He had not spoken since October 15 and the terrible disillusionment of the quarter-final lost by the XV of France against the future South African world champions. This Wednesday, November 8, French coach Fabien Galthié returned to the failure of his protégés. “There was a time of mourning”he explained to justify his 24-day silence. « It’s a huge disappointment after four years of hard work, four years of successful work with 80% victories and all these records… Our goal was to be world championse. »
Face marked, the coach of the XV of France subsequently pulled himself together: “It’s an injury and a pain but at this level you have to be ready to win and also live with what you’ve been through. »
The fact is that after the disappointment, comes the time for the projection. Comforted by the French Rugby Federation (FFR) until 2028, Fabien Galthié is now entering a new era at the head of the French XV, with the main objective of the Australian World Cup in 2027. Not without some changes to be expected in his method of work.
Towards less power?
Thanks to an agreement signed in the summer of 2022, between the League and the FFR, the coach had until now been able to benefit from an availability of international players never seen before, to the detriment of the clubs which had to release the latter, over periods longer times. As a result, France has once again become one of the best nations on the rugby planet, reaching 3rd place in the World Rugby rankings at the start of the World Cup (it is now 4th).
However, the premature elimination in the quarter-final leaves a bitter taste for the clubs which made the effort required by the convention. The owner of Racing 92, Jacky Lorenzetti, complained about it in the columns of Olympic Middayclaiming to be “at the end of the limit”.“I don’t want to speak for the other clubs, but the concession has been enormous, explains the latter. We loaned our players to the France team for free for five months. It even turned the championship upside down. »
Between the lines, the fear of still seeing its best players mobilized, too often, for the benefit of the France team. A feeling understood by the authorities of the French Rugby Federation (FFR) where we salute “the will and the service provided by the Top 14 clubs”. “A discussion will take place in good understanding with all parties to best promote French rugby, in the momentum of this World Cup”we explain within the Federation.
A hard core called to stay
If nothing is done at this stage, it is also rumored that the Blues will no longer benefit from as many technicians within the management team. End of abundance? The staff will be remodeled in any case, after the departures of Laurent Labit (backs coach) and Karim Ghezal (sideline) at Stade français and that of Thomas Giroud (performance director) at Bordeaux Bègles. The latter have already been replaced respectively by Patrick Arlettaz, from Perpignan, Laurent Sempéré, from Stade français and Nicolas Jeanjean already present within the French staff but promoted.
As for the players, Fabien Galthié repeated it: he is counting on “rest on a hard core”. Since the World Cup, only two internationals, pillar Uini Atonio and second row Romain Taofifenua, both 33 years old, have decided to hang up their boots for the selection. During the 2023 World Cup, the average age of the Tricolores was 27 years old, while the world champion Springboks had an average age of 31 years old. The 2027 World Cup in Australia therefore seems accessible to a large number of the protagonists present this fall on the French lawns. “If Fabien Galthié maintains the team at a very high level in the next three years, dialogue will be easier with the clubs in 2027, the year of the World Cup”slips on this subject, a member of the FFR.
The first lessons on the French XV, affected by the cruel elimination but convinced of its strengths, will be observable from next February. With the aim of winning back a Six Nations Tournament.
