Maxime Lucu-Mathieu Jalibert, A hinge that hangs

In the absence of Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamac, the Bordeaux-Baglaise duo failed to impress in their first two matches. Young Nolan Le Garec is bidding for a starting spot against Italy on Sunday.

A very pale burgundy hinge. After the Blues’ slow start to the Six Nations tournament with the absences of Romain Ntamac and Antoine Dupont as starters, Mathieu Jalibert and Maxime Luku focused some of the criticism. However, after a very high-flying start to the season with Union Bordeaux-Bagels (third place in the top 14, qualified for the knockout stages of the Champions Cup), the Bordeaux duo are yet to reach their best. International.

Against Ireland, like the whole team, Lukou and Jalibert dominated and impressed (56% success between them, the lowest total in the starting XV), The final and final pass of Damien Penaud’s effort before the break.

In Scotland, they did not even emphasize the fate of the meeting. Maxime Lukou appeared particularly borrowed, with a more managerial and less flashy style than Antoine Dupont, with many poor choices and technical errors. For his 20th pick (eighth as a starter), iHe left the pitch in the 50th minute, which would normally have been a more favorable moment for a team review on the front line. On the Murrayfield pitch, his teammate in the opener (who was celebrating his 20th start in 32 caps) also suffered heavily under a long Scottish kick and dropped three balls, including one which resulted in the opposition’s first try.

Back in Scotland, dominating against Ireland

“There are defensive errors from Mathieu Jalibert that are not due to the collective, but individual, for example on the high ball, so it is a lot at this level”

Dimitri Yachvili, a former international scrum-half and France television consultant, who wonders about the gaming system “which does not suit them”.

Apart from their individual mistakes, the two UBB players were also not put in the best position to shine. “QHen you play 9 or 10, you depend on the performance of your forwards, and there, we can’t say we were very good on the forward side, Remembers Dimitri Yachvili. We lost balls in the win, four in contact against the Irish, two in Scotland, that’s already six shots short, which is a lot.” In a collective with success and efficiency at half mast, it is difficult for Maxime Luku and Mathieu Jalibert to add something extra.

“You don’t really play in an armchair, the ball releases aren’t really quick, so obviously the hinge has a hard time energizing the game.”

Dimitri Yachvili, former scrum half of the France team

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A view shared by Toulon coach, Pierre Mignoni, himself a former scrum-half, who came to the defense of the Bordeaux pair after the match against Scotland. “I don’t think it’s Hingera’s fault (…) We have to stop pointing fingers at poor Mathieu Jalibert and Maxime Lukou.He assured AFP during the week. It’s always easy, I knew it too, as soon as the team lost, it was the hinge’s fault. Hinge has a lot of responsibilities on the game, but the whole team has a lot of responsibilities to fight and do.“.

Which place for Nolan Le Garec?

Despite everything, with this mixed record, Fabian Galthi and staff may be tempted to make some changes at the 9 and 10 positions. Particularly interesting was the young Nolan Le Garec (21 years old) during his two entries into the play. And crucial too, because in Scotland, he was well-placed to serve Louis Billey-Byre, author of the winning try, in the last 10 minutes. “Nolan Le Garec energizes the game. If we want to create a more dynamic game, he can take on that responsibility”Dimitri Yachvili explains.

The first steps of the Racing 92 scrum half left his coach visibly pleased. Two years in a group in France and a tour of Japan, “They are gradually taking positions, roles and ownership of international level with great satisfaction”Fabian praised Galthy before the match in Scotland. Nolan Le Guerrec, listed in the protected players list for the last day of the Top 14 and therefore saved, is now in talks to start against Italy.