France team arrives in Cape Town
Jo Maso confident that French have brought 'strongest team'
France team manager Jo Maso is convinced that he has brought their strongest team – with one or two exceptions – to Cape Town for the one-off Test match against South Africa in Cape Town on Saturday.
Speaking at the team hotel after the players had flushed out their flight fatigue with a light training session, Maso spoke both confidently and pragmatically of the task ahead, as the French strive to become the first team to win in South Africa for 13 matches.
"We know that South Africa are tough and the have the ability to play expansive rugby – as do we," said Maso.
"Jake White can be very proud of his record, it will not be easy against this team.
"We hope to bring this to the game on Saturday and offer the spectators a good hard game of rugby."
For France, the Test against Romania last week – which the French won at a canter – and the one against the Boks this week are crucial in terms of choosing a squad for the World Cup next year.
"We are hosts of the World Cup next year, and we are looking for the team that can win it," said Maso.
"There are still 10 games to go, and we have to start narrowing down the choices.
"So we are taking this very seriously as it is crucial in terms of deciding the squad for the World Cup.
"Apart from two or three injured players, like Michalak, we have brought with us the best team we could have brought together."
The team will not be announced until Wednesday, but speculation is rife that Damien Traille will fill the hole left by Michalak at number ten, rather than last weekend's incumbent Thomas Castaignède.
"It is interesting for us to have Damien Traille as a fly-half for this match," said Maso.
"Thomas can play in all positions, he is a utility back, and we think his best position is at number fifteen."
It has been a long season, and an arduous journey for the French, who travelled overnight on Sunday from Bucharest. It is hardly ideal preparation before a big match, arriving five days before after a 17-hour flight, but Maso made light of the hectic schedule.
"In the professional era, we have become used to getting long distances and playing matches within one week, so the journey has not been a problem for us," he shrugged.
"It has also been a long season, but as professionals, that should not be a problem for us either.
"We will be working much more on technical skills and recovery this week, and that will help us be in the right shape for the game.
"It [the Romania match] was a good opportunity for us to get the team together after a separation of two or three months. We needed to have an easy game for this, because we know the game will not be so easy on Saturday.
"Generally I was very happy with the team performance on Saturday.
"We were particularly happy with the way the players approached the game. We are not always known to approach the game in a perfect manner, so we are very happy that this time the team was completely focused."
