St Denis, where once French kings were put to rest, is fast becoming the burial place for hopes of the country's rugby team. Yesterday morning L'Equipe took up the theme with the headline "Buried in a Black Hole" lamenting from Paris's news stands yet another home defeat.
Since France moved across the city to their state-of-the-art home before the football World Cup in 1998 life has gone pear-shaped for the oval ball men. France have lost seven games here and been beaten for the second successive weekend by Southern Hemisphere visitors.
When this game finally ended at 10.30 on Saturday night, the boos and catcalls from a crowd of close on 80,000 could probably have been heard at an echoing Parc des Princes. And the French fans' frustration was once more not just directed at their team.
The name Eriksson may be synonymous with a rebirth in football circles, but Wayne Erickson strangled the life from this game. The Australian referee, as well as blowing for every trifling technical offence, showed his customary lack of empathy for the game with his schoolmasterly approach. He also awarded two tries which clearly were not tries and his crucial fussy intervention seven minutes after the break turned the game.
France, then 18-12 down in a game dominated by the kickers Christophe Lamaison and Andrew Mehrtens, drove into All Black territory with a series of rucks only for Erickson to penalise them their pack for going over the top. There was a split-second of head-shaking by the French, but it was enough for Christian Cullen to tap a penalty close to his 22 and prise open the home defence with a typical counter-attack. The full-back off-loaded to Tana Umaga, who gave his wing Doug Howlett the chance of an overlap down the right flank and a try under the posts. Mehrtens converted, and at 25-12 it was bon nuit France and will the last supporter turn out the lights.
With Erickson also awarding Cullen a late try when he took a clear forward pass from Jonah Lomu when the giant wing had been brought to ground, it is unlikely the referee will be awarded the legion d'honneur. True he awarded France an equally dodgy try with the last move of the game when France's captain Fabien Pelous appeared not to have grounded the ball when the French were laying siege to the visitors' line. But by the then the game was over. For both teams, who have contested some of the most stirring internationals in history during the last decade, Erickson's display was deeply mystifying.
Wayne Smith, the All Blacks coach, would not be drawn into criticising the referee, content with a win in a match that the All Blacks had entered with some trepidation. Their young pack overcame their problems at the scrum where they were often back-pedalling and Mehrtens confirmed his ranking as the best out-half in the world. Not only did his 29 points gradually sap the spirit of the French, but he attacked intelligently and erased the memory of last year's World Cup defeat by France when he was out-played by Lamaison.
For France, Xavier Garbajosa performed brilliantly at full-back and Philippe Bernat-Salles scored a cracking late try. Their coach Bernard Laporte has named an unchanged squad for the second Test in Marseille this weekend, but the professorial Laporte must return to his test-tubes and find a winning formula fast.
The All Blacks got a boost yesterday ahead of next Saturday's second and final test with France when it was revealed that Lomu would be fit to play.
All Blacks coach Smith said that Lomu, who had a relatively subdued game on Saturday, had a scan on a cheekbone injury. "Fortunately he got the all clear," Smith said.
Smith added that lock Norm Maxwell would also be available for selection despite suffering a large cut above his left eyebrow which forced him off the pitch in the firsthalf and he never returned.
"Norm and Daryl Gibson had a clash of heads and Norm came off worse," the 42year-old former All Black centre said.
"Norm has had 10 stitches inserted into the wound and Daryl had eight but they will both be fit."
Scorers: France - Tries: Bernat-Salles, Pelous. Conversions: Lamaison 2. Penalties: Lamaison 4. New Zealand - Tries: Howlett, Cullen. Conversion: Mehrtens. Penalties: Mehrtens 9.
FRANCE: Garbajosa; Lombard, Dourthe, Comba, Bory; Lamaison, Galthie; Marconnet, Landreau, Califano, Auradou, Pelous (capt), Moni, Magne, Juillet. Replacements: BernatSalles for Lombard 50 mins; De Villierts for Califano, Betsen for Moni both 58 mins; Brouzet for Auradou 70 mins.
NEW ZEALAND: Cullen; Howlett, Umaga, Gibson, Lomu; Mehrtens, Marshall; Feek, Oliver, Somerville, Blackadder, Maxwell Thorne, Robertson, Cribb. Replacements: Flavell for Maxwell 29 mins; Spencer for Gibson, Slater for Somerville both 68 mins.
Referee: W Erickson (Australia).
