeaux in CCup. Even die-hard Jaunard I spoke to question his commitment. He's no leader. He's a pussy.

I'd have picked Burban Picamoles Camara. Yacouba is a much better player and still only 21. The Italy game was made for him. Yannick Bru is a good forwards coach but the union innate conservatism has taken its toll after 4 yrs. People are expecting a lot of play, but Chouly and Lauret are not good link players, neither is Picamoles. Louis is a great powerful 8 who needs a solid link player behind him like Camara or Burban or Nyanga or Ollivon...

Vakatawa? Prob one of the top 3 Sevens players in the world. Absolute dynamite but has never played a game of XV in his life. Another enforced pick. He's in due to the number of injured wingers that reads like a phone book.

Many of his picks are enforced choices. He's has to deal with 4 injuries since his 1st list 2 weeks ago. This is what i'm saying if the clubs were playing ball, he wouldn't be in that situation. The players initially picked would have been rested or spared.

On the right wing alone there's more injured (Huget Grosso etc) than fit. So he picked whoever is left. Not necessarily who is best. etc etc. I couldn't be arsed commenting on for the other players. Not important.

Noves is 62 and 40 years in the game so to speak. He knows the game is rigged by politics well beyond his control. He knows our rugby inside and out like no other. He saw like I did last weekend how even his old club won't do him any favour in the run-up of his first intl game as selector.
He's not coming in to Save the Day. This is just a pre-retirement gig for him. There is no cavalry out there. The clubs have battened down the hatches with the union. They're not interested in Noves fate.

Noves is just going to have fun picking kids like he used to at ST. He has never been afraid of throwing them into the mix unlike his predecessor who was annally conservative. He's produced 30 of the best French internationals during his time at ST when his predecessor couldn't pick one. And if he does anything positive during his mandate that'll be it. Give kids a taster for Intl rugby. No more no less.

So you can kiss goodbye to all the media BS about 'turning things around'. It's not going to happen.

Noves is not the least bit bothered about results. He's set his stall very cleverly with his first press confs. Couldn't have covered his arse better. He's going to play the media his way all along. They just haven't realised that yet.

It's funny to hear people yammer about results when everything in Noves communication so far has been about preparing the public (and his employer) for the lack of it.

 

[Hap]

Italia
15 David ODIETE (Marchiol Mogliano, esordiente)*
14 Leonardo SARTO (Zebre Rugby, 23 caps)*
13 Michele CAMPAGNARO (Exeter Chiefs, 18 caps)*
12 Gonzalo GARCIA (Zebre Rugby, 39 caps)
11 Mattia BELLINI (Petrarca Padova, esordiente)*
10 Carlo CANNA (Zebre Rugby, 7 caps)
9 Edoardo GORI (Benetton Treviso, 47 caps)*
8 Sergio PARISSE (Stade Francais, 114 caps) â€" capitano
7 Alessandro ZANNI (Benetton Treviso, 94 caps)
6 Francesco MINTO (Benetton Treviso, 23 caps)
5 Marco FUSER (Benetton Treviso, 6 caps)*
4 George Fabio BIAGI (Zebre Rugby, 8 caps)
3 Lorenzo CITTADINI (Wasps Rugby, 44 caps)
2 Ornel GEGA (Benetton Treviso, esordiente)
1 Andrea LOVOTTI (Zebre Rugby, esordiente)*

A disposizione
16 Davide GIAZZON (Benetton Treviso, 24 caps)
17 Matteo ZANUSSO (Benetton Treviso, esordiente)*
18 Martin CASTROGIOVANNI (Racing ’92, 115 caps)
19 Valerio BERNABO’ (Zebre Rugby, 27 caps)
20 Andries VAN SCHALKWYK (Zebre Rugby, esordiente)
21 Guglielmo PALAZZANI (Zebre Rugby, 15 caps)
22 Kelly HAIMONA (Zebre Rugby, 7 caps)
23 Luke MCLEAN (Benetton Treviso, 75 caps)

4 newbies in the starting XV, and 2 on the bench.

Too many injuries, our three best hookers (Ghiraldini, Manici, D'Apice) are all injuried, that's why we have Gega and Giazzon.
Not so bad with the props, we have these youngster who are really impressing with Zebre (Lovotti) and Treviso (Zanusso, best player by far for Treviso this year, for what it worths).

Second row. We could have called again Bortolami, who's living a very good season again at Zebre this year, we need experience there because Geldenhuys is out injuried and Fuser is simply not an international player yet.

Can't understand why Van Schalkwyk is not starting since he's the best backrow we can actually deploy, it's not even the fear of experiments, looking who's starting at 15 and 14. Really don't understand it and like it.

Said that I don't think we'll show the worst of us with the forwards, I guess we'll see a good battle here.

Gori is a secure choice, no doubt about him. Hope he's recovered from the face injury.
And here comes our great hope at fly-half. Mr Carlo Canna. 23 years old, very brave, good hands, attacking attitude and fantasy. Decent defender too. Let's see how he'll perform at this level, I am way too curious. He just has one problem, could be a big problem. Sometimes he goes for the hardest choice and this, for a playmaker and specially for his mates, is not good. Anyway he must improve obviously, but surely there's something to build on.

Garcia/Campagnaro. Good couple, very standard call for us. Hope to recover soon Morisi at 12, and maybe Sgarbi.
Sarto is just the best attacking player we have along with Campagnaro and Parisse, so is just madness not to let him wear the 14.
Odiete and Bellini. They're shining in our domestic championship, Eccellenza. The gap of level could kill them, let's see. McLean actually deserves the bench, nothing more.

I see France beating us, really don't know the gap since we are unpredictable when we came from a delusion, like it was our last RWC. Hope to see a funny match, that's it.

 

[FrenchFan]

It's a new dawn for French rugby and if they can win three matches, then it'll be a good start.

A new dawn of the same more like it. You too should write for Walesonline :lol:

Noves is up against the same issues that plagued his predecessors. He doesn't have a team going into this game and won't have one next June either.
He won't be able to pick players from the big clubs next June. Toulouse Toulon Clermont Racing are highly likely to be involved in the T14 playoffs in June. He'll be boarding the plane to Argentina with another group of players. There's no continuity. Most of his choices for Argentina will be enforced once again.

The 4 new players just in for the Italy game are enforced changes due to injury. Fofana is out when he should have been rested. Same old joke. Noves can only just tinker along with whatever players are available or left standing. You can't build for the future when you're left with crumbs.
That's all the union is getting. Crumbs. The union boys are clutching at straws in every department.

Not one T14 club last weekend did Noves any favour - not even his old club. I was at the game v Pau and Bézy picked up a knock during 1st half when the game was well won. They strapped him and let him play another 30 minutes when he should and could have been substituted.

Take off the expats blinkers and open your eyes.

 

[jomjom]

Italy by 20

 

[corny]

Always politics with the French.

I'm not too well versed in any that so take this with a pinch of salt but the reason France have been **** for ages is because of their patterns of play. They have been incapable of playing any phased rugby for ages now. One, two phases, it breaks down and no one has a clue where they should be, where they should run etc.. Thats poor coaching and nothing to do with politics. PSA was a joker, Lievremont was the same. In Ireland we had Declan Kidney. Exactly the same problem. The days of running in tries off first are gone. These coaches (and the teams they had tbf) just didn't adapt.

If Noves can create some structure in attack they easily have the player pool to overcome the political handicaps mentioned above.

 

[AzaMatt]

Italy by 20

i'll have what your having lol