Incredible now: Fabien Galthié announced his departure from Rugby just now to join…
Having played for France in four Rugby World Cups, and lost a final, Fabien Galthié is now focused on coaching the home nation to its maiden Webb Ellis Cup. In his three years at the helm, the former scrum-half and captain has turned Les Bleus into a ruthless winning machine, finding a worthy successor in skipper Antoine Dupont.
Since Galthié took over as head coach in 2020, the mercurial French have cast aside their reputation for inconsistency, amassing an impressive tally of 33 wins out of 41 games, including a Six Nations Grand Slam in 2022.
Les Bleus are widely expected to make it 34 wins when they take on Namibia at Marseille’s Vélodrome stadium on Thursday in their third pool game at the World Cup. But the manner of their victory will be closely scrutinised a week after their laborious win over Uruguay prompted boos and whistles from the home crowd in Lille.
Galthié, whose squad against Uruguay featured only three players from the dazzling team that saw off New Zealand in the tournament’s curtain raiser, summoned Charles Darwin to explain France’s two-faced performance.
“Our method is based on adaptability,” Les Bleus’ head coach mused during a press conference this week. “It’s a bit like Darwin’s theory: it’s not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent. It is the one that is most adaptable to change.”
