France dealt double blow

France have been dealt a double injury blow going into Sunday's RBS Six Nations match against Italy with the news that back-row Sébastien Chabal and scrum-half Mathieu Barrau have both sprained their ankles and will miss the game.

Barrau's place on the bench will be taken by Toulouse's Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, who won his only two full Test caps against Romania and Scotland back in 2000, when he was still with the La Rochelle club.

Chabal's vacant back-row spot will likely be taken by Stade Francais hardman Patrick Tabacco, while other contenders include Grenoble's Julien Frieir and Toulouse's Jean Bouilhou.