ENGLAND v FRANCE: 6 Nations International Championship

01.02.2014

Venue: Stade de France, Paris

Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)

Preview
The 6 Nations International Championship gets underway today. Wales will be looking to take the title for the second year in a row.

The clash between England and France is always one of the highlights of this competition. It is no matter that France finished last in this competition in 2013. This will be a titanic clash between two very good sides.

There is little to place between these two sides. England has the better recent efforts whilst France’s 2013 year was just short of a disaster. But put that to one side. make no mistake. France will be out to improve their record especially in front of their home crowd.

Last Five Encounters
23.02.2013 England 23-13 at Twickenham (6 Nations)
11.03.2012 England 24-22 in Paris (6 Nations)
08.10.2011 France 19-12 in Auckland (World Cup, Quarter-final)
26.02.2011 England 17-9 at Twickenham (6 Nations)
20.03.2010 France 12-10 in Paris (6 Nations)

GWC Rugby Rankings
World Table: England 7th, France 8th
Europe Table: England 2nd, France 3rd

IRB Ranking Points
England 85.70, France 80.87

Prediction: A very, very close game.England by 2 points

Teams

England

15		Michael Brown	London Harlequins
14		Jack Nowell	Exeter Chiefs
13		Luther Burrell	Northampton Saints
12		William Twelvetrees	Gloucester Rugby
11		Jonathan May	Gloucester Rugby
10		Owen Farrell	Saracens
9		Daniel Care	London Harlequins
8		William Vunipola	Saracens
7		Christopher Robshaw (Capt.)	London Harlequins
6		Thomas Wood	Northampton Saints
5		Courtney Lawes	Northampton Saints
4		Joseph Launchbury	London Wasps
3		Daniel Cole	Leicester Tigers
2		Dylan Hartley	Northampton Saints
1		Joseph Marler	London Harlequins
16		Thomas Youngs	Leicester Tigers
17		Mako Vunipola	Saracens
18		Henry Thomas	Sale Sharks
19		David Attwood	Bath Rugby
20		Benjamin Morgan	Gloucester Rugby
21		Lee Dickson	Northampton Saints
22		Bradley Barritt	Saracens
23		Alexander Goode	Saracens
		HEAD COACH: Stuart Lancaster

France

15		Brice Dulin	Castres Olympique
14		Yoann Huget	Aviron Bayonnais
13		Mathieu Bastareaud	RC Toulonnais
12		Wesley Fofona	ASM Clermont Auvergne
11		Maxime Médard	Stade Toulousain
10		Jules Plisson	Stade Français
9		Jean-Marc Doussain	Stade Toulousain
8		Louis Picamoles	Stade Toulousain
7		Bernard Le Roux	Racing-Metro 92
6		Yannick Nyanga	Stade Toulousain
5		Pascal Pape (Capt.)	Stade Français
4		Alexandre Flanquart	Stade Français
3		Nicolas Mas	US Arlequins Perpignan
2		Benjamin Kayser	ASM Clermont Auvergne
1		Thomas Domingo	ASM Clermont Auvergne
16		Dimitri Szarzewski	Racing-Metro 92
17		Yannick Forestier	Castres Olympique
18		Rabah Slimani	Stade Français
19		Yoann Maestri	Stade Toulousain
20		Antoine Burban	Stade Français
21		Damien Chouly	ASM Clermont Auvergne
22		Maxime Machenaud	Racing-Metro 92
23		Gael Fickou	Stade Toulousain
		HEAD COACH: Philippe Saint-André