If you’re in Paris this evening look for a bunch of pasty Welsh rugby players as they perform a team nudie run around the Champs Elysee after going down 43-0 to Les Bleu. This from https://www.sixnationsrugby.com/en/m6n/news/france-cruise-to-victory-against-wales-six-nations-rugby-2025
France underlined their Guinness Men’s Six Nations title credentials with a dominant opening-night 43-0 win against Wales in Paris.
In the opening minutes, Wales were forced to scramble back in defence and did terrifically well to hold up the clear French danger man, Antoine Dupont, over the try line. An early warning shot had been fired though and, in quick succession, Wales were made to pull two fantastic tackles out of the bag on Théo Attisogbé via Josh Adams and then Tommy Reffell (an early replacement for Aaron Wainwright in the back row).
Wales soon had a reprieve from the relentless defending, and went on the attack. An opportunity for Adams out wide in the French 22 went begging, however, as Wales opted to look back inside before conceding a penalty. But the visitors undoubtedly looked sharp at this very early stage.
The optimism wasn’t to last for Wales, though. Attisogbé broke the deadlock with the first quarter almost up, Dupont putting in a cross-field kick on an advantage play for the winger from Pau to go over untouched. Fullback Thomas Ramos converted to take him to second behind Frederic Michalak in his country’s record points-scoring list.
France doubled their lead a matter of minutes later, this time from their other winger, the floating basketball pass over the head of Adams from Ramos lapped up by Louis Bielle-Biarrey to score. Ramos did what he does so well from every angle: 14-0.
Welsh centre Owen Watkin was forced to depart on 26 minutes with a leg injury, making way for debutant Dan Edwards, his Ospreys teammate. Their task of overcoming Les Bleus took on a darker hue when hooker Evan Lloyd was shown a yellow – under review from the Bunker – for a high shot.
It was a case of déjà-vu when Dupont made a powerful break, escaping the clutches of the Welsh defence to fly into the visitors’ 22 and spin a high pass to Attisogbé for the fourth try in four Test appearances for the 20-year-old. Ramos added the extras, meaning Welsh fans were now looking at the sort of first-half scoreline their encouraging start had led them to believe they might avoid: 21-0.
Unable to stop the penalties mounting up, Wales were suffering the tyranny of referee Paul Williams’s whistle. But that had nothing on the oppressive performance of France’s wingers, as Bielle-Biarrey took a flat pass from Dupont on the Welsh line to sidestep over for a brace of his own. It meant a try-bonus point on the stroke of half time, while Ramos’s touchline conversion only served to underline France’s dominance in the first 40: 28-0.
Perhaps it was a case of France taking their foot off the gas with the job seemingly done in the first half – indeed, Dupont was replaced with young Nolann le Garrec at nine – but it took them until the 54th minute before scoring again through replacement hooker Julien Marchand. If there was to be a surprise at this point, it was that Ramos uncharacteristically failed to convert: 33-0.
At times it appeared that the hosts were toying with their opponents, none more so than the way they moved them from side to side approaching 70 minutes, before a gorgeous kick from the returning Romain Ntamack almost stopped dead before being claimed by Emilien Gailleton (on for Ramos), who had all the time in the world to traipse over for France’s sixth try.
Ntamack was then shown yellow with ten minutes remaining for a shoulder to the head (it was soon upgraded to a red card after a Bunker review). With France’s talented ten in the bin, could Wales finally produce some movement on their side of the scoreboard? Alas not. With young forward Freddie Thomas on Gloucester, not long on the field, sin-binned, France burnished their score with a try by number eight Grégory Alldritt. Warren Gatland’s men must now head to Rome in need of that elusive victory to end a losing streak that stands at 13, while France travel to the Allianz Stadium and a meeting with England.
