France defeated England (33-31) by snatching victory in the last seconds, this Saturday March 16 at the end of the Six Nations Tournament at Groupama Stadium in Lyon. This latest success allows the Blues to finish in second place in this 2024 edition, won by Ireland thanks to its victory against Scotland.
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The coronation was already out of reach for the Blues, won a few hours earlier by Ireland. But revengeful after a Tournament where it experienced several disappointments and sometimes lost serenity, the French team reassured itself in the best possible way by winning an intense and stunning Crunch against the English (33-31) in Lyon .
Launched by a powerful Marseillaise restarted by the supporters of Groupama Stadium, the Blues got off to a flying start by quickly rushing towards the English defensive line. Shaken by the power of the French players in the duels, the English were quickly put in difficulty by the French efficiency on carried balls. On an error from Uini Atonio, England was nevertheless able to open the scoring against the run of play thanks to a penalty converted by Ford (12th, 0-3).
Without a solution at the heart of the game against the inflexible French in the rucks, the English used their kicking game to try to gain ground. A good scratch from Marchand then allowed Ramos to score a penalty (18th, 3-3) before Fickou, Barré and Le Garrec went to pierce the English block during a masterful ride and won the first try of the match (20th, 10-3).
In the process, Bielle-Biarrey did not come far from flattening again behind the English line after a good kick from Penaud, but he was narrowly beaten by Smith (24th). The French steamroller continued to work wonders, overturning everything in its path and leaving little respite for the English to organize themselves. Close to making their opponents crack again, the Blues nevertheless seized every opportunity to score points thanks to a still surgical Ramos (32nd and 36th, 16-3). The only downside during this first period largely in favor of the French: the try snatched in the final seconds by Lawrence which put the Rose players back in the game (40th + 1, 16-10).
A Crunch that kept all its promises
The start of the second period completely shifted towards the reinvigorated English, who doubled the lead as soon as they returned to the pitch thanks to Lawrence (42nd, 16-17) to take the lead. Smith then punished an overwhelmed blue defense by scoring a third try in quick succession for England (46th, 16-24). The French ended up regaining their rhythm of the first period by breaking through the opposing defense following a great collective advance concluded by Barré (56th, 23-24). Taking advantage of a touch that slipped between the English players, Ramos put Penaud and Fickou into orbit who went to put the Blues back in control of the match (60th, 30-24).
For the first time in the evening, Ramos then missed a penalty kick (70th), leaving the Blues within reach of a new opponent’s try materialized a few minutes later by Freeman (75th, 30- 31). In an unbearable end to the match, the players of the XV of France attacked again to snatch victory in this Crunch. And it was once again Ramos who stood out: one minute before the final whistle, the Toulouse player converted a final penalty to definitively seal the victory for the Blues (79th, 33-31) in this stunning end-to-end match. at the end.
This success against England allows the French team to finish this Six Nations Tournament on a very good note after a difficult journey and to take second place in the ranking behind Ireland, crowned a few hours earlier with its painful victory against Scotland. If the Blues were not titled during this 2024 edition, they were nevertheless able to witness the international emergence of promising new players like Léo Barré or Nolann Le Garrec. “ It’s not the end of the Tournament, but the start of something else », underlined Fabien Galthié, smiling just after the final whistle.