Lawrence Dallaglio has been talking up France with so much enthusiasm that it is hard to believe that England are the bookmakers' favourites this afternoon in Le Crunch.
Clearly England would be more comfortable as underdogs, as they were in the build-up to their victory over South Africa in December, but a run of good form which has brought five wins in their last six games means that England are now expected to deliver.
New Zealand and Australia have been living with that kind of competitive pressure for decades which may explain why they won the first two World Cups in 1987 and 1991. Unlike England, the Southern Hemisphere nations rarely feel the need to lavish praise on their opposition merely because Joe Public anticipates another victory; instead they prefer to dwell quietly on their own preparations, not giving too much away but sometimes showing refreshing frankness over their own shortcomings.
Dallaglio insisted he was not engaging in kidology but Jeremy Guscott, who has shared in six victories over the French, stretched credibility when he described them as "the scariest team in the world to play against". Really? England beat them eight times in succession from 1989 to 1995.
Clive Woodward, the England coach, took the same line, admitting he "became very worried as soon as I learned that Wales had won in Paris". Presumably he fears a backlash, yet England have an unexpected opportunity to exploit a sagging morale.
Tim Rodber, while also claiming underdog status on the basis that France have triumphed in their last four meetings, at least sounded a more aggressive note. "We'll go out to play a physical and intimidating game, to fight like dogs for every scrap of possession; we'll have to take the aggression from them, cut them off at source." Nevertheless, if England do believe what they have been saying about their opponents, it suggests a lack of faith in their ability to keep the French backs in check.
Despite their wins over Scotland and Ireland which kept them on course for a Grand Slam, members of the squad have been edgy, not to say boorish, this week in contrast to the relaxed mood they showed in Dublin. Guscott, asked what kind of game he best flourished in, responded: "That's a stupid question." Probably the fear of another defeat by France has gnawed at their psyche, perhaps with good reason. He must know they could easily have let victory over the Scots and Irish slip away in the final quarter-hour. Similar failure to turn lengthy periods of pressure into points on the board could hand the initiative back to the French.
Woodward, who enthusiastically embraced a policy of total rugby when he became coach 18 months ago, has since produced a team significantly more proficient at stopping tries than scoring them. Rock-solid defence saw off the Springboks and nearly stopped Australia, and the same tactic shut out the Irish a fortnight ago. In the Scotland game England went walkabout and survived only by a penalty goal. But it is open to doubt whether 100 tackles will be enough to defeat France.
With a Slam within his grasp, Woodward will not worry too much about the limitations of England's playing style provided they keep on winning. The coach has problems enough in the creative department, having lost Paul Grayson to injury and been forced to recall Mike Catt, whom he dropped at the start of the month. Catt versus the gifted Castaignede could well turn into rugby's version of Holyfield versus Lewis. But, with New Zealand's Colin Hawke in charge, would penalty-prone France get the verdict?
Inevitably this fixture, which involves a new-look French side showing seven changes, triggers more questions than answers.
France may often be wildly inconsistent - they could even be in decline - but their best rugby tends to come from the heart while England's still comes from the head.
Just as they did on their successful visit here two years ago, the French breezed into Waterloo via Eurostar without turning a hair. Surely Castaignede and his mates have some sense of history. Maybe France know something that England do not.
England: M Perry (Bath); D Rees (Sale), J Wilkinson (Newcastle), J Guscott (Bath), D Luger (Harlequins); M Catt (Bath), K Bracken (Saracens); J Leonard (Harlequins), R Cockerill (Leicester), D Garforth (Leicester), M Johnson (Leicester), T Rodber (Northampton), R Hill (Saracens), N Back (Leicester), L Dallaglio (Wasps, capt). REPLACEMENTS: N Beal (Northampton), B-J Mather (Sale), M Dawson (Northampton), M Corry (Leicester), G Archer (Newcastle), V Ubogu (Bath), N McCarthy (Gloucester).
France: E N'Tamack (Toulouse); X Garbajosa (Toulouse), P Giordani (Dax), F Comba (Stade Francais), C Dominici (Stade Francais); T Castaignede (Castres), P Carbonneau (Brive); S Marconnet (Stade Francais), R Ibanez (Perpignan, capt), F Tournaire (Toulouse), O Brouzet (Begles-Bordeaux), F Pelous (Toulouse), T Lievremont (Perpignan), R Castel (Beziers), C Juillet (Stade Francais). REPLACEMENTS: C Laussucq (Stade Francais), D Aucagne (Pau), P Bernat- Salles (Biarritz), M Raynaud (Narbonne), D Auradou (Stade Francais), C Califano (Toulouse), M de Rougemont (Begles-Bordeaux).
REFEREE: Colin Hawke (New Zealand). TOUCH JUDGES: Jim Fleming (Scotland), Paddy O'Brien (New Zealand).
