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Wales aim to stifle France
13/03/2008 16:36 - (SA)
Marcoussis - France can draw
inspiration from their record at the Millennium Stadium in
Saturday's Six Nations championship decider against Wales (17:00
GMT).
Their last defeat to the Welsh Wales in Cardiff in an
official game came in a 1996 Five Nations game at the National
Stadium.
They also lost the first time they played at the Millennium
Stadium in 1999 on its opening day but have not since suffered
defeat at the arena built for the World Cup played in the same
year.
The stadium was also the scene of their 20-18 World Cup
victory over tournament favourites New Zealand in the
quarter-finals last year.
"I see where you want to lead me", answered scrumhalf
Jean-Baptiste Elissalde when reporters asked him if the stadium
was the true sanctuary of French rugby.
"To cut it short, it will not be the same teams, our
opponents will be different players, we'll be different, it's
not the same competition.
"Don't draw a parallel between what happened in the past,
years ago or even a few months ago, and what could happen on
Saturday."
AFP reports from Cardiff that Wales will rely on their successful stifling blitz defence to nullify France in their Six Nations decider.
Disastrous World Cup
One of Warren Gatland's first appointments after he was named coach in the wake of Wales' disastrous World Cup showing, when a loss to Fiji ensured they failed to reach the quarter-finals, was Shaun Edwards as defence coach.
And what a signing it has proven to be. Edwards made his name as a defence coach under Gatland with English club Wasps, employing a structured form of attacking defence.
Edwards now splits his time as head coach at Wasps with his Welsh defensive role, and the former Wigan and Great Britain rugby league legend has instilled a work ethos patently lacking from the players who made the trip to France for the World Cup.
"We've got new coaches, a new environment and a new challenge," admitted prop Gethin Jenkins.
"We have got to perform in training or we don't get picked. Lots of things have changed."
The unbeaten Welsh side go into the match against France, the defending Six Nations champions, having leaked only two tries, and are on course to bettering England's Six Nations record of having conceded only four in 2003.
Neil Jenkins, Wales' kicking coach, was quick to credit Edwards with girding Wales' defence as the toughest in the tournament.
"Our defence is a very difficult one to break down," said the former Wales and British Lions flyhalf, who last week lost his record as the leading points scorer in world rugby to England's Jonny Wilkinson.
"If you're first receiver and you've got four players bearing down on you, it's very tough."
Jenkins admitted that the defensive system was not without risk, adding that he expected the French to come flying in.
"You can be exposed but space is very limited and the wingers and scrumhalf work to cover the areas behind midfield," Jenkins said.
"Blitz defence is not a question of fitness but confidence."
He added: "We'll go to the line and try to expose their defence".
- Reuters
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