The Paris symphony orchestra are back in session. Forced away from their suburban concert hall last year by the Olympics, on their Six Nations return to the Stade de France this fabulous French side gave the crowd a night to remember. Twelve months ago, in Marseille, they had played all the wrong notes in the wrong order to be badly beaten by Ireland; Wales may not be in the class of the two-time defending champions but this was a drastic improvement.
They have the capacity to play far better than they did in this 43-0 thrashing. It is their ability to blend a mighty percussion section with the softer strings that marks France out as tournament favourites, but the difference in this fixture, and perhaps to this tournament, was their masterful maestro of a conductor. The peerless Antoine Dupont, absent last year en route to securing Olympic gold, is back where he belongs.
If the Paris atmosphere was much missed last year, the scrum half’s absence as he chased sevens glory was a great travesty. Here was a performance that showed why his place as the best player on the planet is becoming beyond debate. France were not at all at their best in the first half yet exited it with a bonus point in the bag; four tries split evenly between the two wings yet conjured by their little genius, again making the ridiculous look routine.
Such was the security of the situation that Fabien Galthie could take off his captain with 30 minutes still to go, recognising that there are far sterner tests to come. Perhaps it might have been a good call to take off his half-back partner, too, Romain Ntamack’s late sending off taking the shine off a pleasing night for the France head coach. He seems all but certain to miss next week’s trip to Twickenham, and maybe more.
One could not help but feel sorry for this Welsh side, winless since the 2023 World Cup and always unlikely to end that run here. They were lambs to the slaughter in an abattoir of brilliant butchers. Still relatively callow despite the returns of Josh Adams, Jac Morgan and Liam Williams, there was a certain naivete to the Welsh performance, unable to build on a bright enough start, particularly defensively.
This was an unfair test of their credentials yet it is striking how far they have fallen – on their last visit to Paris two years ago, they had scored four tries; even one felt like an impossibility at times here. But a wistful glance back at that starting side reveals plenty, just three of the starters then beginning again – and one of them, Aaron Wainwright, was forced off minutes in to the 2025 meeting. Yet this was still a damaging day in 18 months full of them, a first nilling since 2007 tough to take.
It was a bitty opening 15 minutes, France arriving clearly keen to play but not quite getting their accuracy right in the face of some strong Welsh scrambling. A tip tackle on the hulking Uini Atonio – some feat with the tighthead somewhere near 150kg – afforded Dupont a sniping chance from a quick tap, but Tom Rogers and colleagues got beneath the ball to deny the scrum half an opening score.
Irrepressible as ever, it was Dupont who made the first try when it eventually came. He had begun to set the tone defensively, firing out of the line to hassle and harry Welsh backs: Nick Tompkins shelled the ball at the sheer sight of him; Ben Thomas narrowly escaped being trapped in goal with Wales unable to escape their own end.
When possession came France’s way, there appeared little doubt they would strike. Dupont had minutes earlier rehearsed his assist, his first crossfield kick landing in open pasture with no teammate reading from the same script. Bad dress rehearsal, good performance, as the old theatre saying goes – 40 metres upfield, Theo Attissogbe had learned his lines to collect the kick and a maiden Test try.
To their work the hosts warmed. A neat swivel from Atonio belied his size and created enough room for the quicker men beyond him to profit, with Louis Bielle-Biarrey the scorer. Things soon turned from bad to worse for Wales as Owen Watkin was helped off with what looked a serious knee injury. Into the fray rookie fly half Dan Edwards was thrown on international debut.
He soon had just 13 teammates with him as Evan Lloyd was shown yellow for a high shot on a weaving Bielle-Biarrey. Soon after, away went Dupont on one of his wondrous, wizard-like weaves, a phantasm of fantasy as he darted in and out of tackles. He could have scored himself; Attissogbe was again the grateful beneficiary of his benevolence. One more assist arrived before the interval as a wide pass set up Bielle-Biarrey to match his opposite wing’s tally.
In phase play, France had not yet been particularly flash with Ntamack and his centres not quite connecting as desired. Their set piece had not been invulnerable, either, but the arrival of five of their six bench forwards along with Dupont’s replacement, Nolann Le Garrec, brought new might. The maul soon forced its way to the line as Julien Marchand plonked down his side’s fifth. More chances came and went before Emilien Gailleton crossed for the sixth.
There was to be a late twist, though, not at all sufficient to swing this game but with great ramifications for France’s future. Ntamack made direct, forceful contact with his shoulder to the head of Thomas – a swift review rightly upgraded the on-field yellow card to a red, ensuring that the fly half would play no further part. With a ban surely looming, it may be that he plays little more in this whole campaign.
It somewhat marred a record win on home soil for France over Wales, confirmed by Gregory Alldritt’s score in the throes. This was Warren Gatland’s 150th game in charge of Wales; it is not totally clear how many more there will be. Certainly, defeat here in this manner piles the pressure on ahead of the second leg of their continental adventure – fail to beat Italy in Rome next week and the progress promised to the Welsh Rugby Union when they decided to back the head coach late last year will feel distant. But this was France, and Dupont’s night – and they might only just be getting started.
