The second match in week three of the 2023 Rugby World Cup will see France look to take a step closer to the knockout stages of the competition when they take on Namibia at Stade Velodrome on Thursday evening.
France currently lead Pool A with eight points after their first two matches, while the Namibians are currently at the bottom of the standings, having suffered two big defeats in their opening fixtures.
Match preview
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The hosts secured their second win of the tournament, beating Uruguay 27-12 last week, with Antoine Hastoy, Peato Mauvaka, and Louis Bielle-Biarrey all getting over the try line while Melvyn Jaminet added 12 points with the boot.
While the margin of victory may suggest that it was a relatively easy win for the French, that was far from the case as the South Americans surprised most onlookers with an incredibly spirited performance and were the better side for large parts of the match.
Fabien Galthie will undoubtedly demand more of his troops in this one, and it is unsurprising to see the France head coach announce what many consider a full-strength side against the Namibians this week.
Despite maintaining a perfect record in the competition, Les Bleus have not earned a single bonus point as yet, and their team selection suggests that they are looking to change that with a big win here.
From a French perspective, a ruthless performance is probably also necessary to send a message to the rest of the teams in the competition, having already seen the likes of Ireland and South Africa put up massive scorelines over the last couple of weeks.
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Meanwhile, after losing 52-8 to Italy in their opening match of the competition, Namibia were handed another hefty beating last week, this time by the All Blacks, who ran out as 71-3 winners by the end of the match.
In a lopsided encounter, the Welwitschias had no answer to the power of the New Zealanders, and they were simply outclassed on the day as their opponents crossed the try line a whopping 11 times.
As a result, Allister Coetzee's side now have the second-worst points difference in the tournament at -112, with only Romania faring worse, currently at -150.
It has been a tough time for the Nambians in France, having faced two tier-one nations already, and unfortunately for the side from Southern Africa, Les Bleus are likely to add to their woes in this one.
France Rugby World Cup form:
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- W
France form (all competitions):
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- W
Namibia Rugby World Cup form:
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Namibia form (all competitions):
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- W
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- W
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- L
Team News
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As mentioned, Galthie has made wholesale changes to his side this week, announcing 12 changes from the team he put out in their tame performance against Uruguay.
The major headline for the French is the return of Jonathan Danty and Cyril Baille, who were both at risk of missing out on the competition through injury.
Bielle-Biarrey will retain his place at the expense of Gabin Villiere, while Anthony Jelonch also keeps his spot at number eight, with Gregory Alldritt picking up a knock in the week.
Coetzee has opted for nine changes to his side, with one of those being an enforced switch due to the horrific ankle injury of Le Roux Malan against the All Blacks last week.
Desiderius Sethie and Louis van der Westhuizen are brought into the front row, with Mahepisa Tjeriko and France-based Adriaan Ludick returning to the second row for this match.
Jacques Theron will make his first start of the World Cup at scrum-half, and Cliven Loubser will move from fullback to join him in the halves pairing, with Andre van den Berg taking the number 15 jersey.
France starting lineup: 15. Thomas Ramos, 14. Damian Penaud, 13. Gael Fickou, 12. Jonathan Danty, 11. Louis Bielle-Biarry, 10. Matthieu Jalibert, 9. Antoine Dupont (c), 8. Anthony Jelonch, 7. Charles Ollivon, 6. Francois Cros, 5. Thibaud Flament, 4. Cameron Woki, 3. Uini Atonio, 2. Peato Mauvaka, 1. Cyril Baille
Replacements: 16. Pierre Bourgarit, 17. Reda Wardi, 18. Dorian Aldegheri, 19. Romain Taofifenua, 20. Paul Boudehent, 21. Baptiste Couilloud, 22. Yoram Moefana, 23. Melvyn Jaminet
Namibia starting lineup: 15. Andre van den Berg, 14. Gerswin Mouton, 13. Johan Deysel (c), 12. Danco Burger, 11. JC Greyling, 10. Cliven Loubser, 9. Jacques Theron, 8. Prince Gaoseb, 7. Johan Retief, 6. Max Katjijeko, 5. Adriaan Ludick, 4. Mahepisa Tjeriko, 3. Aranos Coetzee, 2. Louis van der Westhuizen, 1. Desiderius Sethie
Replacements: 16. Obert Nortje, 17. Jason Benade, 18. Haitembu Shikufa, 19. Pieter-Jan van Lil, 20. Richard Hardwick, 21. Oela Blaauw, 22. Alcino Izaacs, 23. Divan Rossouw
Head To Head
These sides have only met twice in the past, and France have won on both occasions. The first meeting ended 47-13 at the 1999 RWC, and the second was an 87-10 victory for Les Bleus at the 2007 RWC.
We say: France 78-6 Namibia
France have announced their intentions for this match by selecting a team packed with players that would arguably start the World Cup final if they reached it. For Namibia, that spells bad news as they will know that Les Bleus are eyeing up a big scoreline in this one.
Unfortunately, they may not be able to do much to stop their opponents from securing what we feel will be an easy win in the region of a 70-point margin.
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