Sébastien Chabal criticizes foreign players in French rugby, Digi Mart USA News (France): France’s upcoming opener against Fiji this autumn brings back few fond memories for the XV de France. On November 24, 2018, the French side suffered one of the worst defeats in its history, losing 14-21 to the Flying Fijians at the Stade de France a week after an encouraging win over Argentina.
France led at halftime 14-12 thanks to two tries from captain Guilhem Guirado, but the team failed to score a single point in the second half. Afterward, the hooker said he was very angry, that the team had disrespected the blue jersey and that no player had done his job that evening.
Louis Picamoles added that the team had not respected its opponents and that the defeat was a shame the players would have to own.
Media reaction in France was harsh, with headlines describing a shipwreck, a humiliation and a disgrace. Among the analysts, Sébastien Chabal delivered a loud outburst on the Canal Rugby Club broadcast.
Chabal said it was disappointing that French rugby needed defeats like the one against Fiji, or the loss to Japan a year earlier, before people began to reflect. He argued that French rugby had been declining for ten years and that people had been saying for a decade that there were too many foreign players in the domestic championship.
Chabal also commented on Raka, saying that while it was positive that he could become eligible for the French national team and had integrated well after arriving from the other side of the world, he hoped France would not select him because he would likely be the team’s best player on the field. He repeated that there were too many foreign players in the championship and also criticized Jacques Brunel’s Bleus.
Chabal said that players in the past had more soul and heart, and that there was real transmission between generations. He said players today lacked character and that no one rebelled when conceding tries, while praising Mathieu Bastareaud’s protest at the end of the match but saying it should have come earlier.
