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France is behind Betsen and co
Sipping a glass of red wine in a cafe on the Champs de Elysses Sunday night I felt a pair of eyes boring into the back of my head. I turned around and there was a poster of Serge Betsen. Peering above the rim of my wine glass I noticed the entire bar was covered with pictures of France's finest.
The nation is behind their men, the big question now is whether France will be lifted by the inspiration or crushed by the expectation.
If the answer is the former, they will have to wait until October the 20th and a confrontation with the All Blacks to see if anyone can stop the home team.
The favourites remain overwhelmingly those All Blacks. But where there is question marks over Frances ability psychologically against the Men in Black, New Zealand have to prove that they can handle their own national inspirations as well as peaking at the right time. Should they achieve both these feasts, they look overwhelmingly hard to beat.
The beauty of the world cup is that there are so many question marks as we go into it. Are Ireland a team that peaked one season too early? Has time run out on Brian Ashton and forced him to settle for a team unusually short of creativity? Will Argentina benefit from their lengthy professional preparation as opposed to those five day amateur boot camps where they used the mantle of under dogs so magnificently?
The question marks themselves are about to be replaced by exclamation marks.
Now to this week's questions...
Hi Stuart, I've noticed Wales and also England that there is a problem at inside centre. Just wanted your opinion on who you think should play 12 for Wales. Andrew Davies.
Stuart replies: Wales problem is not so much inside centre, but at 10 and 12. James Hook is the most instinctive fly-half in Wales and you sense if they are to beat Australia, they may have to gamble. My instinct says that Hook must be at 10 but Gareth Thomas and Tom Shanklin perhaps lack the variety to open up a stubborn and intelligent Australian reargurad.
It may be that the decision will not be reached until Wales have played Canada in Nantes. My ideal would be Hook at 10 but that leaves a problem at 12. If Stephen Jones comes good against Australia I would go for Jones and Hook, but where does that leave Wales captain?
Stuart, It is very worrying for Northern Hemisphere rugby that Ireland has extended Eddie O'Sullivan's contract prior to the World Cup. He is a decent coach but nothing more. They celebrated two Triple Crowns when in fact they should have been furious that for two years in a row they lost the Grand Slam against France because they didn't concentrate. Surely Ireland should have set their sights higher or at least waited until after the World Cup to offer him another contract?
Regards, Chris.
Stuart replies: Ireland's Triple Crowns should not be sniffed at but nor are they proof that O'Sullivan is a great coach. He has been fortunate to be blessed with a number of very fine internationals and at least one world class player, a player of a generation in Brian O'Driscoll.
O'Sullivan should have celebrated a Grand Slam last season. He did not and that is a blot against him. If Ireland peaked last year and win nothing but a Triple Crown and fail to perform impressively in this World Cup the decision to give him four more years will look premature to say the very least.
Hi Stuart, I see you have been quite vocal in support of Gloucester (are you feeling ok?) and some of our players being ignored by Brian Ashton. I'm not complaining because like you I think it will only help us in the start of a season that I look forward to with enormous optimism. Do you think we can finally go all the way and win the Premiership this season.
Cheers, Ryan, The Shed.
Stuart replies: Gloucester will be both mystified and mortified if they are not clear of the field by the time the World Cup reaches it's conclusion. They have some of the most talented backs in England but there is still the issue of forward strength. Whilst the pack man-for-man is decent, the collective fire that Dean Ryan engendered as a player is not quite there. If Ryan and Redpath can ignite the pack and maintain improvement in the backs the cherry and whites should settle for nothing less than a place in the Premiership final and the knock-out stages of the Heineken Cup. Gloucester are not the complete package yet but they are a very exciting one and as ever I look forward to my trips west to your brand new stadium.
