The win thrusts Wales to the top of the Six Nations table, with the only bad news being a thumb injury to inspirational skipper Gareth Thomas which will see him miss the rest of the RBS Six Nations tournament.
It didn't go to plan in the opening spell, though. The Welsh scrum was under immediate pressure, and a third minute turnover had disastrous results. The French ran the unexpected ball and Dimitri Yachvili found acres of space around the fringes to scamper over for the game's opening try. The little scrum half slotted the simple conversion and Wales's proud defensive record in recent matches was in tatters.
A break from much-criticised outside half Yann Delaigue gave huge winger Aurélien Rougerie the space to plough through opposite number Shane Williams and score in the corner. A stunned Wales simply couldn't get their hands on the ball - or at least keep their hands on it - as regular turnovers gave France all the possession they needed to show why they are one of the most feared teams in the world.
If the home side had converted only a third of their scoring chances, Wales would have been out of it by the 20-minute mark. As it was, Stephen Jones ignored the boos to slot a 40-metre penalty goal, which was immediately cancelled out by a closer shot from Yachvili. Williams was clear before being called back for a forward pass and opposite number Yannick Nyanga was also heading for the try line before the linesman put his flag up.
Huge hits were coming in from both sides, with Wales props Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones making their presence felt in the midfield. Unfortunately, too many Welsh forwards were out there during attacking moves and they all broke down through poor handling. Rougerie had a field day against the diminutive Williams, brushing him aside at will, and debutant fullback Julien Laharrague was causing chaos every time he entered the line.
Jones ended the half with another well-struck goal, and Wales had limited the damage to 15-6 at the halfway mark.
Thomas didn't emerge from the tunnel after the break, but it didn't seem to affect his side as they roared back into the match. A Stephen Jones break set up a perfect position for the ball to be spun wide to Shane Williams, who drew the final defender and slipped the try-scoring pass to namesake Martyn. Jones added the conversion and suddenly it was game on.
Wales poured back on to the attack and earned a penalty metres from the French try line. Martyn Williams took the quick tap and dove over for his second try in as many minutes to give his side the lead and silence the hostile crowd.
Replacement outside half Frederic Michalak dropped a goal to level the scores at 18-all before Jones's third penalty goal split the teams. Jones extended the lead to six points with a dropped goal of his own, but France powered back on to the attack. They went close as the Welsh scrum collapsed on its try line three times, but replacement scrum half Gareth Cooper got his boot to the ball and the danger was averted.
It was all France as the clock ticked down, but Wales held on for a famous victory.
No. | Name | T | C | D | P | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | Julien Laharrague |
|
||||
14 | Aurelien Rougerie |
1T |
|
|||
13 | Yannick Jauzion |
|
||||
12 | Damien Traille |
|
||||
11 | Christophe Dominici |
|
||||
10 | Yann Delaigue |
|
||||
9 | Dimitri Yachvili |
1T |
1C |
1P |
|
|
1 | Sylvain Marconnet |
|
||||
2 | Sebastien Bruno |
|
||||
3 | Nicolas Mas |
|
||||
4 | Fabien Pelous |
|
||||
5 | Jerome Thion |
|
||||
6 | Serge Betsen Tchoua |
|
||||
7 | Yannick Nyanga Kabasele |
|
||||
8 | Julien Bonnaire |
|
||||
16 | William Servat |
|
||||
17 | Olivier Milloud |
|
||||
18 | Gregory Lamboley |
|
||||
19 | Imanol Harinordoquy |
|
||||
20 | Pierre Mignoni |
|
||||
21 | Frederic Michalak |
1D |
|
|||
22 | Jean-Philippe Grandclaude |
|
No. | Name | T | C | D | P | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
15 | Gareth Thomas |
|
||||
14 | Kevin Morgan |
|
||||
13 | Tom Shanklin |
|
||||
12 | Gavin Henson |
|
||||
11 | Shane Williams |
|
||||
10 | Stephen Jones |
1C |
1D |
3P |
|
|
9 | Dwayne Peel |
|
||||
1 | Gethin Jenkins |
|
||||
2 | Mefin Davies |
|
||||
3 | Adam Jones |
|
||||
4 | Brent Cockbain |
|
||||
5 | Robert Sidoli |
|
||||
6 | Ryan Jones |
|
||||
7 | Martyn Williams |
2T |
|
|||
8 | Michael Owen |
|
||||
16 | Robin McBryde |
|
||||
17 | John Yapp |
|
||||
18 | Jonathan Thomas |
|
||||
19 | Robin Sowden-Taylor |
|
||||
20 | Gareth Cooper |
|
||||
21 | Ceri Sweeney |
|
||||
22 | Rhys Williams |
|
![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Aus Teams Wales v Australia Opposition Australia (H) Opposition Aus (H) 21-29
HT 13-22
Opposition Australia Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 17:15 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Aus Form W W L L W ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Georgia Teams Wales v Georgia Opposition Georgia (H) Opposition Georgia (H) 13-6
HT 10-3
