Experienced duo left out of France’s World Cup squad

Toulon centre Mathieu Bastareaud and Clermont scrum-half Morgan Parra have been left out of France’s squad for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

Les Bleus head coach Jacques Brunel named a 37-man squad for the global showpiece which begins on September 20 but left out the experienced duo along with Racing 92 wing Teddy Thomas and La Rochelle prop Uini Atonio.

30-year-old Bastareaud, who has played in 54 Tests for France, captained his country in the absence of first-choice skipper Guilhem Guirado. Parra, who is also 30 and has won 71 international caps, is sidelined with an ankle injury sustained while playing in a club match last month.

Brunel and his backroom staff, which includes his successor, Fabien Galthie, who serves as a consultant, did not include Bastareaud and Parra in his list of 31 players plus six standby players.

Clermont wing Alivereti Raka, Toulouse hooker Peato Mauvaka and Toulon prop Emerick Setiano are the three uncapped players in the squad. Top 14 champions Toulouse lead the way with seven representatives in the main squad.

Amongst those are Sofiane Guitoune, who won his last Test cap in 2015.

Brunel said Guitoune’s form was one of the reasons for Bastareaud’s omission.

“He [Bastareaud] is in a position full of competition with players in form,” he told the BBC.

“I’m thinking of Sofiane Guitoune who has been very good.

“I wasn’t sure if Guitoune could keep up his form during the whole season but he did.”

France squad

Forwards: Gregory Alldritt, Demba Bamba, Yacouba Camara, Camille Chat, Paul Gabrillagues, Guilhem Guirado, Arthur Iturria, Felix Lambey, Wenceslas Lauret, Bernard Le Roux, Peato Mauvaka, Jefferson Poirot, Louis Picamoles, Dany Priso, Emerick Setiano, Rabah Slimani, Sebastien Vahaamahina

Backs: Geoffrey Doumayrou, Antoine Dupont, Gael Fickou, Wesley Fofana, Sofiane Guitoune, Yoann Huget, Camille Lopez, Maxime Machenaud, Maxime Medard, Romain Ntamack, Damian Penaud, Alivereti Raka, Thomas Ramos, Baptiste Serin

Standby players: Anthony Belleau, Francois Cros, Etienne Falgoux, Charles Ollivon, Vincent Rattez, Paul Willemse