France 53-0 Wales
Caroline Boujard scored a 13-minute hat-trick as France showed a depleted Wales side no mercy in Group B’s opening match, running in eight unanswered tries in Vannes.
The Montpellier wing crossed over in just the second minutes and added two more in quick succession as France overpowered rusty opponents, who were playing their first competitive match in over a year.
Agathe Sochat added another before half-time as France dominated at set-pieces, with Wales unable to apply any attacking pressure. The visitors improved in the second half but could not match the French pack, who set up No 8 Émeline Gros for a second-half double.
Wales showed impressive resilience to deny Boujard a fourth try but struggled to escape their own half for long spells, and could not stop full-back Emilie Boulard from adding a deserved score on her debut.
The final act saw Wales forced back from a scrum and dispossessed, with Georgia Evans yellow-carded. France kicked the penalty to the corner and from the resulting lineout, Laure Touyé added an eighth try. It was a fitting end to a ruthless performance.
Wales play Ireland next Saturday, in a game that will be live on BBC Wales. That might offer Abrahams’ team a better chance to show what they can do; in truth, tonight was a mismatch. France have two weeks off before they face the Irish in their other group game.
Full time: France 53-0 Wales
Tremouliere misses the conversion, and that’s all she wrote. Those late scores widened the gap but the scoreline doesn’t flatter France, who were ruthless and relentless.
TRY! France 53-0 Wales (Touye)
France show absolutely no mercy, claiming the lineout and powering forward again. Weary Wales have no answer, and replacement Laure Touye goes over.
83 mins: Tremouliere bustles over the line but can’t get the ball down, but play is called back for a high tackle. Georgia Evans is offside and yellow-carded; she won’t be coming back, and France kick for the corner ...
82 mins: Wales win the scrum and keep possession, but end up 20 metres back where they started as France keep pushing. The ball is loose and there’s time for them to inflict more pain ...
80 mins: We’re into the red but Wales have a scrum, and one more chance to get something from the game.
TRY! France 48-0 Wales (Boulard)
Wales win the scrum but France do what they’ve done all night, coming straight back on the offensive and overloading the left side. There’s no stopping them this time, and debutant Emilie Boulard goes over in the corner. Tremouliere’s kick from the touchline is just short.
76 mins: This is terrific last-ditch defence by Wales, holding up first Gros and then Boujard as they try to add to their personal try-counts. Remember, they haven’t played a game for over a year.
74 mins: Gabrielle Vernier has been named the player of the match by French TV. Boujard got a hat-trick and Gros scored twice, so that’s something of a surprise.
72 mins: A bit of a lull here amid all those replacements, but France try to get going again from a lineout. N’Diaye’s artful offload frees Laure Touye, but Wales hold their shape and Hannah Jones makes a big tackle. Much better from the visitors, there.
69 mins: The excellent Pauline Bourdon is replaced at scrum-half by Laure Sansus.
68 mins: More changes for Wales, with Bethan Dainton replacing Lillicrap, who worked tirelessly. Dainton used to be a wing but has switched to the back row after a few injury troubles. Courtney Keight is also on, replacing Lisa Neumann.
66 mins: Before that sixth French score, I was about to say how much better the second half had been for Wales. Their task now is to try and get some points on the board.
64 mins: Deshayes and Joyeux are replaced in the French front-row by Arkya Ait Lahbib and Dhia Traore. Marjorie Mayans is also on for the hosts.
TRY! France 43-0 Wales (Gros)
The replenished French pack are simply too strong here, rolling forward from the Welsh put-in and allowing Gros to score her second try. Bourdon converts.
62 mins: Camille Imart replaces Peyronnet at fly-half, with Laure Touye also coming in for try-scorer Sochat.
61 mins: After a chat with the TMO and a VAR-style check on a touchline monitor, the on-field call of NO TRY is upheld. Wales have a scrum.
60 mins: Diallo offloads to Boujard, who is held up – but Wales are caught offside and Bourdon takes a quick restart. Deshayes bundles over the line and the ball springs loose – but did she ground it?
59 mins: Megan Davies replaces Jess Roberts at scrum-half with Cara Hope coming into the Welsh front row.
