France star claims Antoine Dupont injury put ‘fire into bellies’ against Ireland
Gregory Alldritt with an inset of Antoine Dupont
France number eight Gregory Alldritt has revealed the sight of a distraught Antoine Dupont in the changing rooms “put fire into their bellies” to inspire their second-half onslaught against Ireland.
The captain was taken off early into the first-half in Les Bleus’ round four clash against Ireland and later confirmed he had ruptured his ACL and will be out for at least 6-8 months.
Alldritt – ‘It is difficult to talk about’
France were winning 5-0 at the time of Dupont’s withdrawal, thanks to a Louis Bielle-Biarrey try, and later held a slim 8-6 lead at half-time, but they simply ran riot after the break.
Further scores from?Paul Boudehent, Bielle-Biarrey,?Oscar Jegou and Damian Penaud were enough to secure a comfortable 42-27 win at the Aviva Stadium, taking France to the top of the Six Nations table heading into the final weekend.
But speaking to members of the media after the game, Alldritt said the sight of Dupont in the changing rooms was the fuel that lit France’s fire to come out strong in the second 40.
“When I returned to the changing room and I saw one of my best friends looking like that, it teared up my insides,” said Alldritt, who took over the captaincy following Dupont’s injury.
He added: “It is difficult to talk about, however, it put some fire into our bellies for the second-half.”
As mentioned above, the title race is firmly in France’s hands heading into ‘Super Saturday’. Thanks to the bonus point victory in Dublin, Les Bleus now sit on 16 points at the summit, but also boast a remarkable points difference of +106. A win of any kind, given their 86-point gap on second-placed England, would ensure Fabien Galthie’s side pick up their first title since 2022.
England, who are currently second on 15 Championship points, could sneak their first title since 2020 as well. However, if Steve Borthwick’s side are to lift the title at the end of play, they would need to beat Wales with a try bonus point and Scotland would have to defeat France in Paris.
Fabien Galthie blasts Ireland players following Antoine Dupont injury
The injury was clearly an emotional driver for the players on Saturday, but it also left France head coach Galthie red with anger at the final whistle.
Galthie has cited Andrew Porter and Tadhg Beirne for their part in the incident, which the citing commissioner has since dismissed, but speaking after the game he demanded justice for what he felt was a red-card offence.
“We want explanations,” said Galthie. “We have to protect our players. There are means, there are rules. There is some kind of anger.”
With Dupont now out of the picture for his side’s clash with Scotland in Paris, Galthie has a tough call to make at scrum-half. Maxime Lucu has made a solid impact off the bench thus far and would be the likely starter, but Nolann le Garrec could also come into the starting XV.
Elsewhere, Baptiste Serin – who was recently named Top 14 Player of the Month – has been drafted into the squad and could also be an option for the Scotland Test.
