Antoine Dupont’s verdict on France’s Six Nations draw with Italy
France's Mathis Lebel reacts as he sends out a wayward pass during the Six Nations match v Italy and Antoine Dupont.
Antoine Dupont was a spectator for France’s Six Nations clash with Italy over the weekend and has provided his reaction to the stalemate.
The 2021 World Rugby Men’s 15 Player of the Year missed the clash after switching to the sevens code to chase his Olympic dream.
Dupont made his debut on the sevens circuit, helping France finish third overall in Vancouver as he quickly showed his quality and shone over the weekend.
Disappointment for France
The 27-year-old, who captained France during the 2023 World Cup, was able to catch most of Les Bleus’ disappointing draw to Italy on Sunday morning (Canadian Time) as he watched on with his sevens teammates.
“With the time difference, we got up early, so I was able to watch almost the whole match,” Dupont said.
“I was obviously very disappointed for them. We have the impression that they didn’t deal with the red card well just before half-time.”
France started the match well and dominated possession and territory, and when Charles Ollivon powered over for the opening try, it looked as if it was going to be one-way traffic in Lille.
However, Jonathan Danty’s red card and the injury to Matthieu Jalibert hampered France’s efforts, and they added just three points to their tally in the second half.
Failing to capitalise
France’s inability to capitalise on their opportunities and rack up a considerable lead was part of their undoing, according to Dupont, but believes that the team can bounce back.
“We had a very good start to the match, but maybe we don’t not score enough,” Dupont added.
“We fell back into the mistakes of the last matches where it’s difficult to find ourselves collectively even if it’s clear that there’s a lot of desire. The players aren’t giving up.”
Les Bleus now have two games left to win back some credit with the supporters, while Fabien Galthie is also under the cosh.
They head to Cardiff, where they will tackle Wales in the penultimate match before finishing their campaign when they host England in Lyon for Le Crunch.
“I still support them 200%. I hope that They will finish the tournament perfectly with two great victories. I know they are capable of it,” Dupont concluded.
READ MORE: Antoine Dupont shines despite ‘scary’ sevens debut but France fail in title quest
