Antoine Dupont sums up the mood of French rugby after defeat to the Springboks. Photo / Getty Images
Antoine Dupont sums up the mood of French rugby after defeat to the Springboks. Photo / Getty Images
‘The four best teams in the world’
Michael Aylwin, The Guardian
An extraordinary match of fluctuating fortunes ended with French players scattered across the turf, part despair, part exhaustion, denied the chance to prevail at their own World Cup.
Another in the eye for the global north. South Africa it is, brimming with all that World Cup know-how, who progress to a semifinal against England, the only team left in the tournament from the north. Not even the most ardent fan in white would claim their team represented the best of the north.
This weekend has showcased, as any set of quarter-finals should, the four best teams in the world. Alas, they were playing each other. Ireland-New Zealand on Saturday would have graced any World Cup final – and, boy, this match would have, too.
France won all the points for artistic merit, if only they had been on offer, but, as with the All Blacks the night before, it was the Springboks who knew the shortest route to victory. By the end, France’s insatiable appetite for the running game had unravelled, but they stuck to it till the clock ran red and they could hang on to the ball no more.
‘Lean and hungry for more’
Tom Cary, The Daily Telegraph
After the intensity of the previous evening’s quarter-final between Ireland and New Zealand, this was if anything even more dramatic as the hosts went toe-to-toe with the three-time world champions in a match for the ages.
An extraordinary first half featuring six tries in the space of half an hour - a record for the first half of a men’s World Cup knockout match - saw France head into the break holding a narrow 22-19 advantage. But South Africa came roaring back in the second period with an Eben Etzebeth try giving them some breathing room before France rallied in a grandstand finale.
On this evidence, England will have to hope their surprisingly slow ruck ball and attack might disorientate the Boks because they look lean and hungry for more.
South Africa's Cheslin Kolbe races clear of France's Damian Penaud to score his side's third try during the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal. Photo / AP
‘France’s hopes seemed to leave with them’
Associated Press
France’s star backs were supposed to lead the tournament favourite past defending champion South Africa and into the Rugby World Cup semifinals. They flopped as South Africa won 29-28 in a cliffhanger on Sunday.
Right winger Damian Penaud was on a career-best seven-match try-scoring run and topped the tournament with six tries. Fullback Thomas Ramos was the leading point-scorer and had hardly missed a kick. Talismanic captain Antoine Dupont came back from a tournament-threatening injury to line up alongside the silky Matthieu Jalibert.
It wasn’t their night at Stade de France.
Penaud was far from the lethal finisher who terrified defenders, Ramos was careless enough not to see Cheslin Kolbe coming at him and charge down a conversion attempt, a rare event. Those wasted two points came with the score at 12-12 and proved vital in a one-point contest.
Dupont looked rusty and made errors, too. He had never lost his 14 previous tests at home as captain. Jalibert went off near the end, having made little impression.
In fact, it was France’s forwards who did all the damage in attack, with prop Cyril Baille scoring two tries and hooker Peato Mauvaka getting the other. When they went off during the second half, France’s hopes seemed to leave with them.
‘A moment of cheek and daring’
James While, Planet Rugby
The simple fact is that whilst the starting XV proved they were evenly matched, the impact the South African bench made was the deciding factor in the game. As the match wore on and as replacements churned, so the Springboks grew and grew as the relative quality of their bench proved that from 16 to 23, they held a considerable advantage.
That tap penalty – it was a moment of cheek and daring, and that’s what sets champions apart. Contrast that with France’s decision to kick for three on 71 minutes when they must have been aware that this was their moment to seize the match with a kick to the corner and drive to take seven, and it’s clear that the belief and desire to win was just a little more for the men in green.
‘The brutality was astonishing’
Alex Bywater, Daily Mail
England will play South Africa in a World Cup semifinal after France were sent tumbling out of their own tournament in one of the best global showpiece games ever.
But if Steve Borthwick and his players were watching, they must have done so with one eye closed knowing what lies in store next weekend.
Much was expected of this game. Surely it was never going to match the thrilling contest between Ireland and New Zealand also played at the Stade de France 24 hours previously?
Not only did it at equal that brilliant fare, it surpassed it – certainly in a quite brilliant opening half. The two quarter-finals in Paris have truly been rugby matches to remember forever.
Over the course of the 80 minutes here, the hits were thunderous. The brutality was astonishing and the quality at the highest level. In the end, it was South Africa who did enough.
This was supposed to be the weekend the north made a statement. It didn’t happen and now only England, remarkably given their recent struggles, will represent the Six Nations in the last four. It was France’s first loss at home since March 2021. What a time for them to do it. Their home crowd was stunned as even the return of Antoine Dupont couldn’t save them.
‘The French started like a train’
Marc Mayo, Evening Standard
Having experienced the hostility of the French crowd when they lost narrowly in Marseille last November, South Africa had been training with background noise blaring through speakers in the lead-up to the quarter-final.
The Boks’ efforts to combat the impact of the partisan home support looked futile in the early moments, however, as the French started like a train and threatened to blow their opponents away.
Catastrophe for France. The hosts were ejected in Paris after another wonderful contest, but the French camp will tell you what you can do with wonderful contests because the dream has died. The truth is that France had the capacity to put South Africa away with something to spare, dominated the play in the first half and part of the second but gradually lost their class and composure.
And as happens so often, France brought on their replacements way too soon, and a scrum that had been competitive and attack that had sharp edges, seemed to sink. They were also not helped by the officiating, and in the end, after they had driven South Africa back twice upfront, they needed to go for tries rather than the penalties that they kicked.
It was no help when the referee unleashed a barrage of penalties against France, but he still did not feel inclined to get green jerseys off the ball when France were trying to attack.
So England, yes England, are the sole representatives of European rugby in the semifinals. It is absolutely amazing how things eventuate in this crazy tournament and in this crazy sport.
