Fighting flair with flair

Springboks aiming to match French offense in Marseille

BANDOL, France (Reuters) -- South Africa hopes to take a page out of the France's book on "unpredictable rugby" in Saturday's test in Marseille.

France unexpectedly beat New Zealand and Australia in Marseille in the last two tests played at the Stade Velodrome and the famous soccer ground has become a temple to French rugby flair.

But South African coach Rudolf Straueli, forced to bring a young and rather unexperienced squad to Europe, says he wants to focus on the quality usually displayed by the French.

"Our unpredictability is a strength as is our own ability to score from the counter attack," said Straeuli on the Springboks Web site.

"We got criticism for our defense in Tri-Nations. Some of it was justified and some of it was not an accurate reflection of where the breakdown was coming," he added.

The South Africans lost three of their four matches in the series but reacted by beating Australia, scoring nine tries in their two games against the Wallabies.

"We are looking to correct the situation. We have worked hard on this aspect of our play (defence) in Johannesburg and in Marseille. I believe we can defend, it is just a matter of getting our communication right," Straeuli added.

Tight defense has been the key to French success against visiting sides in Marseille in recent years.

The Springboks worked especially hard on their defense in an evening session Tuesday with the help of defensive expert Frank Ponissi.

The South African squad also decided to train in the evening to work in the same conditions as Saturday's game, which is scheduled to start at 2045 local time (1945 GMT).

Like the French, who have also brought in some fresh blood a year ahead of the World Cup in Australia, the South Africans are counting on their players' versatility to upset teams from the northern hemisphere.

"I have said it for the past two weeks and nothing has changed in my thinking. We have the versatility and it is crucial that we maximize the use of this player versatility," said Straeuli.

French rookie Clerc has fright of his life

MARCOUSSIS, France (Reuters) -- France's Vincent Clerc hit both extremes on the emotional scale after being told he would win his first cap against the Springboks, the Toulouse winger said Wednesday.

"Yesterday (Tuesday) was like a whirlwind, I had the biggest joy of my life but I also had the biggest fright of my life," Clerc told journalists at the French National Rugby Centre where France is preparing for Saturday's test.

The joy came early Tuesday morning when France coach Bernard Laporte summoned the three wingers in his squad: David Bory, 15 caps, Cedric Heymans, three caps, and the uncapped Clerc.

"He wanted to talk to us before announcing the team at nine o'clock. When he said Cedric and myself would start the game, it was absolute bliss. My heart was pounding," the 21-year-old said.

The fright came two hours later.

"I felt a pain at the base of my right calf during the training session at the end of a gentle run. I had to leave the field and I went to the physio," he recalled.

The pain disappeared quickly but French team doctor Thierry Hermerel ordered a control scan.

Clerc left the training camp and spent the afternoon at the Clinique des Sports, in Paris. With him was Thomas Castaignede who also had a scan to check once again that he had fully recovered from his Achilles tendon injury.

"The exams were OK but waiting for the results was terrible," Clerc said.

"I'm glad it turned out for the best," he added after both players were declared fit.

Born on June 5, 1981 in Grenoble, Clerc learnt his rugby in the Alpine town where his father had also been a fine wing three-quarter and is now director of the youth teams.

The young Vincent quickly reached the first team and was selected for France's under-21 side.

He was spotted by Toulouse.

famous roommate

"They made me an offer. I knew it would be difficult because their team was studded with international wingers like Emile Ntamak, Xavier Garbajosa and more recently Cedric Heymans and Nicolas Jeanjean," he said.

"It was also heartbreaking because we had just won promotion to the top flight with Grenoble, but I couldn't resist the challenge."

Since his arrival at the French training camp and apart from the calf-injury alert, Clerc has been resolutely enjoying the experience and doing his best to escape pressure.

"My life has recently been a whirlwind of surprises," he said.

"It was a surprise to be signed by Stade Toulousain, it was a surprise to score four tries in the first eight games of the season for them, it was a surprise to be named in the (France) squad and it's a surprise to be in the starting line-up for Saturday's game," he said. "I'm enjoying every minute."

One of his pleasures has been to share a room with Castaignede, France's sparkling back of the late 1990s called into the squad after being sidelined for two years by his Achilles injury.

But Clerc is far from claiming the title of the "Little Prince" of French rugby conferred on Castaignede when he was elected European player of the year in 1998 after inspiring France to its first back-to-back grand slams.

"I think he is still the Little Prince even if he has had two black years," Clerc said. "To share his return so intimately is simply marvellous."

When he first met Clerc, Castaignede as a true professional told him he would have to tidy up the bedroom. "His things are all over the place," Castaignede said.

"True," answered Clerc on Wednesday. "I'm a bit messy but I pushed everything to one side. You see, I'm learning."

 

Related information

Stories

Castaignede back in French rugby squad

Multimedia

Visit Video Plus for the latest audio and video

Copyright 2003 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.