6N Preview: Scotland v France
Scotland will be desperate to secure their first victory of the Six Nations when they take on a formidable French outfit in their clash at Murrayfield on Sunday.
Scotland can win this one. They have done it before and were less fortunate than they needed be in their defeats at the hands of England and Wales, where their own lapses cost them dearly.
France, of course, are a powerhouse, just beaten finalists at the World Cup, but at Murrayfield on Sunday, Scotland could just win. It would be a shock to history if they did but surprises are the spice of sport.
Scotland have made more changes. They do this every match, which possibly is no help but they have ended with a team that looks livelier, perhaps even able to score tries! Mike Blair and young, exciting Stuart Hogg certainly made an impression against Wales, and coach Andy Robinson has given Hogg the freedom of the field.
France, on the other hand, have men who know how to get to the tryline – Aurélien Rougerie and Vincent Clerc above all. But they were only partially tested by Italy and not at all when their match against Ireland was postponed. Sensibly Philippe Saint-André has chosen the team that would have played against Ireland if Stade de France had had the ability to ward off the cold.
It is in fact hard to see where Scotland could possibly be stronger than France unless it is fired by heart and mind.
Players to watch: Clearly Stuart Hogg, the youngest Scottish fullback for 111 years and full of speed and enterprise and the Lamont brothers who can run so effectively. No.8 David Denton had a great start for Scotland but a less effective follow-up. How hard-working is he?
For France: Every one of the backs but perhaps especially big, strong, enterprising Julien Malzieu and newboy Wesley Fofana who had an excellent debut. Then, too, there is François Trinh-Duc, one of the most creative flyhalves in the world. It’s hard to see Greig Laidlaw making an impression against him. And then there is the silent assassin Thierry Dusautoir.
Head to Head: They take up positions at opposite ends of the field but both Stuart Hogg and Maxime Médard are players who can break a game open, Médard with the advantage of so much excellence about the place and Hogg with his youthful exuberance. At scrumhalf there is an interesting contrast between calm, deliberate Dimitri Yachvili of France and all-action Mike Blair of Scotland. Then there is the battle of the locks – skilled Richie Grey and combative Jim Hamilton against combative Pascal Papé and novice Yoann Maestri.
Recent results:
2011: France won 34-21 at Stade de France
2010: France won 18-9 at Murrayfield
2009: France won 22-13 at Stade de France
2008: France won 27-6 at Murrayfield
2007: France won 46-19 at Stade de France
2006: Scotland won 20-16 at Murrayfield
2005: France won 16-9 at Stade de France
2003: France won 31-0 at Murrayfield
2003: France won 51-9 at Stadium Australia, Sydney in the World Cup
2003: France won 38-3 at Stade de France
2002: France won 22-10 at Murrayfield
2001: France won 16-6 at Stade de France
Prediction: Of course, surprises are possible and even delightful, but we think that France will be just too skilled, too fast and too settled for Scotland and will win by 15 points or more.
The teams:
Scotland: 15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Rory Lamont, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Lee Jones, 10 Greig Laidlaw, 9 Mike Blair, 8 David Denton, 7 Ross Rennie, 6 John Barclay, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Ross Ford (captain), 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements: 16 Scott Lawson, 17 Ed Kalman, 18 Alastair Kellock, 19 Richie Vernon, 20 Chris Cusiter, 21 Duncan Weir, 22 Nick De Luca.
France: 15 Maxime Médard, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 Aurélien Rougerie, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Julien Malzieu, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Dimitri Yachvili, 8 Louis Picamoles, 7 Imanol Harinordoquy, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (captain), 5 Yoann Maestri, 4 Pascal Papé, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 Dimitri Szarzewski, 1 Jean-Baptiste Poux.
Replacements: 16 William Servat, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Lionel Nallet, 19 Julien Bonnaire, 20 Morgan Parra, 21 Lionel Beauxis, 22 Maxime Mermoz.
Date: Sunday, 26 February 2012
Kick-off: 15.00 (15.00 GMT)
Venue: Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Possible weather conditions: Foggy but fine with a high of 12°, dropping to 6°
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Alain Rolland (Ireland), Simon McDowell (Ireland)
TMO: Geoff Warren (England)
