An Enigma Wrapped In Choux Pastry

Thierry Dusautoir scores his try

Wow! Does it get any better than this? First Fiji beat Wales, then England beat the Aussies and just when you thought the excitement couldn't get any greater what happens, the match of the tournament comes along. France beating New Zealand 20-18 in Cardiff wasn't meant to happen. Not just because France shouldn't have been there in the first place it was meant to be Ireland but because New Zealand were the finely honed, super charged grey and black all conquering fifteen man rugby machine that were the hottest favourites to win the World Cup since the last time the All Blacks played.

Actually I think that was the problem, not just the French facing down the Haka but the fact that the All Blacks don't look quite so menacing in grey or silver.

This was the French at the enigmatic and mercurial best although I think a lot of the damage was done in the ten minutes that McAllister spent in the sin bin. What I couldn't understand was that if he was yellow carded for obstruction and preventing a try scoring opportunity why wasn't a penalty try awarded?

The last five minutes of the match were one those occasions we have seen repeated on each of the past three weekends, a team defending as if its life depended on it whilst the attacking side were just one drop goal away from victory. The memory I will take away from this match is the French scrum half running towards his own left hand corner with the ball in hand knowing he only had to kick into touch for the match to end, it was his ball and he was taking it back to Paris.

So which France will turn up next Saturday in the Stade De France, the side that performed so meekly in the rain of the opening night against Argentina or the one that fought like lions under the closed roof in Cardiff? Whichever one it is I know we are going to be in for eighty minutes of heart stopping entertainment.