Player Ratings: France

OPINION: France arrived looking to build on last week’s eight-try demolition of Fiji, and for 50 minutes they looked capable of doing just that against the world champion Springboks.

In a breathless, chaotic contest played at a level of intensity that bordered on the absurd, Fabien Galthie’s side surged into a 21-7 lead and appeared in complete control.

Then came the brainrot. A yellow card for Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang, a missed Maxime Lucu penalty and the inevitable South African maul and scrum pressure turned what should have been a comfortable win into a white-knuckle finish. Somehow, despite repeatedly threatening to throw it away, France held on for a dramatic 21-19 victory.

Continues below…

See below for the France Player Ratings:

15 Theo Attissogbe 
A night that perfectly summed up Attissogbe. The Pau speedster showed razor-sharp reactions to pounce after Kalvin Gourgues inadvertently wore the ball in the face and gifted him a try-scoring chance. But there was plenty of sloppiness mixed in with the brilliance. A careless pass in 54 minutes piled pressure on France, and his needless kick in 74 minutes handed possession straight back when game management was needed.
7/10

14 Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang
Looked electric whenever he got the ball in hand. Produced an early half-break before being bundled into touch and later finished superbly in the corner after initially being smothered by the Springbok defence. Took a brilliant mark on 21 minutes and a huge aerial catch late on. The yellow card for slapping the ball down at 49 minutes was a massive momentum shift, though, and knocked him down a mark.
7/10

13 Kalvin Gourgues
A difficult player to score because he was equal parts brilliant and infuriating. Produced a classy break and some lovely attacking touches, while his accidental assist for Attissogbe’s try will live long in the memory. Kicked badly at key moments, missed touch twice and committed too many unforced errors. There is a serious player in there, but France did not always get the polished version.
6.5/10

12 Yoram Moefana
A quieter outing from the centre against heavyweight opposition. Missed three tackles and was fortunate not to be punished after appearing to get away with a slap-down attempt around the hour mark. Didn’t have many opportunities with the ball in hand and never quite imposed himself on proceedings. His surge when moonlighting as a No.8 was impressive.
6/10

11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey 
Did everything asked of him and always looked dangerous. Worked tirelessly to involve himself, won a high ball impressively and scored a superb try after Antoine Dupont’s perfectly weighted grubber. South Africa rarely looked comfortable when he was lurking around the ball and his threat persisted right until the final whistle.
8/10

10 Antoine Dupont 
Nominally wearing 10 but spent large parts of the opening stages playing scrum-half anyway. It hardly mattered because he was comfortably the best back on the pitch. Produced a gorgeous crossfield kick, an astonishing 50:22 and the perfect grubber for Bielle-Biarrey’s try. Also popped up at the bottom of a crucial hold-up on Pieter-Steph du Toit. France’s injury crisis at fly-half barely seemed relevant with Dupont playing like this.
9.5/10

9 Maxime Lucu 
A hugely mixed evening. Took a fearful hit from high tackle specialist Lood de Jager, with the South African eventually seeing yellow after review. Nailed a difficult touchline conversion but was harshly carded himself for a passive tackle on Sacha Feinberg-Mngomezulu after the Bok fly-half dropped his height. The missed penalty on 66 minutes that would have stretched the lead felt enormous at the time and invited South Africa back into the contest.

8 Gregory Alldritt 
Back in the French side after a long absence and immediately reminded everyone of his value. Produced an outrageous turnover to launch an early attack and remained influential throughout. Missed a few tackles and wasn’t flawless, but France looked better for having him back in blue.
7.5/10

7 Cameron Woki 
Poppped up everywhere like a bad smell, in the very best sense of the phrase. His break after Alldritt’s turnover was one of the moments that ignited the French attack, while his work-rate around the field never dipped. Typical Woki performance full of energy and nuisance value.
7/10

6 Francois Cros 
Classic Cros. Snaffled a loose ball under immense pressure on 47 minutes and made a huge tackle on Mannie Libbok late on when the game was hanging in the balance. Not flashy, rarely celebrated, but relentlessly effective. Exactly the type of flanker you want in a scrap like this.
8/10

5 Mickael Guillard 
Started strongly in defence and somehow beat three Springbok defenders in the opening half alone, which is not something many forwards can claim. A rare athlete capable of swimming through South African traffic. Combined physicality with genuine mobility and helped France stay on the front foot for long periods.
7.5/10

4 Florian Verhaeghe 
Outstanding. He may not possess the size of some second-row enforcers but he more than compensated through effort, intelligence and accuracy. Excellent in the lineout, superb in the air and his tackling was consistently first class. One of those performances that does not generate headlines but wins Test matches.
8.5/10

3 Sipili Falatea 
A rough evening. France were demolished in the opening scrum and Falatea bore much of the punishment, although the home side may feel a few calls went against them. Gerhard Steenekamp gave him a torrid examination and there were several uncomfortable moments at scrum time. To his credit he kept battling, producing a decent break late on, but was then stripped in contact and conceded a crucial penalty.
5/10

2 Peato Mauvaka 
Officially wearing 16 after a late reshuffle but starting the game, and what an impact he made. Produced a brilliant strip in the tackle inside two minutes, repeatedly beat defenders when carrying and sparked France’s third try with a remarkably sharp break through the ruck. One of France’s most dynamic performers from start to finish.
8/10

1 Jean-Baptiste Gros
Two strong early carries helped settle French nerves after a difficult opening scrum. Conceded a couple of penalties and was under considerable pressure from Thomas du Toit and company at set-piece time, but he continued to contribute effectively around the park and never stopped working.
6.5/10

Replacements – 4
The bench simply couldn’t live with South Africa’s Bomb Squad. Rodrigue Neti struggled at scrum time, Regis Montagne’s yellow card compounded France’s discipline problems and the replacement pack was battered at set-piece. Esteban Capilla at least landed a thumping tackle, while Tom Staniforth worked hard enough without ever looking truly international class. France won despite their bench contribution rather than because of it.