Laporte: Big French squad ‘one little family’

FRANCE head coach Bernard Laporte believes the spirit fostered in his title-winning squad over the past seven weeks vindicates his decision to assemble a 40-man party for the recent RBS 6 Nations Championship.

Laporte was not able to live up to his pre-tournament vow of giving every member of his squad at least one game in the Six Nations in the hope of seeing as many players as possible in the run-up to the World Cup later this year. A combination of injuries and a desire to keep his first-choice team intact to maintain a Grand Slam momentum put paid to that.

But Laporte believes almost two months of continuous training and bonding at Les Bleus’ custom-made training camp in Marcoussis, a village 20km south of Paris, has helped mould his group into “one little family”.

When asked what he can take from the tournament, won by France on Saturday following their dramatic 46-19 win over Scotland, Laporte said: “Winning it, of course. We wanted to win it and we did that, by going through joy and also pain. Sport is like that, an eternal restarting from scratch.

“But I will also remember living life in this community with the players who we have discovered.

“There was never the slightest tension. We have functioned like a true club, like one little family, with great respect for each other. If we make a review, save for the injured players, everybody was able to revive themselves and find a certain enthusiasm.”

He added: “What gets me excited in particular, it is living with this group, who are just extraordinary. It has been like this for years. We feel good about this and we hope this continues.”

After winning his fourth Six Nations title in his eight years in charge, Laporte admitted he knows 90% of his squad for the World Cup.

Indeed, the showpiece that begins on September 7 with a clash between Les Bleus and Argentina will occupy his mind for the next six months.

“There remains a certain number of questions,” he said. “Who will be the last prop. Who will be third hooker? Who will we take in the back row? Who will be the centres and the wingers?” He added: “The World Cup will be another competition. Just because we are champions of Europe, it doesn’t mean we will beat Argentina or Ireland in September.”