15 - Jean-Luc Sadourny. Age 31. 59 caps. Height 1.81 metres. Weight 80 kgs. Faced a daunting task after replacing Serge Blanco, arguably the best French fullback of all time. Quickly lived up to the challenge and looks set, like his predecessor, to keep his post until he retires. Will always be remembered for the "try from the end of the world" when France defeated New Zealand in July, 1994.

14 - Philippe Bernat-Salles. Age 28. 15 caps. 1.80 metres. 81 kgs. Injuries to David Venditti, Philippe Saint-Andre and Sebastien Carrat combined with the poor form of Laurent Leflamand gave the Pau winger Bernat-Salles another chance against England. Took it with relish scoring the first French try and was even better against Scotland, scoring two tries and cutting through the Scots' defence seemingly at will.

13 - Christophe Lamaison. Age 26. 14 caps. 1.80 metres. 85 kgs. Emerged last season as the most gifted player in French rugby for years. A solid centre who can play at out-half, he brought some stability into the French team thanks to his goalkicking consistency. Outstanding match against Scotland last year when his 24 points equalled the individual record for a Five Nations match. This season he scored 111 points as Brive reached the final of the European Cup.

12 - Stephane Glas. Age 24. 17 caps. 1.77 metres, 78 kgs. Young, gifted and fast, Glas is one of the up-and-coming stars of the French back line. Always at his best in tough matches, he has slowly recovered from a collarbone injury which forced him out of the French championship final last season. Won his first cap as a temporary replacement for Thierry Lacroix at Murrayfield two years ago.

11 - Xavier Garbajosa. Age 21. Debut. 1.88 metres. 88 kgs. Top joint scorer in this season's European Cup with seven, playing a significant part in Toulouse's advance to the semi-finals. Wins his first cap after the withdrawal of Christophe Dominici with a broken hand.

10 - Thomas Castaignede. Age 22. 15 caps. 1.74 metres. 79 kgs. A wonderful display against England re-established the Castres out-half as the golden boy of French rugby. Has limited number of caps, mainly as centre, owing to injuries. Peroxided his hair before the England game. Took over the goalkicking role against Scotland when Lamaison was forced to leave the field.

9 - Philippe Carbonneau. Age 26. 20 caps. 1.72 metres. 80 kgs. A towering game against the English established the Brive captain indisputably as France's number one scrum-half. Dropped earlier in the season for disciplinary reasons but, with his good understanding with Castaignede, now forms a crucial link in the French chain. Scored a cheeky try against Scotland after stealing the ball off the opposition.

8 - Thomas Lievremont. Age 24. Three caps. 1.88 metres. 106 kgs. The powerful Lievremont had the tough task of replacing injured Abdel Benazzi for the England game but played splendidly. He belongs to a real dynasty with seven brothers playing rugby, four in the French first division, including Marc, who joined him the back row for the Scotland match.

7 - Olivier Magne. Age 24. 10 caps. 1.8 metres. 95 kgs. Shot to fame last season by stepping in for the injured Laurent Cabannes and Philippe Benetton. Played superlatively against Scotland, running like a back in the loose and set up Bernat-Salles's second try with a perfectly judged chip kick.

6 - Marc Lievremont. Age 29. 11 caps. 1.82 metres. 89 kgs. The oldest of seven rugby-playing brothers and sisters, he joined Thomas against Scotland to form the first fraternal pair to start in a French team since Walter and Claude Spanghero featured in the early 1970s. Celebrated with two tries. Made his debut in 1995 but has been seen mostly as a replacement since then. Tough tackling display against England after coming on for Philippe Benetton earned him a start at Murrayfield.

5 - FAbien Pelous. Age 24. 27 caps. 1.98 metres. 108 kgs. Towering Pelous, who emerged as a number eight two years ago, improved again this season by leaving Dax for champions Toulouse. After much discussion, Skrela and Pierre Villepreux decided to field him as a lock, the same position he plays at his club.

4 - Olivier Brouzet. Age 25. 20 caps. 2.04 metres. 120 kgs. The son of a former French shot putt record holder, he started his sports career as an athlete before turning to rugby. Gradually improved his skills to match his physique and has been in magnificent form this season.

3 - Franck Tournaire. Age 25. 23 caps. 1.80 metres. 103 kgs. Like Pelous made the right choice by leaving Narbonne for Toulouse to join the other regular French prop, Christian Califano. In two seasons, he has quietly settled in as the regular choice.

2 - Raphael Ibanez. Age 24. Eight caps. 1.78 metres. 95 kg. Named captain for the England game after only playing a full 80 minutes once for France and making just two starts since his March 1996 debut against Wales in Cardiff. A natural leader who captained French Universities to a world title in South Africa in July 1996.

1 - Christian Califano. Age 25. 40 caps. 1.80 metres. 105 kgs. A remarkable prop in the tradition of Pascal Ondarts, Jean-Paul Garuet or Laurent Seigne, Califano destroyed the England front row almost single-handed a fortnight ago and was just as impressive against Scotland, scoring a try in the second half.