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PARIS - The Bernard Laporte era ended on a sad note when France lost to Argentina for the second time to finish fourth in a World Cup they had dreamed of lifting for the first time.
The hosts, denied a place in Saturday's final by England, went down 34-10 to the Pumas after a jittery display in the third-place playoff on Friday.
France, who were also beaten by Argentina in the opening game of the tournament, failed to hold their nerve in the last match under coach Laporte.
The colourful Laporte, who took charge nearly eight years ago, will now become a junior minister for sport amid reports he is facing an investigation for alleged tax evasion concerning various businesses he is involved with.
Laporte, who named Australia as his inspiration, tried hard but ultimately failed to change France into a disciplined outfit.
"A pitiful ending", read Saturday's front-page headline in the French sports daily L'Equipe while Le Parisien went for "a true fiasco".
Twice losing finalists, France believed that being at home would give them the extra sparkle they needed. It did not.
Relying on dull tactics with massive forwards, a rock-solid defence and plenty of kicking, they knocked out New Zealand in the quarter-finals before their World Cup run ended in the last four against England, as it did in 2003.
A new coach will be appointed in a few weeks but the bitter taste from a frustrating campaign will linger for a while.
"It's hard to swallow," said lock Lionel Nallet. "It's a sad way to end but when you've been saying for years you will be world champions, it's hard to lift your head up again after a semi-final defeat."
Several players including first five-eighths Frederic Michalak criticised Laporte for not letting France be themselves.
"We could not express our qualities," said Michalak, who will now leave his Toulouse team to start a new adventure in South Africa with Natal Sharks.
"It's a waste in a way. Personally I feel frustrated. I don't have the impression I gave it my very best. I'm sad for the fans who expected a lot more from us."
Halfback Jean-Baptiste Elissalde said France had simply not been good enough.
"The defeat by England hurt a lot and we could not bounce back to find the motivation we needed," he said.
"The end result was we played Argentina with our heads down. We lacked heart and character. This World Cup we had dreamed so much of ends in pain and disappointment."
- REUTERS
