All Blacks: France under-strength for opening test

Chris Jack puts the big hit on Sebastien Chabal during the 2007 French tour. Photo / Chris Skelton

France have already decided to play a weakened team in their first test against the All Blacks next month before unleashing their big guns in Wellington.

Michel Estienne caught up with French coach Marc Lièvremont, who revealed he has no choice but to field a side in Dunedin missing players involved in the French Top 14 final on June 6.

What are your hopes for the two-test tour of New Zealand?

I don't have any aims for the tour, in particular, because it's always extremely complicated for us to travel DownUnder at this time of year, given the long and tiring [club] season we've just had.

I certainly have the intention of matching New Zealand all the way. I would've preferred to have opened the tour against Australia because I'd be fearful that we'd be a little fragile for the two matches against the All Blacks.

I believe we would be in a better position to compete with the Australians but, then again, I'll have all my squad for that match. I think it will be a great tour, although there will be question marks over the freshness of my players.

We'd love to go there with a bit more certainty over our group of players and our gameplan. We're not moving as quickly as we'd like to. I hope this tour will help us to assert ourselves much more.

But you must be happy that, in comparison to last year's Australian tests, you will have your best players available this time round?

Absolutely, but at the same time our preparations won't be all that great. We have to take into account the obligations of the French Championship and divide our squad into two.

The first group of players to arrive are those who won't be involved in the Top 14 final. They'll arrive on the 3rd of June. The other group, comprising those players from the two clubs in the final, will join us a couple of days after the showdown in Paris.

They'll arrive three or four days before the first test and will have to do their best to recover from the jetlag and the physical and mental hangover from the final a few days before. It's not ideal.

That's the reason why we have decided to take no risk with those who are contesting the final. Instead, they'll be rested for the first test. The team that'll take the field in Dunedin will have left France a week earlier.

So I want to reassure all New Zealanders that our side will be competitive.

In making the decision of not starting your best side for the first test, are you not running the risk of beginning the tour on the back foot? But can I do any differently?

I know the Sanzar nations are annoyed with the situation and have many times threatened to pull out of the June tests.

What they need to know is that I'm just as annoyed about it as they are. I'm constantly trying to change things from that point of view by confronting the league authorities. Rugby in France prioritises the Championship over the needs of the national team.

So in relation to the amount of preparation that I have compared to other sides, I am penalised. I envy the amount of preparation time at the disposal of the likes of Graham Henry. But I must work with what I have at my disposal.

Are you upset by the fact that the Sanzar nations don't seem to understand how difficult it is for France to compete on an equal footing?

Yes. Obviously they don't understand that I've no choice in the matter. The Championship was supposed to finish before the end of May. Yet, this year the final is on June 6.

Everybody has problems in their own back yard. People should stop criticising others. From what I can see, the standard of rugby in the Super 14 is far from exceptional.

Matches seem to be played out in empty stadia.

You've always held New Zealand rugby in high regard. Where does this admiration come from?

Since I was a young boy, the All Blacks were always my favourite team. My idol was Michael Jones and a few years later I had great respect for the likes of Josh Kronfeld who I had the pleasure of playing with for the French Barbarians. We swapped jerseys after the 1999 World Cup semifinal and I still have it.

That match is probably my greatest memory in a French jersey, although I got injured and needed injections to play the final against Australia. New Zealand rugby is highly respected by the French because matches against the All Blacks are invariably memorable.

For me, New Zealand rugby is the perfect blend between the pragmatism of the Pakeha and the creative spark of the Islanders.

The rugby is more representative of New Zealand's cultural melting pot than what you'll find in Australia or South Africa. What makes the rugby work is that they can find perfection by doing the simple things very well - the quality of their off-loading and the efficiency of their recycling game. Even if they've not won a World Cup since 1987, they remain the standard bearers in world rugby.