Why is Grégory Alldritt not on the scoresheet against Namibia? Fabien Galthié: During training on Monday, he felt a little discomfort in his knee. With his agreement, we chose to take it easy. He will be treated to play 100% in the next match for the France team.
Why did you start Louis Bielle-Biarrey on the wing rather than Gabin Villière? Quite simply his performances. Since he has been with us, they have been very good. So he deserves to wear the jersey again. He came to pick him up, being present at each outing.
Does this mean that Villière has demoted in the hierarchy?Ah no! Please. It’s not a buzzword, it’s a fallacy. Pay attention to the vocabulary you use… We don’t use this word. There is healthy emulation. As part of the rotation, we chose other players. But it’s a group where everyone is important, where we need everyone.
How much do the returns of Jelonch, Baille and Danty change the potential of your team? You will see it… Each individual brings their potential to the team. (Regarding Baille and Danty) For four years, they have regularly started with us. They are in all battles. They are very important players for the France team, in their position and through their experience.
Cameron Woki is the only player started in the first three matches? For what reasons? There were still rotations during the matches… Cameron needs to find his bearings compared to his last season. He’s in good shape, he’s good. There are different profiles and he is a player who can move on easily.
Was this return of managers against Namibia planned for a long time or is it linked to the performance of the second team against Uruguay? We can hear the debate around the team compositions. I will be as clear as possible. We compose our teams by the week. The day after the match, the team building mechanics begin. Each member of the staff poses their team and I summarize day after day based on their feelings. There is no long-term forecast of compositions. We have a vision of the composition of course. We monitor rotations, playing times. We of course look at performances, we work on emulation because we need everyone. We had an idea for the start of the competition, this match against the All Blacks which was identified for us. We fielded our best team at the moment. This match was a success for the whole group, not just those on the pitch. And we had a second match six days later with a trip to Lille. It was clear that the players who had faced the All Blacks needed to recover. We therefore formed a team with the group which works by managing potential. The players generally know two days after the previous match if they are going to start because we need to work with benchmarks. After the match in Lille, we had a seven-day week. With the possibility of a classic rotation, giving the winners of the All Blacks. This is the choice we made the day after the match against Uruguay. But there is no reaction, no change of direction, as I heard. Our method is based on adaptability. We read according to deadlines. You know, it’s Darwin’s theory: it’s not the strongest and most intelligent species that survive, but those that adapt. We try to follow his advice…
What do you expect from the atmosphere at the Vélodrome stadium in Marseille? I’m a fan, I love it! I only have good memories of the Vélodrome. The All Blacks, England, Australia, South Africa as a player. As coach of Montpellier, the semi-final of the Top 14 against Racing. As coach of the French XV, our victory against the Springboks… I will tell you an anecdote. In 2000, we played for the first time in this legendary Vélodrome against the All Blacks. We get lost, the bus can’t find the stadium. We go down half an hour before kick-off. And we arrive in a hall where there is a Société Générale reception! We had the bags. People were happy, they gave us a standing ovation… We got back on the bus and changed inside. And we finally arrived in the locker room a quarter of an hour before kick-off. As we didn’t have time to warm up, we had the idea of walking around the pitch slowly, along the touchline. There was such fervor, such heat that when we entered the locker room, we were hot. And, after a quarter of an hour, we were leading 17-0…
Comments collected at a press conference