I’ve upset some people (Poms) by saying that France will contend for Australia’s crowd as World Champions before England ever do, and after watching their win over Scotland (I know…I’m late!) just yesterday I have to say my opinions have only been reinforced.
Scotland played pretty well, much better than they did in the qualifiers. They tried hard but they just lacked the skill of the French.
France put together some top shelf Rugby League, the likes of which you expect to see from Australia. They have all the skill in the world and are always brilliant to watch.
The French really understand parts of the game such as halfback play that even New Zealand and England just don’t get. The French understand that playing halfback is a real craft and that a massive amount of a halfbacks game occurs when he isn’t in possession of the ball.
The French passing is as good as Australia, they can whip the ball around the field cleanly at will. They are also producing some very good athletes and really, they just need more French clubs in Super League so they get that higher level of training and coaching and they will over take England very quickly.
Some people won’t like hearing that (Poms) but its the way things are going. Its great to see French Rugby League coming back after being in a bad way for a long time.
