22 Oct: France v England - International Match Thread

[longboard]

You know the biggest stand is behind the camera right?

 

 

Ah, but there are attendance figure experts on here who know the crowd size, even in the stands not shown in the coverage.

 

I tell ye boy, their knowledge and wisdom in these matters are uncanny.

[Man of Kent]

Ah, but there are attendance figure experts on here who know the crowd size even in the stands not shown in the coverage.

I tell ye boy, their knowledge and wisdom in these matters are uncanny.

I expect you believe the official Challenge Cup final attendances too?

[Jack Russell]

Did anyone see what happened to Graham??

After Graham had passed the ball he got grabbed/tackled, no malice there, but then got threw around like s spear tackle. Looked really really dangerous.

[Dunbar]

A good win and a nice tough game.

I thought all the pack did well with Cooper on the left and Whitehead on the right working hard. The props were all good and Hill will add even more. I thought Tom Burgess was the best on the pitch.

The backs were OK with McGillvary the best. I would personally stick with Gale as he is a quality player but I would have no problem with Williams being selected.

Add Sam Burgess and Hill to that pack and we will be OK against the Kiwis.

[longboard]

Admittedly that is quite full, if not packed

 

MoK, you are in danger of becoming a moaning, northern, RL git. 

[longboard]

I expect you believe the official Challenge Cup final attendances too?

 

Any in particular?

[longboard]

If France can get their best team out and play with that passion and some more organisation in attack at the World Cup then they should go pretty well. Shame they've only one international this year! England will be glad of the hit-out, need some more leadership with some wobbly last-tackle plays there but they should go pretty well. Halfback is still a very tough decision.

 

Vraiment Monsieur Jacks!

[EagleEyePie]

That was an okay performance from England. I don't think the pack did too much but given there was only one forward on the bench perhaps they were trying to pace themselves throughout the game. It wasn't really a match where they needed to go full pelt, and to be honest Bennett would have been more interested in finding out more about his halves and outside backs.

 

Based on that game I'd go for Lomax at fullback ahead of Ratchford. Sarginson at left centre instead of Percival (not that he did anything wrong, I'm just not convinced he'll be as effective as Sarginson against tougher opposition) and still don't really know who is most likely to partner Widdop in the halves. Williams obviously didn't get a chance but finished the season in great form and has the best running game, short kicking game and defence of all the candidates. Gale has a good long kicking game and can put out a good pass and has played consistently well all year. I don't think he was too impressive tonight though. Brown was probably the outside bet but he showed some nice touches, probably has a better passing game than Gale and Williams and is a good kicker.

 

I'd expect Farrell and Bateman to come into the pack, with Farrell on the left and Bateman on the bench.

[Lobbygobbler]

Next time play this test in high summer

[John Rhino]

There's nowhere near 15k there. The stands behind the goals are almost empty

There is

[EastLondonMike]

Good tough game, which is what you want from these type of fixtures. Don't think Gale having a good game or a bad one will decide if he starts against the kiwis. Bennett will know his preferred starting 13.

Think Williams might get the nod at 7. With Bateman coming in to partner whitehead in the back row. With the obvious additions of Burgess and Hill to the starting 13.

[Colly]

EagleEyePie, Tell you are not A Viking , Brown has a very poor kicking game that is his weak spot. He played just like our Kev normally does tonight, he just had better players around him and a willing but not great opposition against him.

For mr Serginson over Percival. I originally though Gale, hoe tried SO hard but didn't look quite the Gale we see in Superleague. After that match maybe Williams will get the nod however I am not a fan of two stand offs in the half backs

I don't think he will be leaving Hill out but if Hill is in the squad one of Bateman or Farrell will not play particularly if he goes with Cooper in the second row. We could very well have the full NRL pack of

Burgess, Hodgson, Graham, Whitehead , Cooper and Sam. Bench Burgess, Hill, Clark AN Other. Personally I would prefer Bateman.

Uninspired full back selection neither Lomax or Ratchford locked much, they did nothing wrong but not exactly Darius Boyd. I have a feeling he might go with Ratchford. Aussie coach love utility subs .

[flyingking]

Thought it was a professional performance with plenty of positives for England. They looked solid and everyone worked hard and executed when they had the chances. Both wingers were very good, especially McGillvary. Both hookers were effective and used the ball well. The forwards gained a lot of metres but mainly in straight lines, hopefully Bateman get the nod against the Kiwis as he would add a sidestep and be more of a handful. Thought it was a mixed bag from the halves. Kevin Brown did well and looked like he belonged on the international stage. Liked Gale increasing pace as he advanced towards the defensive line but his teammates appear to be not yet used to how he plays. Widdop was mediocre for the first half hour, twice not knowing what to do on the sixth tackle. One of these error, the French capitalised on the next set with the 40-20 and then the try, however he had a much better second half and his goal kicking was almost immaculate. Percival did not get enough of the ball to demonstrate that he should start v new Zealand rather than Sarginson.

[GeordieSaint]

Positives for both sides in that game; impressed with the French determination and aggression against an England side who were simply too big and powerful.

[Hvy wg]

Best performance France did in a while. 

England was way too big for us but they it wasn't easy for them either. We showed plenty of aggression and strength of will to keep them from scoring on repeat sets. 

