Worrying times for the Welsh, worrying times for anyone who has a game coming up against this French team in the coming weeks. They started the 2025 Six Nations by beating Wales 43-0, and they did it without coming anywhere near the tempo they’re capable of playing. The only blemish for the French was a red card for Romain Ntamack, who was sent off for a high tackle on Dan Edwards when there were ten minutes left to play. It didn’t make much difference this week, but, (who knows?) it may do next one, when they play England at Twickenham.
The Welsh looked awful small out there, surrounded by flames, fireworks, and the blindingly bright blue, red and white lights, while their handful of travelling fans were drowned out by the tens of thousands of French belting out an unaccompanied La Marseillaise. Their skipper Jac Morgan gathered them into a huddle, and did his best to steel them for what was to come. The French came at them hard in the opening moments, as Morgan surely warned they would, being ready for the blow, though, didn’t seem to make it too much easier to wear when it came. Within minutes, Morgan’s team was reeling.
Thomas Ramos kicked a 50-22, and a couple of phases later Antoine Dupont barreled his way over underneath the posts, hauling three Welsh tacklers with him as he dived across the line. One of them, Tom Rogers, managed to stop Dupont grounding the ball.
It was only a temporary reprieve. Soon enough, the French were back in the Welsh 22, this time when Paul Boudenhent hacked the ball on after it was spilled in midfield. He fumbled the pick up as he dived forwards, but Dupont scragged Ben Thomas as he attempted to clear the ball off the back of the ensuing scrum. Tomos Williams got the ball away at the second attempt, the French were soon right back on top of them. This time, Jean-Baptiste Gros was stopped just short of the line, but the ball came back to Dupont, who unlocked the defence with a wizardly little chip to Théo Attissogbé, unmarked on the right wing.
That was the first, then, and the second came soon after, made, this time, by Ramos’ basketball pass to put Louis Bielle-Biarrey through a gap in the midfield.
There was some good stuff from the Welsh in among it all, their scrum held up, Thomas seemed to have time and space to play in the midfield, and almost picked out Rogers with a cross-field kick in the French 22, Williams just about held his own against Dupont. They looked an altogether better side than the one that lost 12 games straight last year. But they were 14-0 down regardless, had already lost Aaron Wainwright, replaced by Tommy Reffell, and Owen Watkin to injuries, which meant they had to bring the uncapped Dan Edwards on at fly-half and move Thomas across to the centre to cover for him.
Worse yet, they went a man down after Evan Lloyd was sent to the sin-bin for a high tackle on Bielle-Biarrey. Attissogbé picked off another while Lloyd was off, made, again, by Dupont, who stormed up the middle of the pitch after stepping out a tackle like he was picking his feet over something left on the pavement by a careless dog walker. Bielle-Biarrey got a second too, after he turned Rogers inside out in three-square feet of space, and from a standing start at that, after the ball was flung out of a rolling maul. Forty minutes gone then, and the French had already scored their four and earned a bonus point.
The second half, then, had the air of an open training exercise for the French, who cruised through it while their bands played in the stands, and their fans chit-chatted about this and that. They ran through a defensive set after Wales won a penalty for offside on a rare foray into the French 22. They blew the opportunity when the French crushed their replacement front row in a scrum. That done, Fabien Galthé made six simultaneous substitutions in the 50th minute, and the rejuvenated French pack duly drove their way over from a line out for a fifth. Emilien Gailleton finished the sixth from a crossfield kick.
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Alldritt bullied his way over for the seventh, when the Welsh were, again, down to 14 men, this time it was Freddie Thomas who had been sent to the sin bin.
The Welsh kept at it. A scrap broke out when they thought they had mauled their way over after Ntamack’s dismissal. They’re a proud team, and getting better, but the truth is that in the years since they last won here, back in 2019, the French have pulled so far ahead that the gap between them is as good impassable for this Welsh side, or any other they’d be able to muster right now.
