Star French players rested

2005-06-14 19:36

Durban - No Biarritz or Stade Francais players were included in the French starting line-up for the first Test against South Africa in Durban on Saturday.

Coach Bernard Laporte named what amounted to a second string team to face the Springboks in the first of two Tests, leaving out several of his world-class stars.

Biarritz and Stade Francais were involved in an epic French Cup final that went into extra time at the weekend, with many of those players included on the replacements bench.

The most notable absentee was French scrumhalf and tour captain, Dimitri Yachvili, who was omitted from the run on XV, but may come on as a replacement after being named on the bench.

Yachvili - along with several other players - are apparently suffering from fatigue and will only be considered for the starting line-up in the second Test in Port Elizabeth next weekend.

"We have decided to give the players from the final time to recover. It is going to be a tough tour," said Laporte. Following the two Tests against the Springboks the French travel Down Under to play a one-off Test against Australia.

"We have great respect for the Springboks. The new coach has based his play on powerful forwards and he seems to have found a good balance with the team he has chosen," added Laporte.

- SAPA