George North will become the youngest player to reach 50 Test caps when he takes the field for Wales against France in Paris on Saturday and the wing has been told to play as he did when he made his debut against South Africa as an 18-year-old in 2010.
North, who will have to wait until the summer to win his 50th cap for Wales having played in all three Tests on the 2013 Lions tour to Australia, missed Wales’s victory over Scotland last week as he recovered from two blows to the head he suffered on the opening night against England.
“It is a phenomenal achievement by George,” said the Wales attack coach, Robert Howley. “When he won his first cap against South Africa, he showed remarkable maturity for such a young player. He had some 19 touches of the ball during the game, scored a try and showed his skill on the counterattack.
“We are asking George to get back to that standard. He has been playing well for Northampton but he has probably not hit his straps as he and we would have liked on the international stage. He is an exceptional player but no one has the right to wear the jersey. George has a good try-scoring record against France, winning the game two years ago, and I hope that continues on the weekend.”
The losers will have little chance of winning the title, with Wales having been beaten by England and France going down in Dublin, but Howley believes that the experience of taking the championship two years ago after losing the first match will benefit his players.
“Winning in Paris two years ago set us up and Saturday is another hugely important game,” said Howley. “It is about putting ourselves in with a chance of winning the title if other results go our way. We can take great confidence from three successive victories over France and we have been in this position before; you have to use that experience in the right way. A number of our players are based in France and they have provided a valuable insight into the French team. They all stood up in front of the squad this morning and spoke individually about their club colleagues.”
France have made five changes from Dublin, including dropping the centre Mathieu Bastareaud to the bench, and Howley expects them to be more adventurous than they were in the opening two rounds when they scored one try.
“It looks as if their policy will be to keep the ball in hand, high risk, high reward,” said Howley. “They have picked two quick, agile centres who can beat tacklers so we will be on red alert defensively and perform as we have done in the last three years. The decision to put Bastareaud on the bench is an indication that they will be looking to play with more width.
“It is always an arm-wrestle against France early on and it is important to keep the crowd quiet then and build the pressure on them. We are mindful of the impact made by the France bench in Dublin and a key part of a match in 65 minutes, when replacements tend to come on, because momentum can change then.”
