France player ratings: Gael Fickou’s defensive brilliance gets Les Bleus out of jail
©PHOTOPQR/LE PARISIEN/Olivier Corsan ; Saint-Denis ; 26/02/2023 ; Stade de France, Saint-Denis, 93, France, le 26 février 2023 3e journée du tournoi de rugby des six nations France / Ecosse Victoire joie France - Gael Fickou, Charles Ollivon, Antoine Dupont Photo : LP / Olivier Corsan - Stade de France, Saint denis, France, feb 26th 2023. Rugby VI nationls tournament - Francs vs Scotland
Following a 32-21 victory over Scotland in their Six Nations Test at the Stade de France on Sunday, here are the player ratings for France.
15 Thomas Ramos: Scored an intercept try, made metres with ball in hand and kicked well off the tee. 7
14 Damian Penaud: When he had the ball, Penaud made ground, but France were generally starved of possession. 6
13 Gael Fickou: The defensive master was key for Les Bleus, organising and tackling, eventually finishing with 15 hits and none missed. 8
12 Yoram Moefana: Did well without the ball alongside Fickou. His decision-making was off at times in possession. 6
11 Ethan Dumortier: Slightly more prominent than Penaud, bagging himself a try and causing Scotland problems. 7
10 Romain Ntamack: We’re still not convinced about Ntamack. He has not been great for a while, and it is time for Matthieu Jalibert to get a chance. 5
9 Antoine Dupont (c): Brilliant yet again, with and without the ball. Injected tempo, box-kicked well and made some key defensive interventions. 8
🤤 Antoine Dupont's ankle tap.#GuinnessSixNations #FRAvSCO pic.twitter.com/vyZ4GFMfKj
— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) February 26, 2023
Big shifts in defence from forwards
8 Gregory Alldritt: Sacrificed following Mohamed Haouas’ red card, so didn’t get any chance to impact the match. N/A
7 Charles Ollivon: Has been quiet this Six Nations but was much more effective here. Carried hard and defended superbly. 8
6 Anthony Jelonch: Had to go off after being the victim of Grant Gilchrist’s high shot. He then came back on only to suffer a leg injury soon after. N/A
5 Paul Willemse: A physical presence but conceded some needless penalties and didn’t always make the impact he wanted or France needed. 5
4 Thibaud Flament: Outshone his lock partner. Good on restarts and in lineout, playing the full 80. 7
3 Mohamed Haouas: Arguably playing for his France future in this game and didn’t do himself any favours. The ‘headbutt’ on Ben White was utterly brainless. 2
2 Julien Marchand: Not the impact he usually has at the breakdown, but he was one of France’s top tacklers. 7
1 Cyril Baille: One of France’s best carriers as he constantly made ground. Also, scrummaged much better than in the past two matches. 7
Replacements: Sipili Falatea and Francois Cros had long stints on the field and were excellent, while Romain Taofifenua also made an impact when he came on. 8