The French XV faces Namibia this Thursday in Marseille for its third World Cup match.
Match of the day
Only one meeting on the program this Thursday. Six days after their sluggish success against Uruguay 27-12, the Blues face Namibia this Thursday at the Stade Vélodrome in Marseille for their third match in Group A. Fabien Galthié announced the composition of the team on Tuesday. Victory is imperative for the XV of France. The Blues must also get the offensive bonus, which escaped them last Thursday in Lille, while avoiding injuries at all costs.
Schedule and broadcast channel
France-Namibia (group A): 9 p.m. (France 2)
Blues news
During the last training of the XV of France at Rueil-Malmaison, before joining Aix-en-Provence, Fabien Galthié launched a little dig at the hopes of the Stade Français who came to oppose the Blues. “Put me the best players as receivers, stop putting painters as receiverssaid the French coach before the start of the session. Give me the guys who are awake, not the ones who are sleeping… A clever guy, not a penguin.» Remarks quickly escalated in recent hours before the expected reaction from the Ile-de-France club via Boris Bouhraoua.
Guest of the show Bartoli Time on RMC last night, the Stadistes assistant coach quickly defused the controversy: “Training hadn’t even started. It was important for me to speak out because I find what is happening a little unfair, and this current controversyhe assured. I was lucky enough to be there this morning (Sunday). I was next to Fabien and I can tell you that it would be a big mistake to summarize everything that has happened since last Monday with these few words. We’ve had the chance to work with the XV of France for a very long time. To sum up a very rich training sequence for the French XV 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 among ourselvesBouhraoua even said, confirming that the young players of his club had not been offended by Galthié’s comments. Honestly, nothing happened. He came to see us at the end, thanking the young people, saying that they had worked very well and that was the goal of the day.” With the slight controversy now over, 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 evening at the Stade de France on behalf of Pool B: “I wouldn’t say I’m nervous, I’m looking forward to it. It will be a real test match. He is number 1 against the world champion. It will be a clash between two experienced and calm teams, two very complete teams.” There is no doubt that this match will be like a final before its time.
The player to watch: Johan Deysel
Johan Deysel, the captain of the Namibian XV, will be one of the most “French” of the Namibians this Thursday against the Blues. Deysel spent his last five seasons in Pro D2 at Colomiers, a historic club in the South-West. “I spent five incredible years, I had my two children here and the people are really very friendly, generous, I will always come back with pleasure”, Johan Deysel, who will celebrate his 32nd birthday on September 26, told AFP. The Namibian arrived in France in November 2018, from South Africa where he played with the Durban Sharks.
Today’s stat: 18
Australia sanctioned 18 times. The Wallabies conceded no less than 18 penalties on Sunday during their last group match lost against Fiji (22-15). It’s quite simply the team that has been punished the most in a single match this year. The last time the Australians made so many mistakes was in 1999, during their match against the United States (20 mistakes).
