They begin the Six Nations as favourites after some scintillating performances but winning silverware can be the hardest step
There is an old story about Fabien Galthié that is worth telling again now, a week out from the start of the Six Nations. It is from 2003, when France’s head coach was captaining the team in the World Cup. It was his fourth, he had been in teams that lost in the quarters in 1991, semis in ’95, and final in ’99. Understandably, he was hell-bent on finishing his career by winning the thing.
But France were beaten in the semi-finals again, 24-7 by England. That left them one game to play, the third-place play-off against New Zealand four days later. By the time it came around, Galthié had already gone. He was fit but had quit and flown back from Australia to France.
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