New Zealand v France: Key points ahead of World Cup quarter-final
Last Updated: 18/10/15 8:22pm
New Zealand and France lock horns for a record seventh time at a World Cup in Saturday's quarter-final at the Millennium Stadium.
The All Blacks defeated Les Bleus in a tense final at Eden Park in 2011, but they return to the venue where they suffered a shock 20-18 loss at the hands of France in the 2007 quarter-finals.
New Zealand cruised through their pool without engaging top gear, which is in stark contrast to France. The knives have been out for Philippe Saint-Andre and his players after last weekend's loss to Ireland.
Two of the three biggest comebacks in Rugby World Cups history were achieved by France against New Zealand, when they came from 14 points down in 1999 and 13 in 2007.
Can France complete a hat-trick of stunning triumphs or will the All Blacks progress to the semi-finals? We look at some of the key talking points ahead of this eagerly-awaited clash in Cardiff.
Unity or mutiny?
The France starting XV that takes to the pitch on Saturday night will be their least experienced in a World Cup knockout game since their semi-final defeat to England in 2003.
However, it is also the most experienced team named by Saint-Andre in this tournament!
The France head coach has called for unity ahead of their meeting with the World Cup holders, but L'obs Sport are reporting that the players have launched a mutiny.
Saint-Andre steps down after the World Cup but it appears he won't have much say in what could be his last game in charge, with rumours of "bedlam" in the camp after the defeat to Ireland.
This is not a new phenomenon in French rugby. A similar mutiny occurred in the 2011 World Cup after the pool stage defeat to Tonga, where the players ignored Marc Lievremont's instructions and recovered to reach the final.
"We had to free ourselves from his supervision," said Imanol Harinordoquy after the tournament. "He cast the stone at us too often. When something goes wrong, we're all in the same boat. There are no good or bad guys."
Sky Sports' own Graham Simmons hopes the latest rumour is true, having placed one pound of his hard-earned cash on France to lift the Webb Ellis Cup prior to the tournament.
He wrote this week: "So here now are France, limping into the quarter-finals unheralded, unloved and in total disarray.
"Presumably, and you can only hope, they'll spend the entire week at each other's throats. There will be tears, recriminations - there might even, fingers firmly crossed, be some sort of mutiny."
The tinkerman
Much of the ire directed at Saint-Andre is because of his failure to settle on a half-back pairing during his underwhelming four-year reign.
While Stuart Lancaster constantly tinkered in midfield, Saint-Andre has chopped and changed at nine and 10. One of the few constants has been the selection of Frederic Michalak, the enigma of French rugby who has failed to repay the faith shown in him.
Morgan Parra returns at scrum-half on Saturday, with Sebastian Tillous-Borde dropping out of the match-day 23 despite starting three of the four pool games.
"Why Morgan? Everyone knows him, he's a great competitor. We know that he has leadership qualities," said Saint-Andre.
Parra started in the unfamiliar role of fly-half New Zealand in the 2011 World Cup final, and does offer an extra option with his kicking game. But he was ineffective when introduced for the final 25 minutes against Ireland, knocking on twice in the closing stages as France chased the game.
All Blacks holding back?
New Zealand progressed through the pool stages with relative ease and topped the try-scoring charts with 25, but their performances have been below the levels we'd normally expected of the No 1 ranked side in the world.
Barring a nervy opening 50 minutes against Argentina, it has been plain sailing for the All Blacks, with Namibia, Georgia and Tonga all offering brave resistance yet still conceding a combined 148 points against Steve Hansen's men.
But despite averaging almost six tries a game, New Zealand have been far from slick, with the number of handling errors a cause for concern.
However, former Scotland scrum-half Rory Lawson believes the World Cup holders have been keeping their powder dry for the knockout stages and is expecting a marked improvement in performance against France.
Lawson told Rugby World Cup Agenda: "They're holding a lot back but have they got the momentum to go into a game of this magnitude and not have those unforced errors?
"Can they flick the switch? Given the quality of this All Blacks side, I'd have to say yes. They will have a few moves up their sleeves.
"They've got the monkey off their back by winning on home soil and this is now a sign-off for a lot of these guys who have been around for the last 10 or 15 years.
"That will be the emotion that drives this squad on to success. I still think they're the team to beat."
Chalk and cheese
Two big-name centres must be content with places on the bench for Saturday's quarter-final, with Sonny Bill Williams and Mathieu Bastareaud both failing to make their respective starting XVs.
Williams, who has the third-highest number of offloads in the tournament, misses out again as Hansen sticks with the experienced midfield pairing of Ma'a Nonu and Conrad Smith, while Bastareaud pays the price for an ineffective outing against Ireland.
Both are bound to feature at some stage, and both bring something completely different to the party. While Williams is a master at offloading and exploiting space, Bastareaud is an unsubtle battering ram.
If France are chasing the game, and on current form that appears likely, is Bastareaud a better backline option to spring from the bench than talented Toulouse youngster Gael Fickou? He may ask questions of New Zealand in defence but it's predictable and something they'll have prepared for in midweek.
Sonny Bill, on the other hand, is able to combine strong carries with deft touches. If this game is to be decided by the impact of the No 23s, New Zealand hold the edge.
Losing streak
France have the best record of any northern hemisphere side against New Zealand, their 12 victories from 55 Tests outlining the All Blacks' European dominance, but they are on an eight-game losing streak, their worst run against New Zealand for 47 years.
Les Bleus have never lost nine Tests in succession against New Zealand but after being outclassed by Ireland last weekend, you can get long odds on another famous French victory in Cardiff. At time of writing, France were 11/2 with Sky Bet.
Six of the last eight Tests took place in New Zealand, but things get no better for France when you look at matches outside the land of the long white cloud. They have lost seven of the last eight, their only win coming in that stunning and controversial World Cup quarter-final at the Millennium Stadium in 2007.
New Zealand: 15 Ben Smith, 14 Nehe Milner-Skudder, 13 Conrad Smith, 12 Ma'a Nonu, 11 Julian Savea, 10 Dan Carter, 9 Aaron Smith; 1 Wyatt Crockett, 2 Dane Coles, 3 Owen Franks, 4 Brodie Retallick, 5 Sam Whitelock, 6 Jerome Kaino, 7 Richie McCaw (c), 8 Kieran Read.
Replacements: 16 Keven Mealamu, 17 Joe Moody, 18 Charlie Faumuina, 19 Victor Vito, 20 Sam Cane, 21 Tawera Kerr-Barlow, 22 Beauden Barrett, 23 Sonny Bill Williams.
France: 15 Scott Spedding, 14 Noa Nakaitaci, 13 Alexandre Dumoulin, 12 Wesley Fofana, 11 Brice Dulin, 10 Frederic Michalak, 9 Morgan Parra; 1 Eddy Ben Arous, 2 Guilhem Guirado, 3 Rabah Slimani, 4 Pascal Pape, 5 Yoann Maestri, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 7 Bernard Le Roux, 8 Louis Picamoles.
Replacements: 16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Vincent Debaty, 18 Nicolas Mas, 19 Damien Chouly, 20 Yannick Nyanga, 21 Rory Kockott, 22 Remi Tales, 23 Mathieu Bastareaud.
