England vs France RBS Six Nations Match Preview

by Ben

photo copyright of Bally

The loss against Scotland highlighted certain deficiencies in the game plan of England - namely there is no plan B. Andy Robinson has failed to make the big calls for the France game and as a result France must be hot favourites for a comfortable win.  Ben Cohen has offered little since his return to the international arena, and it is hard to see him troubling Rougerie as his game is about power with little guile. Matt Dawson has struggled of late to get into the Wasps team, and whilst his experience will be of benefit, France will know exactly what is coming at them. Matt Stevens gets a deserved recall following good performances in the first two matches of the season, but I for one doubt whether he will be able to stand up to a strong French pack all that well - probably the wrong match for Sheridan to be dropped for. The bench is also a problem - Dallaglio offers very little as a replacement for Corry, and perhaps Magnus Lund deserves a chance, simply because he offers a different type of ability to the three incumbents of the back-row. Voyce should be starting in place of Cohen, with Tom Varndell rewarded for an excellent performance against Josh Lewsey last weekend - his sheer pace would provide cause for concern for the French backline. So to the match-ups this weekend:

Front Row: Julian White will hope to gain the upper hand and prove once and for all his claims to be the best tighthead in the northern hemisphere, and alongside Thompson should do so. However Stevens' extra mobility has cost England in terms of power in the tight, and De Villiers should punish him. England just about have the upper hand.

Second Row: Grewcock and Borthwick have combined well, but given the experience of Pelous, and the emerging ability of Thion, they may well be outclassed. Simon Shaw offers England an option from the bench, but only if given a similar role to the one he fulfils at Wasps. France well clear.

Back Row: Corry and Lievremont offer an even match-up, but Corry needs a big performance to get rid of the doubts over his captaincy - Corry will win. Nyanga and Magne against Worsley and Moody, very even. Honourable draw.

Half backs: Hodgson has developed into the better 10 over the past year, but given the lack of imagination outside him, he could look like a flop. Dawson has the experience but Yachvili has the talent and intelligence to run rings around him. France ahead, just.

Centres: Tindall and Noon offer the same thing, and whilst being great at running the ball up, I doubt Fritz and Traille will be loosing sleep over their opposite numbers. Whilst the absence of the best centre in the world is obviously a loss, Laporte has stuck with some imagination which will prove the undoing of England. France on a different planet.

Back three: Lewsey suffered a dip in form last week against Leicester, but his class should see him through against anything France throw at him. Ditto Cueto. However Ben Cohen is the weak link, and will be troubled by either Castaignede, Rougerie or Dominici;

Whilst this is a very pessimistic outlook, I fear for England this Sunday - the French offer such creativity, that when combined with home support, I can't see England being in the mix come the final quarter. There is hope however if Moody can exert pressure on their fly-half from the set piece then France may fail to show up on the day.

The nucleus of a good England team is present, but unless Cohen, Dawson and Tindall are removed, and by that I mean from the squad entirely, England may as well not bother. Tom Voyce, Shaun Perry and James Simpson-Daniel offer so much more it hurts to think of the possibilities should they be included, and then given as much time to bed in as the current team have done. Hopefully Andy Robinson will actually learn a lesson this weekend, even though it's two weeks too late:

France 34 England 16 

France: T Castaignede, A Rougerie, F Fritz, D Traille, C Dominici; F Michalak, D Yachvili;  S Marconnet,   R Ibanez, P De Villiers; F Pelous (Captain),       J Thion,  Y Nyanga, O  Magne,  T Lievremont.
Replacements: D Szarzewski, O Milloud,  L Nallet,  J Bonnaire, J Elissalde,  L Valbon,  C Heymans.

England: Josh Lewsey, Mark Cueto, Jamie Noon, Mike Tindall, Ben Cohen, Charlie Hodgson, Matt Dawson, Matt Stevens, Steve Thompson, Julian White, Steve Borthwick, Danny Grewcock, Joe Worsley, Lewis Moody, Martin Corry (Captain).   

Replacements: Lee Mears, Andrew Sheridan, Simon Shaw, Lawrence Dallaglio, Harry Ellis, Andy Goode, Tom Voyce.

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