France vs Italy match thread

[bsando]

France: Anthony Bouthier, Teddy Thomas, Arthur Vincent, Gaël Fickou, Vincent Rattez, Romain Ntamack, Antoine Dupont, Cyril Baille, Julien Marchand, Mohamed Haouas, Bernard Le Roux, Paul Willemse, François Cros, Charles Ollivon (c), Grégory Alldritt

Replacements: Peato Mauvaka, Jefferson Poirot, Demba Bamba, Romain Taofifenua, Boris Palu, Cameron Woki, Baptiste Serin, Matthieu Jalibert

Italy: Jayden Hayward, Mattia Bellini, Luca Morisi, Carlo Canna, Matteo Minozzi, Tommaso Allan, Callum Braley, Andrea Lovotti, Luca Bigi (c), Giosuè Zilocchi, Dean Budd, Niccolò Cannone, Sebastian Negri, Jake Polledri, Abraham Steyn

Replacements: Federico Zani, Danilo Fischetti, Marco Riccioni, ?, Federico Ruzza, Giovanni Licata, Guglielmo Palazzani, Giulio Bisegni

[bsando]

13 - 10 after 30 mins. Italy very clinical with their chances so far. France a little wasteful

[bsando]

Also, Scotland are now the only side not to have scored a try so far.

[Dirtydave]

Couple of homer decisions in that half from ref...

That said france are in total control, they may concede another try or two but this italy team are not a tier one nation.

[majesticimperialman]

France playing some greta rugby. But Italy scoring a great try to bring them back into the game.

Italy playing better than they did last week. looking forward to the second half.

[bsando]

Minozzi to the wing with Hayward at fullback is a good move I think, seems to be working a lot better than last weeks postioning. Their try was excellent I thought, calmly executed and well worked. France look dangerous in every position though, them and Ireland really do look like teams to beat this 6N.

[Dirtydave]

Let's be honest, there isn't a great team this year, a lot of changes, some teams have huge injury lists, England ireland and wales have settled squads, with wales abandoning their usual gameplan.

I think the 2 big differences so far, are Farrells pragmatism keeping the Irish gameplan similar, and Sean Edwards influence.

I can see everyone beating everyone this year, as there isn't a side consistent enough to slam

[Dirtydave]

Italy are doing a great job of working out the French defence, once the rush doesn't dominate the French defence is very confused

[whocares]

Allan and co managed to find some gaps in a shaky french rush defense. Dupont, Le Roux and Ollivon having a good game so far. That’s basically the summary of the first half.

[Dirtydave]

You forgot to mention the rub of the refs green, and some very poor decision making...

France have kicked to the corner twice and got nothing from easy 3 point range!

[Dirtydave]

French luck at maximum, a massive and awful kick bounces off the post, then a scramble from their own dead ball line touches an Italian on the way in!!!

Italy can't buy a bounce of the ball right now

[SecretFly]

Some lovely intricate play from Italy at times. Impotent stuff of course in the large picture of overall structure but just shows you what a joke it is when defining good sides by their trickery levels.

Think Italy would have benefitted more from a Kiwi coach rather than O'Shea.  They wasted a few years.  O'Shea's natural bent seems to be youth development more than high end International coaching.

[BigGee]

Italy staying in the game and France gone right off the boil

Allen however misses an easy one

Still 23-10 France

[BigGee]

Some lovely intricate play from Italy at times. Impotent stuff of course in the large picture of overall structure but just shows you what a joke it is when defining good sides by their trickery levels.

Think Italy would have benefitted more from a Kiwi coach rather than O'Shea.  They wasted a few years.  O'Shea's natural bent seems to be youth development more than high end International coaching.

Well their U20s going well. so maybe will leave a legacy!

[Dirtydave]

He had a hand in the set up of the Academy system though didn't he? Which has seen huge strides for them in the last few years...

[SecretFly]

Some lovely intricate play from Italy at times. Impotent stuff of course in the large picture of overall structure but just shows you what a joke it is when defining good sides by their trickery levels.

Think Italy would have benefitted more from a Kiwi coach rather than O'Shea.  They wasted a few years.  O'Shea's natural bent seems to be youth development more than high end International coaching.

Well their U20s going well. so maybe will leave a legacy!

Yeah but his job was to make Italy itself safer occupants of a Six Nations family. The music is again loud in demoting them. They have a foundation that I think is being under utilised by the wrong kind of coaches...so far.

[Dirtydave]

Weirdly, the French D is looking very tired, some huge yardage from Italy ball in hand, especially given that Edwards entire strategy is to hunt in pairs and France aren't right now

[SecretFly]

Yep, French minds characteristically drifting off intensity levels.............. until just some seconds ago!