Opposition Georgia Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 14:30 Referee Mathieu Raynal Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Georgia Form L L W L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v NZ Teams Wales v New Zealand Opposition New Zealand (H) Opposition NZ (H) 18-33
HT 11-12
Opposition New Zealand Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 17:15 Referee Wayne Barnes Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W NZ Form W W L D W ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v South Africa Teams Wales v South Africa Opposition South Africa (H) Opposition South Africa (H) 24-22
HT 21-10
Opposition South Africa Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 14:30 Referee Jerome Garces Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W South Africa Form W L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Sco Teams Wales v Scotland Opposition Scotland (H) Opposition Sco (H) 34-7
HT 14-0
Opposition Scotland Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 14:15 Referee Pascal Gauzere Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Sco Form L W W L W ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Eng v Wal Teams England v Wales Opposition England (A) Opposition Eng (A) 12-6
HT 12-3
Opposition England Venue Twickenham Stadium Time KO 16:45 Referee Jerome Garces Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Eng Form W W L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Ire v Wal Teams Ireland v Wales Opposition Ireland (A) Opposition Ire (A) 37-27
HT 15-13
Opposition Ireland Venue Aviva Stadium Time KO 14:15 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Ire Form W W W W W ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Ita Teams Wales v Italy Opposition Italy (H) Opposition Ita (H) 38-14
HT 17-7
Opposition Italy Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 15:00 Referee Jerome Garces Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Ita Form L L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Fra Teams Wales v France Opposition France (H) Opposition Fra (H) 14-13
HT 14-10
Opposition France Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 17:00 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Fra Form L L W W L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams South Africa v Wal Teams South Africa v Wales Opposition South Africa (N) Opposition South Africa (N) 02/06/18, 17:00
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Opposition South Africa Venue RFK Stadium Time KO 17:00 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W South Africa Form W L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Argentina v Wal Teams Argentina v Wales Opposition Argentina (A) Opposition Argentina (A) 09/06/18, TBC
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Opposition Argentina Venue Estadio del Bicentenario Time KO TBC Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Argentina Form L L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Argentina v Wal Teams Argentina v Wales Opposition Argentina (A) Opposition Argentina (A) 16/06/18, TBC
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Opposition Argentina Venue Estadio Brigadier Lopez Time KO TBC Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Argentina Form L L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Fra v Wal Teams France v Wales Opposition France (A) Opposition Fra (A) 01/02/19, 21:00
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Opposition France Venue Stade de France Time KO 21:00 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Fra Form L L W W L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Ita v Wal Teams Italy v Wales Opposition Italy (A) Opposition Ita (A) 09/02/19, 17:45
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Opposition Italy Venue Stadio Olimpico Time KO 17:45 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Ita Form L L L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Eng Teams Wales v England Opposition England (H) Opposition Eng (H) 23/02/19, 16:45
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Opposition England Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 16:45 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Eng Form W W L L L ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Sco v Wal Teams Scotland v Wales Opposition Scotland (A) Opposition Sco (A) 09/03/19, 14:15
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Opposition Scotland Venue BT Murrayfield Time KO 14:15 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Sco Form L W W L W ![]() ![]() ![]() Teams Wal v Ire Teams Wales v Ireland Opposition Ireland (H) Opposition Ire (H) 16/03/19, 14:45
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Opposition Ireland Venue Principality Stadium Time KO 14:45 Referee Previous Meeting Wal Form W L L W W Ire Form W W W W W |
Welsh Rugby Union | ||
Principality Stadium, Westgate Street, Cardiff CF10 1NS | ||
Telephone: 08442 491 999 | Fax: 029 2082 2474 | Email: info@wru.co.uk |