France coach Philippe Saint-Andre insists that Sébastien Vahaamahina’s recall for Les Bleus is just reward for his impressive form with club side Perpignan.
The lock has never before appeared in the RBS 6 Nations, making his France debut in the autumn as France put Australia to the sword.
Vahaamahina and Toulouse’s Maxime Medard have both been recalled for Saint-Andre’s 23-man squad to take on Ireland, Jocelino Suta and Benjamin Fall making way.
And the 21-year-old former Brive forward’s eye-catching displays in the Top 14 have made Saint-Andre sit up and take note.
“We watched all the (French) Championship fixtures from this weekend and reviewed our match,” he said.
“Sébastien [Vahaamahina] participated in the November Tests with the French national side.
“At the moment he is performing very well with his club. He has a lot of room for progress which good for the French team.
“Maxime [Médard] has shown that he is back to his best level after his injury and will bring us his skills and experience.
“They are players that we’ve been following for a long time in view of the 2015 World Cup and it’s good that they reintegrate into the group so they can work with the squad and get game time.”