[BigGee]

Great try from Ntamack, ghosted through that gap

[Dirtydave]

You'd expect the flood gates to open now...

[Dirtydave]

Italy 14 is a really poor player!

[whocares]

Italy dominating all collisions in the 2nd half of and making easy yards but France managed to get a try after some decent forward work.

[Heaf]

Not sure the pen that lead to that shouldn't have gone the other way - the player making the turnover may have been legal but the tackler hadn't released giving the Italian the opportunity to present the ball.

[BigGee]

Good score Italy

Another converted score and game on again

[BigGee]

France are definitely not the finished article yet, they have not put Italy away at all as they should have

[Dirtydave]

Again, French defence and mindset is has just collapsed.

Bamba again has shown the penalty machine he is, the wider fringes of the defence are half hearted, and the breakdown is becoming a lottery

[Dirtydave]

3 silly penalties in a row, an Italy try here will make the last 10 very interesting

[Dirtydave]

Awfull reffing there! There was a double tackler on the ball carrier, ref hadn't called a maul and 4 French forwards dived the wrong side of the tackle...

[Dirtydave]

I cannot believe we havnt seen a yellow card yet! 6/7 penalties in a row, not even a warning.

[Heaf]

I think you can just hear him call maul virtually as soon as they land ... wether it was really a maul at that point is another thing.

[BigGee]

Italy have had their chances in this half but not taken them. France switched off as soon as they got the BP

Ireland and Wales won't be so generous when they play them. It will be interesting to see how they go with an away fixture

[Collapse2005]

Amazing try from Baptiste Serin

[Heaf]

I think Wales at home will be too much for them at this point ...

[Dirtydave]

Bellini totally switched off, then out paced, out muscled...

France get the rub of the green, at home as I think they got last week, but what a mess of a mindset! The old signs are still there, I don't see them winning away often

[BigGee]

Great individual try but Italy stood back and watched

It will go down as a big win for France but that won't tell the whole story of the match

[Heaf]

I would have liked to have seen the tackle when the ball shot backwards 20 yards - could have been a knock-on in the tackle surely?

[Collapse2005]

Great individual try but Italy stood back and watched

It will go down as a big win for France but that won't tell the whole story of the match

Yeah true

[SecretFly]

Any team that can look so lethargic for long stretches and still pick off those scores is a good team.

So they're a handful sure enough. Confidence levels charging their self belief might take them the whole way. Sometimes 'it's our year' seems to emanate from sides.

[SecretFly]

...I wasn't referring to Italy!

[Dirtydave]

Italy deserved that try, and after winning the second half maybe deserved a BP too...

France need a full 80 at high tempo to beat wales, if the Welsh defend so poorly it will be a very close game.

To be positive about Italy, some lovely tries, and some very nice attacking play.

[whocares]

No one in his right mind thinks that a team averaging a couple of caps per player would be a finished article ! Obviously Wales or Ireland with all their  experience, skills ,  gamesmanship or annoying ref talking would put this France team to the sword easily however the lack of intensity in the 2nd half is quite a worry for the future. the score was in the end quite flattering with France riding their luck while Italy deserved better (personally  Polledri is my man of the match).

[Dirtydave]

He is a quality operator isn't he!

[Guest]

I enjoyed that game but France don't like playing for 80 minutes do they. Ireland should beat them in Dublin.

[BigGee]

I enjoyed that game but France don't like playing for 80 minutes do they. Ireland should beat them in Dublin.

Unfortunately they are playing Ireland in Paris, last game. Could be a GS decider!

[SecretFly]

Wherever they play us, it'll be a tough old fight, as it tends to be.

[majesticimperialman]

Some great play today from France looking like the French of old when the like of Galtie,Pollose Manyour played. two wins from 2,2 bonus point wins France looking good so far for the Grand Slam.....if they keep playing like this who can stop them?

Italy though produced some good play of their own, but just not good enough in the end.

[Guest]

I enjoyed that game but France don't like playing for 80 minutes do they. Ireland should beat them in Dublin.

Unfortunately they are playing Ireland in Paris, last game. Could be a GS decider!

oh okay then that makes it more interesting.

[Heaf]

Some great play today from France looking like the French of  old when the like of Galtie,Pollose Manyour played. two wins from 2,2 bonus point wins France looking good so far for the Grand Slam.....if they keep playing like this who can stop them?

Italy though produced some good play of their own, but  just not good enough in the end.

2 bonus point wins?

[majesticimperialman]

Did they not get a bonus win against England and today against Italy?

That in my mind makes it 2 bonus point wins.

[No 7&1/2]

Nope.

[Sponsored content]