Bousquet was awesome in defense at loose forward. Jullien was a rock too, I beg Catalans to buy him and give him a starting spot! 

Robin and Barthau haven't done much in attack but outstanding defenses not giving up to the huge England pack. 

Cons : Larroyer, Whitehead, Arnaud, BENTHAM.

[EagleEyePie]

EagleEyePie, Tell you are not A Viking , Brown has a very poor kicking game that is his weak spot. He played just like our Kev normally does tonight, he just had better players around him and a willing but not great opposition against him.

For mr Serginson over Percival. I originally though Gale, hoe tried SO hard but didn't look quite the Gale we see in Superleague. After that match maybe Williams will get the nod however I am not a fan of two stand offs in the half backs

I don't think he will be leaving Hill out but if Hill is in the squad one of Bateman or Farrell will not play particularly if he goes with Cooper in the second row. We could very well have the full NRL pack of

Burgess, Hodgson, Graham, Whitehead , Cooper and Sam. Bench Burgess, Hill, Clark AN Other. Personally I would prefer Bateman.

Uninspired full back selection neither Lomax or Ratchford locked much, they did nothing wrong but not exactly Darius Boyd. I have a feeling he might go with Ratchford. Aussie coach love utility subs .

 

I was under the impression that Brown's kicking game had improve but obviously that's not the case. When Wayne Bennett was talking about England players being good enough for the NRL he mentioned Williams specifically so perhaps that's an indication that he rates him quite highly. Given how the NRL requires strong defenders he'll no doubt have been impressed by Williams and how well he handles the physical aspects of the game. That might be important in his selection.

 

With regards to picking two 'stand offs' I honestly don't think it matters much any more. I mean what team plays traditional 1st and 2nd receivers these days? Most clubs play split halves and some have their scrum half as the main organiser and some have very direct running scrum halves. I don't think the number of the back matters as long as you have a combination that work well together and balance out each others strengths and weaknesses. Widdop is a steady influence but not very dynamic, so perhaps Williams will work well alongside him. There were positive signs in the first test last year, but too much was expected of Williams too soon. The one thing I've noticed is that all 4 'halves' in the England squad play primarily on the left. Widdop seems to be left sided for St George and for England, Williams only plays on the left at Wigan, Brown is left sided with Mellor on the right for Widnes and I'm pretty sure Gale tends to play down the left for Castleford too. I just wonder whether that will affect whoever plays alongside Widdop.

 

I'd like to see Bennett go with someone who is completely comfortable playing on the left edge, so if it was a choice of one from Bateman or Farrell I'd rather see Farrell play there. His end of season form was better, he'll be fresher having missed most of the season through injury and I think it provides a good balance to the side.

 

I thought Lomax put in some good passes from fullback. Ratchford for me is a little more error prone. It's not a straightforward choice though and I reckon whoever is selected is going to be tested under the high ball immediately.

[John Rhino]

I'd also forgotten what it's like to be in a stadium when there is no wind and lots of people smoking. It's aweful!

[The Daddy]

Best performance France did in a while. 

England was way too big for us but they it wasn't easy for them either. We showed plenty of aggression and strength of will to keep them from scoring on repeat sets. 

Bousquet was awesome in defense at loose forward. Jullien was a rock too, I beg Catalans to buy him and give him a starting spot! 

Robin and Barthau haven't done much in attack but outstanding defenses not giving up to the huge England pack. 

Cons : Larroyer, Whitehead, Arnaud, BENTHAM.

 

This. Arnaud was well out of his depth and put his team in a rough spot on a few occasions. Larroyer just goes to highlight that France badly need some quality 2nd rowers and lack a bit of presence in this area.

[Hvy wg]

Larroyer was promising when he first appeared for Catalans. He has not progressed since and I'd say he has gone backwards. Perhaps Perez could have been a better choice as he has a great vision of the game with nice passes and offloads. 

 

[barnyia]

I hope England don't just have the attack the line for a block play for a block play! All teams know how to defend that now, the kiwis seem to have the same attack too!

[GeordieSaint]

Larroyer was promising when he first appeared for Catalans. He has not progressed since and I'd say he has gone backwards.

He looked scared against the Kiwis but proved me wrong in 2015 with an excellent season at Hull KR; massively gone backwards this season though...

[Hvy wg]

He looked scared against the Kiwis but proved me wrong in 2015 with an excellent season at Hull KR; massively gone backwards this season though...

He's a 95kg forward and we have too much of those. Today if you want to exist against England/Aussie/NZ you need big forwards. 

[The Daddy]

What do you think about Benjamin Julien in terms of his best position, he seems to be highly rated but to me he looks nothing like a second rower more like a centre.

[Hvy wg]

What do you think about Benjamin Julien in terms of his best position, he seems to be highly rated but to me he looks nothing like a second rower more like a centre.

Was rock solid in defense. Might be too slow for centre. To me a second row like France needs : "dur au mal".

[The Daddy]

Was rock solid in defense. Might be too slow for centre. To me a second row like France needs : "dur au mal".

 

As you say France needs to add some size to the pack and especially the second row not sure Julien has this size maybe he's a loose forward. 

 

Is there anyone in Catalan U23, Toulouse or the Elite who can kick on and be a top 2nd rower. France are also short on the wings anyone coming through there apart from Yaha?