France head coach Samuel Cherouk has chosen the 28 players who will represent les Bleues at the Women’s Rugby World Cup in Ireland in August. They are led once again by Montpellier hooker Gaelle Mignot, a World Rugby Player of the Year nominee in both 2015 and 2016.
The selected France squad is along expected lines, although Sevens star Camille Grassineau and Coumba Diallo, who had been working her way back from injury, are two notable absentees, and some young emerging players have been rewarded for their club and international Sevens form.
18 players who were on duty for February’s 13-10 defeat to Ireland in the Six Nations are included, with the sides set to renew rivalries in the final round of the World Cup’s pool stages at the UCD Bowl on Thursday, August 17.
Before that, les Bleues will play Japan and Australia, the two other teams in Pool C, as they look to improve on their third place finish from 2014 when they hosted the Women’s World Cup in Marcoussis and Paris.
Four members of Samuel Cherouk’s WRWC 2017 panel are set for their third World Cup – captain Gaëlle Mignot, who led Montpellier to another domestic title this year, fellow forward Manon Andre and the classy centre pairing of Caroline Ladagnous and Elodie Poublan.
11 players return from the last World Cup selection, including powerhouse number 8 Safi N’Diaye and key backs like winger Shannon Izar and full-back Jessy Tremouliere, while impressive youngsters Montserrat Amedee, who is uncapped, Carla Neisen, Annaëlle Deshayes and Dhia Traore (all 21) and Caroline Drouin and Romane Menager (both 20) have also made the cut.
Cherouk, who was appointed to the head coach role last December, said: “It was a tough selection process. We tried to get the best team possible by always having the collective in mind. Those who missed out are not forgotten – there’s a standby list of players who will continue to prepare in case they’re need. They’ll join us for the camp in Font-Romeu and we’ll see where they are.
“We’re really focused on rugby, there’s a lot of ball-playing in training as well as the fitness work. We saw in the recent New Zealand-Canada game that there was more than 40 minutes of ball-in-play time. So, we know the team that will be world champions will be a team that plays a lot of rugby with very long and intense phases.”
The French squad have had a series of training camps in advance of the tournament, with team manager Annick Hayraud hailing the ‘150%’ effort and application from the players during their stays in Marcoussis, Saint-Brieuc, Bugeat and, most recently, Clermont-Ferrand.
“The training has been short and sharp. It’s very intense and replicating the levels of a Test match. While they are training hard, the girls are feeling fresh both mentally and physically, and they’re growing more and more individually and as a collective,” he said.
Hayraud acknowledged that the standard of the Women’s international game is increasing all the time and the fourth-ranked French are determined to keep pace with the world’s leading teams. “We are ambitious, no doubt,” he added. “We have shown that we want to be world champions and should not be afraid to say so.”
WRWC 2017 Fixtures:
Pool C –
France v Japan, Billings Park UCD, 7.45pm, Wednesday, August 9
France v Australia, UCD Bowl, 7.45pm, Sunday, August 13
France v Ireland, UCD Bowl, 7.45pm, Thursday, August 17
For more on the 2017 Women’s Rugby World Cup, visit the tournament website – www.rwcwomens.com. Buy your match tickets for #WRWC2017 now on www.ticketmaster.co.uk/wrwc2017 and www.ticketmaster.ie/wrwc2017.
Injury Replacement: Camille Grassineau (Stade Francais/FFR) has replaced Jessy Tremouliere (ASM Romagnat/FFR) in the squad
FRANCE WRWC 2017 Squad: Backs (13) – Audrey Abadie (Blagnac Saint-Orens Rugby Féminin), Montserrat Amedee (Montpellier RC/FFR), Caroline Boujard (Montpellier RC), Caroline Drouin (Stade Rennais), Camille Grassineau (Stade Francais/FFR), Elodie Guiglion (FFR), Shannon Izar (Lille Métropole RC Villeneuvois/FFR), Caroline Ladagnous (AC Bobigny 93/FFR), Jade Le Pesq (Stade Rennais/FFR), Carla Neisen (Blagnac Saint-Orens Rugby Féminin), Chloé Pelle (Lille Métropole RC Villeneuvois/FFR), Elodie Poublan (Montpellier RC), Yanna Rivoalen (Lille Métropole RC Villeneuvois).
Forwards (15) – Manon Andre (Blagnac Saint-Orens Rugby Féminin), Julie Annery (AC Bobigny 93), Lise Arricastre (Lons Rugby Féminin Béarn Pyrénées), Patricia Carricaburu (Lons Rugby Féminin Béarn Pyrénées), Lénaig Corson (Stade Rennais/FFR), Annaëlle Deshayes (Ovalie Caennaise), Julie Duval (Ovalie Caennaise), Céline Ferer (AS Bayonne), Audrey Forlani (Blagnac Saint-Orens Rugby Féminin), Marjorie Mayans (Blagnac Saint-Orens Rugby Féminin/FFR), Romane Menager (Lille Métropole RC Villeneuvois), Gaëlle Mignot (Montpellier RC) (capt), Safi N’Diaye (Montpellier RC), Caroline Thomas (ASM Romagnat), Dhia Traore (Stade Toulousain).
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