For the France
The next meetings will not yet have the value of a full-scale test. But the matches against Fiji, then South Africa (November 13) and Argentina (November 21) will allow coach Fabien Galthié to clarify some gray areas one year before the global deadline. All in the hope of doing well or even imposing on the competition. Here is the work of the Blues for the coming weeks.
Work on the depth of the France group
This is the major constraint of the French staff for this November gathering. Fabien Galthié has to deal with a second French team, the fault of injuries and absences which have continued to pile up in recent weeks. Thomas Ramos, Matthieu Jalibert, Thibaud Flament, Julien Marchand, Emmanuel Meafou, Pierre-Louis Barrassi... That's almost half of what could constitute a typical match sheet which is missing. This litany of packages at least has the benefit of testing the richness of the blue-white-red pool.
Players like Kalvin Gourgues (center, starting for the first time against Fiji), Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang (wing) or Florian Verhaeghe (second row), all starting on Saturday, can cement their place in the French XV group after having been convincing during the summer meetings. For them, it is also a place in Australia next fall that can begin to be decided.
The staff of the XV of France will also try to see more clearly on its first line. At the hooker position, Maxime Lamothe has a big chance to play to establish himself as Julien Marchand's understudy and supplant Peato Mauvaka in the rotation. Alongside him, his teammate in Gironde Sipili Falatea will be just as scrutinized as a right pillar. Since the sudden retirement of Uini Atonio at the start of 2026, Falatea is the fourth player established as number 3, where everything seems open in view of the World Cup.
Refine the hierarchies - in which the former executives Grégory Alldritt and Damian Penaud, absent from the scoresheet against Fiji, do not really seem to move up - and find viable fallback solutions, the XV of France would only be better off. During the 2023 World Cup, the substitutes were hardly reassuring against the modest Uruguay while the holders had been largely rested.
Maintain good momentum
This second part of the Nations Championship follows a rather convincing summer. Despite an already weakened team, the XV of France had done well during its stay in the southern hemisphere with a narrow defeat against New Zealand (34-32) and serious successes in Australia (26-42) and Japan (15-42). Fabien Galthié had – a rare occurrence – the luxury of being able to draw from his summer group to make up the November one. “We will try to maintain this dynamic, hoped the coach at a press conference on Thursday. We have continuity with this summer to continue in this competition.”
Nine of the fifteen players on the pitch at kick-off on Saturday were already there in July. It is at least a form of consolation in the absence of being able to count on all those that Fabien Galthié would have liked to have at his disposal. These automatisms, combined with the talent of returning players like Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Antoine Dupont or Romain Ntamack, have enough to offer a competitive team. “It’s the best team in France at the moment” summed up the French technician. Stringing together a third success before facing the South African world champion on November 13 would not be an exception. And seeing a place in the final of the Nations Championship by finishing at the top of the “North” group would ideally launch the home stretch towards the World Cup.
Reassure yourself in defense
In addition to individual questions, the XV of France has larger ones to resolve. He may have won the last two 6 Nations Tournaments, but the face he has shown in recent months has not always inspired confidence. In question, the almost too playful character of these Blues and a level that is sometimes too sinusoidal in a meeting, in particular without a ball. To give a boost to his defense, Fabien Galthié obtained the reinforcement of Geoffrey Doumayrou, “borrowed” from his club Montpellier. The former international becomes responsible for defense and takes over from the Englishman Shaun Edwards.
“After the 2026 Tournament, we noticed that we had progressed defensively away from our lines but that, close to our lines, our structure still needed to improve,” Galthié analyzed. “Today, our ambition is to make the team even better with the ball but also without the ball.” The last two seasons have seen a decline in this second sector. It's even more obvious these last five outings, with more than 32 points conceded on average. That is to say an additional converted try compared to the 2025 average, and even 72% more points conceded compared to 2023. Geoffrey Doumayrou has a year ahead of him to put the Blues back on the right path.
