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Picamoles 'fed up' with French defeats

In a tight clash, France paid for Baptiste Serin's sin-binning midway through the second half, conceding 10 points during that period before falling to a narrow 17-18 defeat.

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And having now lost 13 of 20 Tests over the last two years since Guy Noves took charge, Picamoles said it's starting to get to him.

"It's hard to digest because it's a match we should have won and we lost because of too many mistakes," said the Montpellier No.8.

"It's starting to get annoying because we keep making life harder for ourselves.

"South Africa were takeable, but in certain key moments we made mistakes.

"No-one's giving us presents but we keep giving them away.

"We're disappointed, we're angry because we're fed up with losing."

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Saturday's defeat at the Stade de France could prove costly as Picamoles and flanker Kevin Gourdon both suffered a twisted ankle in the first five minutes.

Picamoles finished the match but Gourdon came off after 53 minutes and is considered a major doubt for next week's final autumn Test against Japan, hosts of the next World Cup in 2019.

Lock Paul Gabrillagues lasted only five minutes against the Boks before heading off for a head injury assessment and never returning to the field.

He will undergo more tests before he can be passed fit to play.

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Saturday's clash will be the first on the new synthetic pitch at the Nanterre Arena, just to the west of Paris, that will forthwith become the new home of 2016 Top 14 champions Racing 92.

Agence France-Presse

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