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Seasoned viewers will have noticed a certain lack of post-match analysis and coverage following last week's Test match. Well, I had written this for a different publication but following their decision not to run with it, I publish it here.
So, was it worth it? Where do we, France and GB, go from here? |
This was not a Test match in which a surprise French victory was ever on the cards. This was the case from the very scheduling. New Zealand pulled out after the date was settled, with the NZRL saying they were unwilling to put out any side less than full strength. With the date of the Test not up for discussion, as soon as France filled the void it was clear that a large proportion of the players France would call on would be well out of season. The French Championship final was a full month prior to the Test and while training camps and practice matches were arranged there is no substitute for full match fitness.
Indeed, in one practice match - Possibles v Probables - Teddy Sadaoui managed to injure himself and that's another common theme. With the Dragons in the grip of a huge injury crisis - lest we forget, the 17 players on duty in the Challenge Cup quarter-final with Hull FC were the last 17 remaining fit players at the club - the number of players in the national squad from the Elite rose as a consequence. Dimitri Pelo, Jamal Fakir, Sébastien Raguin, Adel Fellous and Vincent Duport would all be highly fancied to have been involved but for one of a variety of problems to have hurt the club in 2007.
What those injuries at the Dragons has meant is other, younger players get a look-in and more exposure to a higher level. Andrew and Kane Bentley, Julien Touxagas, Mathieu Griffi and the outstanding Cyrille Gossard have blossomed into quality footballers once they had the opportunity for an extended run in the side. The same can be true of those players from the Elite suddenly given a chance to star in a full-on Test match. Eric Anselme, for instance, was outstanding in the French back row at Headingley, while Villeneuve's Cyril Stacul and Sébastien Planas of Toulouse were impressive in the three-quarters. Injuries also bit during the game with Constant Villegas suffering a nasty knee injury and Thomas Bosc concussing himself on Jean-Christophe Borlin's hip. With just one back on the bench - and a half-back at that - in the shape of James Wynne, the gameplan was scuppered from early on.
While the maxim that there's no substitute for match fitness is true, neither is there a substitute for full-time training. The gap between Super League and the NRL is plain to see when Great Britain play Australia or New Zealand. The odd upset aside, it's been a pretty miserable tale of late. That gap, however, is nothing as to the gap between Super League and the Elite. Standards, both on and off the field, are rising, as are interest levels, but the domestic competition is still on more of a par with the National Leagues in Britain. The Challenge Cup shows up the glaring differences between full- and part-time sides on a regular basis and the same was apparent here. But for all that, France kept Britain scoreless in the last 13 minutes and that's something to take heart from.
The last time these two nations met was back in 2001 in Agen and the result was much the same. On that occasion and at Headingley on Friday, Britain left out their 'definites' and played a few 'maybes'. Since then, France have been kept away from Great Britain, instead playing England, the home nations and continuing their Rugby League evangelism with Lebanon and the South Pacific nations. It would be very easy to criticise, as some people take huge relish in so doing, and say that 6 years on, France still can't compete, even with a full-time team in Super League. This would be missing the point. Rome wasn't built in a day and neither will a French side truly able of competing with the top three nations. The structures are in place now - something that wasn't the case back in 2001 with the game still reeling from the Paris St Germain disaster.
Every journey has to have a starting point and this was France's. The next marker post on the route is the series against Papua New Guinea in the autumn, but it's clear that both France and Great Britain - or England, when the big devolutionary moment finally arrives - need more Tests. The RFL have been quite progressive. Not for the Lewis regime is the old RFL trait of binning an idea after one go at it. Millennium Magic has already been earmarked for next year and a repeat of the Test must figure highly on the list of priorities as well. The scheduling needs a rethink though, as you would only have a chance of a properly competitive match if it's scheduled when the part-time players are in season, so make it late March/early April time. Perhaps even schedule a second game after the Grand Final when the Elite has got going. Whichever, the key point is that there needs to be a commitment for regular games. That would prove there's a pathway to the top level for the cream of the talent in France and go some way to ensuring that talent remains in League and not be swayed by the quinziste dollar.
The aim for the French in the World Cup, with it's bizarre format, is to make the semi-finals and be 'the best of the rest'. On that front, they may have the edge on the others. Depth of talent is on the increase, but that PNG series will say more about their chances than this or last season's Federation Shield, but What is clear is that, in the longer term, Great Britain need France as much as France need Great Britain.
And for Britain? Leaving out the established stars was never going to be a risk in this fixture, but whatever the result there were always going to be more questions than answers. James Roby continued where he left off in the Tri-Nations while forgotten man, internationally speaking, Kevin Sinfield gave a reminder to selectors of his abilities and Stephen Wild showed everyone why he's being mentioned so often as a potential at the highest level. Jamie Langley and James Graham, both former Academy international captains, also enhanced their reputations. When the touring New Zealanders arrive on these shores, it would be a brave coach to go with some of the left-of-centre selections made for this match, but there's certainly several cases that have been made for consideration and maybe the lamented lack of depth at this level is slowly being addressed. Certainly, games like this will not hurt.
An Achilles heel that Britain have had is a lack of continuity in the half-backs and last Friday they had two more. If they are to beat New Zealand this autumn or make an impression at the World Cup, this is the key area. The forwards have been able to compete for some time now, but it matters not how strong a platform is laid if there isn't the combination behind that to take advantage. The next problem after that is having the strike players out wide for your halves to create gaps for. A number of good full-back options doesn't extend to the three-quarters. Wild may have given food for thought, but Paul Sykes, Ade Gardner and David Hodgson still have things to prove if they're to challenge the 'probable' selections ahead of them in the pecking order.
And yet this is a side that can beat New Zealand in the autumn, simply because the Kiwis have similar dilemmas when it comes to playing depth, a situation exacerbated by the international retirements of Ruben Wiki, Nigel Vagana and Stacey Jones. For both nations, the World Cup must come with an appearance in the final to be regarded as anything like a success. While neither will take the series lightly, there is bound to be a certain amount of experimentation as time suddenly appears short before the World Cup begins.
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