Lièvremont defends 'Les enfants'
Sat, 21 Jun 2008 12:49
Leading light: French captain Lionel Nallet
French coach Mark Lièvremont defended the make-up of his youthful side as it held its first training session on Saturday a week before the first of two Tests against Australia.
Only seven 'Les Bleus' players from the Six Nations tournament earlier this year are in Australia for the two matches - in Sydney next Saturday and Brisbane on July 5 - and nearly half the 26-man squad comprises uncapped players.
"It's a young team but with a lot of talented players, they all play in top level clubs in France," Lièvremont said.
"So we have had to manage with the championship still going on but I think we bring a very consistent team and we're looking forward to the game on Saturday".
Lièvremont dismissed any suggestion that the Wallabies would be disadvantaged by lack of match practice. Australia played its first test of the year last Saturday, beating Ireland 18-12 in Melbourne.
"We know the Aussie team is fresher than us because we had a long season, 12 months," he said.
"On the collective game, we're missing a bit of practice together,probably because we only have seven players from the Six Nations. But we've got 10 days to prepare for this game and we're going to prepare well".
France had a session for its backs on Saturday morning, and the entire squad trained later.
France captain Lionel Nallet said he and his teammates were focused on playing well against the Wallabies.
"I think if there's a key to the game that could give problems to Australia, it's in the forwards," he said.
"We are here to challenge the Aussie team and most of the players who are in the squad will be happy to show that they are able to play at that level".
Nallet said the upcoming games were not only important for the younger players trying to establish themselves in the national team, but also for experienced players like himself.
"It's the first time I'm coming to Australia so I want to perform," he said.