57 mins: This time, Wales fight back and force a turnover of their own. Snowsill kicks for touch but France get it back from the lineout and Bourdon clears. The vastly experienced Safi N’Diaye replaces Madoussou Fall in the French pack.
56 mins: Gemma Rowland comes on in place of Kerin Lake. Wales have a dangerous lineout but the ball is stripped away and France can break again ...
55 mins: Pauline Bourdon’s conversion was, somewhat improbably, charged down by a Wales player. Some effort when you’re 36-0 behind.
TRY! France 36-0 Wales (Gros)
France move through the gears at a Welsh scrum, powering forward and winning possession. Emeline Gros collects, sidesteps and tears through the Welsh defence for France’s fifth try.
51 mins: Hale concedes a penalty, which Boujard kicks into touch. A little less intensity so far in this half from the hosts.
48 mins: The first changes for Wales, as Cerys Hale and Natalia John replace Donna Rose and Teleri Wyn-Davies. Emilie Boulard has a chance to add to the France scoring on the break, but her handling lets her down.
Updated
46 mins: An interesting stat: Wales have more carries than France (52-50) but have travelled less than half the distance.
44 mins: Lillicrap digs the ball out for Jess Roberts, and there’s finally some room for the Welsh backs to spread the play. It doesn’t last, France forcing their opponents back with a series of spot tackles.
42 mins: Gabrielle Vernier is offside, allowing Snowsill to kick for touch. It falls short but a French knock-on lets her off. Wales have the scrum ...
Peep!
The second half is under way. No half-time changes for either side.
The Wales players jog back out on to the pitch, followed soon after by France. The stadium in Vannes is overlooked on the far side by a Carmelite monastery. With no fans here, it’s all a bit eerie.
Half time: France 31-0 Wales
It’s been a sobering return to competitive action for Wales, with Caroline Boujard scoring three tries in a dominant French first half. Back soon.
Updated
39 mins: By contrast, Wales look hurried whenever they get on the ball. Jasmine Joyce collects from a scrum but her pass out wide is behind Lisa Neumann and sails into touch.
37 mins: France are executing their set-pieces so effectively; they’re not giving Wales anything for free and keeping their defence constantly on the back foot.
TRY! France 31-0 Wales (Sochat)
France earn and then claim a lineout and immediately form an unstoppable maul that rolls inevitably over the line, Agathe Sochat the scorer. That’s the bonus point secured, and Bourdon adds the conversion.
Updated
32 mins: The referee has a word with the Wales captain about some scrappy tackles. Menager is hurt in one such challenge and is going off, replaced by Jessy Tremouliere. She won World Rugby’s player of the decade, if you’re in any doubt over France’s strength in depth.
29 mins: Penalty! France 24-0 Wales With not one, but two penalty advantages, Peyronnet tries a high diagonal kick into the danger zone. It doesn’t work but they come back for the penalty, which Bourdon slots between the posts. Going for three points? The audacity!
27 mins: Wales are unfortunate to have run into a French side with a point to prove after they drew with Scotland in October. They are relentless with and without the ball, and another surge forward leads Snowsill to lunge a touch desperately at Bourdon.
25 mins: France are playing with a very high defensive line, pushing Wales backwards at every turn. The latest French wave of attack is repelled as Wilkins collects a grubber kick, taking a big hit from Bourdon in the process.
22 mins: Wales hold firm at the scrum and pick up a penalty, which Snowsill dispatches into touch. The visitors push into the French half, debutant Jess Roberts dictating the pace, but the wall of blue is unrelenting.
20 mins: France almost profit again from Welsh uncertainty, but Menager’s knock-on offers a reprieve. Wales need to focus on the basics here, and shake off the rustiness that’s affecting everything from carries to kicking.
18 mins: This is, of course, a tough assignment for Wales, an essentially amateur team who haven’t played in a year and are missing a number of players through injury.
TRY! France 21-0 Wales (Boujard)
France switch the play across the field and Menager feeds Boujard, who completes her hat-trick. Bourdon converts and this already feels like a damage limitation exercise for Wales.
