The team to face Ireland
15 Yoann Huget (Toulouse)
Age: 25
Height: 1.90m (6ft 3in)
Weight: 97kg (15st 4lbs)
Extravagant attacker with winger’s pace, who possesses a footballer’s brain, the intercept specialist might just implode spectacularly under the dirty Irish weather.
14 Vincent Clerc (Toulouse)
Age: 31
Height: 1.78m (5ft 10in)
Weight: 90kg (14st 2lbs)
Ireland’s bane returns. Still has the flash of pace to silence a Dublin crowd like he did so painfully at Croke Park in 2007.
13 Florian Fritz (Toulouse)
Age: 29
Height: 1.85m (6ft 1in)
Weight: 96kg (15st 1lb)
The latest odd selection by Philippe Saint-Andre. Although Mathieu Bastareaud was losing possession when grounded, this feisty and mobile runner has never troubled O’Driscoll.
12 Wesley Fofana (Clermont)
Age: 25
Height: 1.78m (5ft 10in)
Weight: 88kg (13st 12lbs)
The long overdue switch to 12 yielded a try for the ages at Twickenham. Combines the deceptive running of Jeremy Guscott with Tana Umaga’s power.
11 Maxime Médard (Toulouse)
Age: 26
Height: 1.80m (5ft 11in)
Weight: 89kg (14st)
Recall completes a Toulouse laden backline, this dazzling runner - ball always in two hands - could destroy Ireland when his forwards gain any sort of edge.
10 Frédéric Michalak (Toulon)
Age: 30
Height: 1.82m (6ft)
Weight: 85kg (13st 5lbs)
The conjurer can win or lose it for France. “Freddy’s” renaissance in South Africa and Toulon has yet to be transferred onto the Test match stage.
9 Morgan Parra (Clermont)
Age: 24
Height: 1.80m (5ft 11in)
Weight: 77kg (12st 2lbs)
A near flawless player, inexplicably shunned by Saint-Andre until recently, he must become the senior general if France’s massive pack are to be rewarded.
1 Thomas Domingo (Clermont)
Age: 27
Height: 1.73m (5ft 8in)
Weight: 110kg (17st 5lbs)
Only has to go flat out for 10 minutes after half-time before another Clermont loosehead, the more powerful Vincent Debaty arrives to torture Ross some more.
2 Benjamin Kayser (Clermont)
Age: 28
Height: 1.83m (6ft)
Weight: 112kg (17st 8lbs)
Another Clermont man, he’ll want to scrummage Ross into the dirt before Guilhem Guirado arrives to keep the pain clinic operational.
3 Nicolas Mas (Perpignan)
Age: 32
Height: 1.80m (5ft 11in)
Weight: 110kg (17st 5lbs)
Great, it’s his 60th cap so expect tears for La Marseillaise and somewhat bridled violence until Luc Duclacon’s extra 10 kilos comes hunting Healy.
4 Christophe Samson (Castres)
Age: 29
Height: 1.98m (6ft 6in)
Weight: 107kg (16st 12lbs)
The massive 21-year-old Sebastien Vahaamahina is poised to relieve Samson so the loss of captain Pascal Pape is hardly a weakness.
5 Yoann Maestri (Toulouse)
Age: 25
Height: 2.02m (6ft 7.5in)
Weight: 121kg (19st 1lb)
The biggest brute of them all. If muscle mass matters, this man will eventually make a crushing impact as he strives to become the world’s foremost lock.
6 Yannick Nyanga (Toulouse)
Age: 29
Height: 1.87m (6ft 1.5in)
Weight: 102kg (16st 1lb)
Has yet to make a lasting impact despite a nine-year Test career but, fear not, the naturalised South Africa Antonie Claassen is lurking in the shadows.
7 Thierry Dusautoir (Toulouse, capt)
Age: 31
Height: 1.88m (6ft 2in)
Weight: 100kg (15st 10lbs)
The great one will be desperate to avoid leading France through their worst ever Six Nations so expect close to 30 tackles. And they’ll all count.
8 Louis Picamoles (Toulouse)
Age: 27
Height: 1.92m (6ft 4in)
Weight: 113kg (17st 11lbs)
The eighth Toulouse warrior on view today, if he maintains current standards of excellence he can surpass Kieran Read to be the game’s best number eight.
