Italy 3 France 39:Rotation in French rugby means more than the way Bernard Laporte's eyes move when his blood is up. Continual reshuffles are now as integral to Les Bleus' existence as coffee, croissants and questioning editorials in L'Équipe, and so only Laporte and his manager, Jo Maso, have any idea what kind of side they will send to Dublin this weekend.
There is a perverse element to the new policy. In any other international side a barnstorming display of the kind Sebastien Chabal produced on Saturday, in what Laporte said was France's best start to a Six Nations in eight years, would have earned him a starting place against Ireland in what has been billed as the possible Six Nations decider.
Not so with France, who have delayed announcing their 22 for Dublin until later today amid hints they may leave out Chabal and Saturday's other outstanding performers, the fledgling half-back pairing of Pierre Mignoni and David Skrela.
"They looked as if they had been together for 15 years," purred Laporte, who is surely likely to keep them as a unit for more than five days.
Whether Chabal travels to Dublin, the man-mountain can sleep easy knowing he's no longer in the international wilderness.
"He has done everything that we asked of him," said Laporte, who had not got the best out of Philippe Saint-Andre's protege until Saturday. For once there was far more to Chabal than the pile-driving bursts that are his trademark. He offloaded, snaffled at the breakdown, caught in the lineout and produced one fingertip take of a pass Mignoni sent behind his back. His first two Test tries were just reward.
After 24 outings for Les Bleus the 29-year-old clearly believed this was probably his last chance to stake a claim to a regular place.
"I felt that today, if it didn't go well, it might be all over for me with France because there are only five matches in the tournament; there's a tough tour to New Zealand so there aren't many more occasions to show what you are made of," said Chabal.
"I think perhaps it worked out today because I was playing number eight rather than blindside as in the past with France. I think that freed me up mentally and freed me up on the pitch."
As well as a new number eight option, France have new possibilities at halfback: they were galvanised by Mignoni's rapid passing, so flat he constantly flirted with sending the ball forward. Skrela was never flustered, though the Irish back row will prove a far sterner test for him, if he travels.
While France remain a work in progress, at least progress is the mot juste. The same cannot be said of their hosts. Italy did not lack possession, they stole eight lineout balls and the Bergamasco brothers and the captain, Marco Bortolami, put in huge efforts, but it is not enough without half-backs who can use possession.
The French played in the Azzurri's faces and leapt on an ample supply of turnover ball.
"We know against the big teams we are looking for an ideal scenario in which we take our chances and they are not at their best, but when a team like France gets ahead it's hard," admitted the Italy coach Pierre Berbizier.
With all Italian eyes on the Flaminio on a weekend of huge soul-searching in Italian sport, at least the Azzurri held their discipline and contributed to a spectacle that had home commentators hailing the contrast between the troubles of calcio and the relaxed, friendly nature of international rugby.
"This is sport," proclaimed one paper, but that was not strictly accurate. This was too one-sided a contest to be truly satisfying and only a true test in the Croke Park cauldron will show quite whether constant rotation is actually taking France forward.
Guardian Service
ITALY: R De Marigny; D Dallan, G Canale, Mirco Bergamasco, A Masi; A Scanavacca, P Griffen; S Perugini, Ongaro, C Nieto; S Dellape, M Bortolami (capt); J Sole (Viadana), Mauro Bergamasco, S Parisse. Replacements: R Pez for Scanavacca (14 mins); A Lo Cicero for Perugini, C Festuccia for Ongaro, M Castrogiovanni for Nieto (all 49 mins); R Mandelli for Dellape (72 mins); A Troncon for Griffen (75 mins); K Robertson for Canale (78 mins): Scorers: Penalty - Pez.
FRANCE: C Poitrenaud; C Dominici, F Fritz, Y Jauzion, C Heymans; D Skrela, P Mignoni; O Milloud, R Ibanez (capt); P de Villiers; J Thion, L Nallet; S Betsen, J Bonnaire, S Chabal. Replacements: D Szarzewski for Ibanez, S Marconnet for Milloud (both 60 mins); I Harinordoquy for Bonnaire (68 mins); L Beauxis for Fritz (71 mins); P Pape for Chabal (76 mins). Scorers: Tries - Skrela, Heymans, Chabal (2), Jauzion; Cons - Skrela (4); Pens - Skrela, Beauxis.
Referee: W Barnes (England).
