France coach picks SA forward for All Black Tests

SQUAD ANNOUNCEMENT: Gael Fickou will captain an inexperienced France squad for their tour of New Zealand this July.

The reigning Six Nations champions will be missing many senior players for the tour, such as Gregory Alldritt.

Coach Fabien Galthie has called up 37 players for the three matches against New Zealand on July 5, 12 and 19.

However, the list will likely grow by up to five additional players following Saturday’s Top 14 final between Toulouse and Bordeaux-Begles.

One of the players called up is South African-born forward Jacobus van Tonder.

Van Tonder, who currently plays for Perpignan, was part of the France XV matchday squad that defeated an England XV 26-24 at Twickenham over the weekend.

He represented the Cheetahs at age-group level before he made his way to France, where he started with Clermont.

Van Tonder can play in the second row and the back row.

Meanwhile, Fickou skippered that France XV side last weekend, and, with 94 caps, the Racing 92 centre is the most experienced active French player.

For the tour of New Zealand, where France have not beaten the All Blacks since 2009, the 31-year-old will be tasked with bringing experience to a squad featuring 28 players with fewer than 10 caps.

Fickou will be joined by other international veterans, including prop Rabah Slimani and second row Romain Taofifenua.

But a number of others are absent, such as forwards Alldritt, Paul Boudehent and Jean-Baptiste Gros – either through injury or the decision to rest them.

The squad could be bolstered with the addition of the likes of Romain Ntamack, Thomas Ramos, Thibaud Flament, Damian Penaud and Louis Bielle-Biarrey from the two Top 14 finalists.

Some of these players could fly to the Southern Hemisphere after the final if they have not already used up the quota of 2,000 minutes played over the whole season set by the national team.

However, Galthie has been able to count on the players from defeated semifinalists Bayonne and Toulon, notably Bayonne flyhalf Joris Segonds, Toulon flank Esteban Abadie and wing Gabin Villiere.

France squad for the New Zealand tour:

Forwards (21): Esteban Abadie (Toulon) Hugo Auradou (Pau), Demba Bamba (Racing 92), Gaetan Barlot (Castres), Giorgi Beria (Perpignan), Pierre Bourgarit (La Rochelle), Georges-Henri Colombe (La Rochelle), Tyler Duguid (Montpellier), Baptiste Erdocio (Montpellier), Alexandre Fischer (Clermont), Mickael Guillard (Lyon), Matthias Halagahu (Toulon), Paul Mallez (Provence), Guillaume Marchand (Lyon), Regis Montagne (Clermont), Rabah Slimani (Leinster), Romain Taofifenua (Racing 92), Killian Tixeront (Clermont), Jacobus van Tonder (Perpignan), Theo William (Lyon), Cameron Woki (Racing 92)

Backs (16): Theo Attissogbe (Pau), Leo Barre (Stade Francais), Leo Berdeu (Lyon), Leon Darricarrere (Clermont), Thibault Daubagna (Pau), Alivereti Duguivalu (Perpignan), Gael Fickou (Racing 92), Emilien Gailleton (Pau), Antoine Hastoy (La Rochelle), Baptiste Jauneau (Clermont), Nolann Le Garrec (Racing 92), Theo Millet (Lyon), Joris Segonds (Bayonne), Tom Spring (Bayonne), Cheikh Tiberghien (Bayonne), Gabin Villiere (Toulon)