The match against Scotland on Saturday is “not just a test” for the players called up from the XV of France, assured the Blues winger Gabin Villière on Wednesday, three days before the first pre-season match. World Cup. “This match will serve to validate our four weeks of preparation. We go back to the match weeks so we have different weeks, it’s a way of starting this World Cup with matches that will be very important before the first group match, ”explained Villière.
“We will have to be ready, we will not have a second chance. We take these four matches very seriously: it starts in Scotland, we are all keen to show ourselves, to respond collectively, ”he said. “The players who are going to play are ready. The objective is to validate our weeks of work and seize opportunities. We want to put our system in place. It’s not just a test,” added the Toulon player.
Villière (27, 12 caps) is however a senior player of the XV of France and should therefore not play the match in Edinburgh on Saturday. According to the first lessons of training, the staff of the Blues should align a largely overhauled team with three neophytes, winger Louis Bielle-Biarrey, center Emilien Gailleton and third line Paul Boudehent. The composition will be announced on Thursday.
“It’s a preparation match, we want to do something interesting. It’s an international match, we know the level. They are fifth in the world. We wanted to prepare against them to have a good opposition, they are very strong in front”, added the pillar Jean-Baptiste Gros (24 years old, 21 sel.).
Before the shock against the All Blacks at the opening of the World Cup (September 8), the XV of France played four preparation matches: against Scotland (August 5 in Edinburgh, August 12 in Saint-Étienne), against Fiji (19 August in Nantes) and ahead of Australia (August 27 at the Stade de France). At the World Cup, the Blues will face New Zealand, Italy, Uruguay and Namibia in the group stage.