THREE FOR CAROLINE BOUJARD! Another try for the France wing, this time featuring a fabulous flick from Marine Menager. What a start to this Championship for Boujard! #WomensSixNations pic.twitter.com/YFe7RaCpve
— Women's Six Nations (@Womens6Nations) April 3, 2021
Updated
14 mins: Another undercooked clearing kick allows France room to pour forward, Emilie Boulard and Bourdon leading the way as Wales back-pedal furiously. The visitors hold the first wave ...
13 mins: Wales enjoy a spell of possession upfield, but Elinor Snowsill’s box kick is easy for Boujard and France counter. Bourdon and Maelle Filopon combine well, before the latter is bundled into touch by a swarm of red shirts.
11 mins: A break in play after the scrum, as French prop Annaelle Deshayes gets her hair tangled in a Welsh player’s cap. It’s all happening.
9 mins: Peyronnet is penalised for a challenge on Hannah Jones, allowing Wales some breathing space. A lineout advantage is lost as Kelsey Jones’ throw drifts right, and France will have the scrum.
TRY! France 14-0 Wales (Boujard)
Terrific pressure from France as Wales try to build in midfield, and Emeline Gros strips the ball loose. Fly-half Peyronnet collects and offloads to Boujard, who runs in her second try in the first six minutes. A second conversion for Bourdon, too.
TRY! France 7-0 Wales (Boujard)
Not a great start for Wales, as Caroline Boujard collects the ball from Clara Joyeux and motors through a big gap to touch down. Pauline Bourdon adds the conversion.
Updated
2 mins: An early penalty advantage for France who drive to within 10 metres, before Hannah Jones holds them up with a scrappy tackle ...
Peep!
Off we go. France are in all-blue, Wales in red shirts and white shorts.
The players are out at the Stade de la Rabine, with both teams taking a moment to stand against racism.
Now the anthems: two of the absolute best for me, Clive. The Welsh rendition is particularly rousing, even in an empty stadium. Siwan Lillicrap has tears in her eyes.
Worth noting also that Wyn-Davies is a trainee solicitor; like the rest of her Wales counterparts and much of the French side, she has to balance a day job with playing rugby.
The Wales captain, Siwan Lillicrap, has urged the WRU to “stay true to their word” and bring in a professional era in the near future. It feels overdue, particularly with all the upheaval of last year and increased concussion fears.
Wales forward Teleri Wyn-Davies is making her first international start tonight. Her father, Bryan Davies, played rugby for Bala before suffering a life-changing injury. Bryan died in 2013 but encouraged Teleri to keep pursuing her rugby career.
Wyn-Davies is now playing for Sale Sharks, and has helped out her hometown club, forming a girls’ team and completing the Bala clubhouse her father had started. Read more of her story here on the WRU website.
In case you missed it earlier, here’s Ian Malin’s match report on England’s Group A win over Scotland.
The teams
France: Boulard, Boujard, Filopon, Vernier, Menager, Peyronnet, Bourdon; Deshayes, Sochat, Joyeux, Diallo, Fall, Ferer, Hermet (c), Gros.
Replacements: Touye, Ait Lahbib, Traore, N’Diaye, Mayans, Sansus, Imart, Tremouliere.
Wales: Wilkins, Neumann, H Jones, Lake, Joyce, Snowsill, Roberts; Thomas, K Jones, Rose, Crabb, Wyn-Davies, Evans, Johnes, Lillicrap (c).
Replacements: Lock, Hope, Hale, Dainton, John, M Davies, Rowland, Keight.
Preamble
Bienvenue, croeso, welcome. It’s the start of a new era for Wales, with Warren Abrahams taking charge for the first time in Vannes. Abrahams has coached at Harlequins and in Lithuania, Germany and the US, his work with the American sevens side earning him the chance to lead Wales’s rebuild.
The South African has named a new-look side to take on Group B favourites France (Ireland complete the three-team pool). Robyn Wilkins moves from fly-half to full-back while Saracens prop Donna Rose and Sale scrum-half Jess Roberts make their debuts. After more than a year without a competitive game, just pulling on the red jersey will be a moment to savour for many.
Abrahams’ immediate aim will be to improve on last year’s result, when France won 50-0 in Cardiff. France will be disappointed with anything less than the trophy this year, but Annick Hayraud’s side stumbled to a draw in Scotland back in October, and there is an element of the unknown about tonight’s visitors. Kick-off: 8pm BST, 9pm local.
