France just might have been the least deserving World Cup Finalists ever, but with Philippe Saint André replacing crazy man Marc Lievremont, they’ll have a point to prove.
How’s the form?
On the surface, extremely good. After all, this is a team who suffered a one-point loss to a New Zealand team playing on home turf in a World Cup Final. That, however, only tells half the story.
Les Bleus were absolutely terrible at times back in the autumn and were the only team to qualify for the knockout stages having lost two games in the pool. They should also really have lost to a 14-man Wales side in the semis and it’s not as if the final itself was one for the ages.
Domestically, two teams from the Top 14 made it into the last eight of the Heineken Cup, even if European aristocrats Toulouse only made it by the skin of their teeth and thanks to some heroics at the Sportsground from Connacht.
Possibly the biggest factor in how France will go in this campaign is the fact that Philippe Saint-André and not the barmy Marc Lievremont will be calling the shots. He has to be a more stable influence than his predecessor and with three games at home, he could well mark his first Six Nations with a Championship trophy.
The Star:
Vincent Clerc. Given what he has done to us in the past, the man needs no introduction. One of the classiest finishers in the game and his face will be implanted in the nightmares of many an Irish player the night before we take them on in the Stade de France.
The Kit Kat Chunky Hard Yards Man:
As part of the Kit Kat Chunky Champion search for your favourite new Kit Kat Chunky favourite – you vote over here, by the way – we’re picking out a Chunky Hard Yards man from each of the Six Nations contenders. And Scotland.
Reigning IRB Player of the Year Thierry Dusautoir was outstanding during the World Cup, particularly in the final when he seemed to mount a one-man mission to cause the most unlikely of upsets.
Dusautoir and the similarly irrepressible Imanol Harinordoquy form quite the double act in the back row, a double act matched only by the Kit Kat Chunky Double Choc. That’s what we think anyway.
New Kid On The Block:
Wesley Fofana. The 24-year old Clermont centre will earn his first cap against Italy in the Six Nations opener this weekend and is tipped to have a big future. He’s not the tallest or the heaviest, but he’s quick and elusive and will need watching.
The WAG to watch: Florence Szarzewski
The wife of fancy dan hooker Dimitri Szarzewski.
The Dates:
4th Feb: v Italy (h)
11th Feb: v Ireland (h)
26th Feb: v Scotland (a)
10th March: v England (h)
17th March: v Wales (a)
If they were a Rocky film, they would be: Rocky 2: By the sum of their parts, they’re probably the second best of all the contenders (we’ve rather generously and possibly falsely figured that Ireland are the best), but they’ll end up winning in the end.
The JOE/Kit Kat Chunky Verdict:
First. They are helped massively by the fact that they have both England and Ireland at home and a squad that sometimes finds motivation hard to come by will be determined to make an impression in Saint André’s first year in charge.
Which is your favourite in the Kit Kat Chunky Champion search? You’re an Orange-loving type of fella, right? Or maybe it’s Peanut Butter? Or what about the Chocs, Double and White? You can vote for your favourite over at the Kit Kat Facebook page.
