France will go into their opening match of the RBS 6 Nations against Ireland on Saturday week with little experience at halfback after Jean-Baptiste Elissalde was surprisingly omitted from their trimmed-down 23-man squad. The scrumhalf was expected to be not only a starter at Croke Park but also the back-up to outhalf Lionel Beauxis.
But the Toulouse number nine failed to make the cut as head coach Marc Lievremont today trimmed his squad from the 30 he named last week for a training camp held over the past three days at France’s base in Marcoussis.
Bourgoin’s Morgan Parra and Castres’ Sebastien Tillous-Borde, who have only a handful of caps between them, have been preferred at scrum-half.
Biarritz backrow forward Imanol Harinordoquy, who was not part of that enlarged training squad as he recovered from a knee injury, has been drafted in
by Lievremont for the Ireland match but the main talking point was Elissalde’s omission.
“We know the talent, the dominance and the impact on the group of Jean-Baptiste. He can come back into the group at any time,” Lievremont said. “The non-selection of Jean-Baptiste reflects a little less the hierarchy as it does in other positions.
“We are going to give some game time and some experience to Morgan Parra and Sebastien Tillous-Borde.”
Lievremont added Yannick Jauzion or Parra would fill in at outhalf should anything happen to Beauxis, who is the only specialist outhalf in the squad.
Harinordoquy, whose club side have struggled this season, was one of France’s best players in autumn internationals against Argentina, the Pacific Islanders and Australia.
And with Lievremont stressing the need for continuity in his squads from now on, Harinordoquy was always likely to be called up once he proved his fitness.
He did so last Friday, playing 55 minutes in Biarritz’s Heineken Cup win over Gloucester.
“The training camp, though, has not been the be all and end all in terms of our choices,” Lievremont added. “The decisions were tricky but we said we were going to lean towards those who gave us satisfaction in the autumn.
“That explains the return of Imanol Harinordoquy, who on his return produced a convincing display for Biarritz.”
Julien Bonnaire and Damien Chouly are the back-rowers to make way for Harinordoquy.
Elsewhere, in-form Toulouse centre Florian Fritz is included even though he hasbeen struggling with a thigh problem this week.
He is one of three centres called up, along with Jauzion and Benoit Baby.
Toulouse fullback Clement Poitrenaud also makes the cut but is likely to play second fiddle to Maxime Medard, who is the man most likely to fill the number 15 jersey.
Centre Maxime Mermoz and wingers Aurelien Rougerie and Alexis Palisson are the backs to miss out while, in the forwards, hooker Guilhem Guirado and lock Jerome Thion will return to their clubs after failing to be selected.
Lievremont is under pressure to pick up results this tournament as he starts his second year in charge of Les Bleus.
He rotated his players in the 2008 Six Nations, France ending up finishing third in the table after losing to England and Wales.
Lievremont was also forced to experiment in the summer, with the tour to Australia clashing with the semi-finals of the Top 14 play-offs.
He went with what he believed to be his best squad for the November Tests and will do so again in the Six Nations, despite admitting the temporary exclusion of Elissalde was planned to give his other scrum-halves experience.
Lievremont is delighted with the players he has at his disposal for the Six Nations, but also believes the country has strength in depth, with the likes of David Skrela, Vincent Clerc, William Servat and Damien Traille ready to come back into the reckoning.
“The training camp went particularly well; the team spirit and the application was perfect. It is special to work with such a tight-knit group,” he said.
“But we also have a lot of other options.”
France host Scotland at the Stade de France a week after their opener against Ireland.
Backs: Maxime Medard, Clement Poitrenaud, Cedric Heymans (all Toulouse), Julien Malzieu (Clermont-Auvergne), Yannick Jauzion, Florian Fritz (both Toulouse), Benoit Baby (Clermont-Auvergne), Lionel Beauxis (Stade Francais), Sebastien Tillous-Borde (Castres), Morgan Parra (Bourgoin).
Forwards: Fabien Barcella (Biarritz), Lionel Faure (Sale), Fabien Lecouls (Toulouse), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Dimitri Szarzewski (Stade Francais), Benjamin Kayser (Leicester), Lionel Nallet (Castres), Romain Millo-Chluski (Toulouse), Sebastien Chabal (Sale), Imanol Harinordoquy (Biarritz), Fulgence Ouedraogo, Louis Picamoles (both Montpellier), Thierry Dusautoir (Toulouse).
