6 Nations 2024 – “Gregory Alldritt was very worried about Charles Olivonne’s reaction”: Fabian Galthy looks back on captaincy change within France’s XV
In an exclusive interview he gave to the Midi Olympics, Fabian Galthy backtracked on his choice to promote Gregory Alldrit as captain of the French XV. The Blues coach admitted that Rochelle feared Charles Olivone’s reaction.
Apart from the new faces joining the France group (Depoortère, Abadie, Halagahu…), this is the main surprise in Fabian Galthy’s list for the 2024 6 Nations tournament. Gregory Alldritt will captain the Blues during the competition. . The third central line in France’s group is moving forward a bit, one that is often flawless on the field.
inside interview Which he gave to the Midi Olympics, the French coach explained his choice: “We worked together to find out who would succeed Antoine. (…) Charles Olivaun is a captain who is greatly admired by his teammates and staff. He is the leading man of the XV ship in France. But at the same time, We also wanted to change leadership among these senior players. After much discussion, we thought it would be good to have a handover between South Africa and Ireland, between the last match of the World Cup and the first match of the tournament. It was concluded that Greg Alldritt would take over.”
“Greg was very worried about Charles’ reaction”
With 45 selections under his belt, Rochelles has been one of the Blues’ bosses since the arrival of Fabian Galthy as head of selection. The importance described by the latter: “Greg’s level of play is already required. His age (26) also makes us think he’ll be like 70 or 80% of the squad in Australia in 2027. I’m obviously hoping to get Charles up to the World Cup but Greg four years is young and his evolution has made it his turn to take the captaincy.”
This appointment can be seen as a rejection of Charles Olivone. Upon Galthy’s arrival, Toulonnais was appointed captain in early 2020. “He was happy with Greg’s appointment. However, he was very worried about Charles’ reaction. In that sense, our meetings were also great to watch.”
On 19 August, Aldritt made his first captaincy with the Blues, against Fiji in Nantes (a 34–17 victory). So he should experience it again on February 2 against Ireland. The start of a long series?
