The new head coach of the French women’s national team, François Ratier, has unveiled his first squad list: France’s team to face Italy 15 Pauline Barrat (Stade Toulousain, 0 caps) 14 Anaïs Grando (ASM Romagnat, 0 caps) 13 Joanna Grisez (Stade Bordelais, 13 caps) 12 Gabrielle Vernier (Blagnac RF, 58 caps) 11 Léa Murie (Stade
Most unusually we have now had three national squads announced on the same day. François Ratier has published the names of 38 players to form his second training squad. They are: Forwards: AMALIA BAZOLA, ROSE BERNADOU, AXELLE BERTHOUMIEU, YLLANA BROSSEAU, LEA CHAMPON, KHOUDEDIA CISSOKO, CLOE CORREA, CELIA DOMAIN, CHARLOTTE ESCUDERO, MADOUSSOU FALL RACLOT, MANAE FELEU,
A new French squad is busy with its first training session under the leadership of François Ratier. It’s lasting four days from 9-12 February at Blagnac, a suburb of Toulouse. After a second session at the National Training Centre at Marcoussis (24-27 March), Ratier will sit down with his two assistants, Gerald Bastide and Florent
News that France will tour Aotearoa for a 3-test series next October is a first welcome sign of the advances the Global Series can bring. The tour will mean a great deal to both nations. The Black Ferns have become increasingly aware of their need for more quality test matches. Their annual home & away
Fresh off meeting France in the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup bronze final, the Black Ferns will welcome the French side back to Aotearoa New Zealand for a blockbuster three-Test home series in 2026, as part of the new WXV Global Series. The series headlines a four-match home schedule that will take international rugby to fans nationwide, with Tests being played
News that the FFR is inviting applications for the post of head coach of the French national squad comes as little or no surprise. Rumours had been swirling from Lille to Biarritz for ages. Among the stipulations laid down by Olivier Lièvremont, the National Technical Director, is that the initial contract will run for two
The Semi-finals Long before the semis hove into view everyone knew the tenth RWC was an overwhelming success. In the week between the last eight and the last four the number of previews mushroomed. Every fashionable method of opinion-giving was used to the full. There were pundits everywhere you looked. A few critics moaned at
What a sight! Twickenham Stadium was already over 50,000 full for the bronze medal match; the top (third) tier well stocked for the first time ever in a women’s game. It was hard for both squads collecting themselves after the disappointments of the previous weekend. But there were medals to be won. The world was
Hard to believe, but there is one game no-one at the World Cup wanted to play in: the runners-up contest. Yes, there is the excitement of playing in what the French like to call the Temple of Rugby, but it’s the equivalent of the B film in a 1950s cinema. This France-New Zealand game forms
England reached another RWC final, but not as expected. France, frustrated by events, threw everything at them, but came up short for the ninth time running. The wet ball helped cause two knock-ons at the start, one English, one French. The game lurched as England won a sudden turnover; the ball moved quickly via Abbie
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