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Dupont: ‘It wasn't easy watching the guys on TV last year’

Antoine Dupont suit
Iconic scrum-half Antoine Dupont has returned as France captain after missing the 2024 Championship to pursue his Olympic sevens dream.

Hearing Dupont speak at the launch of the 25th edition of the Six Nations Tournament in Rome on Tuesday 21st January, you could feel the excitement behind each of his sentences.

With 55 France caps to his name, the three-time Six Nations Player of the Championship will play his seventh edition of the campaign when it all kicks off on Friday 31st January in Paris against Warren Gatland's Wales.

Being away from the action last year with his sevens commitments means he'll be making up for lost time. “I missed it a lot," says Dupont. "It wasn't easy watching the guys on TV last year, but I had other goals and now I'm really looking forward to returning to this wonderful tournament."

“It’s the return of our captain with all the potential he has,” said head coach Fabien Galthié. “He was voted best player in the world two years ago; he has had a lot of success with his club [Stade Toulousain]; he was Olympic champion with the French sevens team. He's got an aura that impacts the France group. His return is important for us."

From 13 minutes of game time in 2017 to Six Nations icon

Dupont won his first international cap during the 2017 Guinness Men's SIx Nations in which he only played two matches as a replacement for Baptiste Serin: six minutes during the 40-18 victory over Italy in Rome, then seven against Wales at the Stade de France (a 20-18 French victory).

Those 13 minutes in the 2017 Championship would lead to more the following year, although they came in a single match, as a starter against Ireland (a 13-15 loss). That time he was replaced by Maxime Machenaud.

Seven years later, France are back stronger than ever and Dupont, after a year away from the flagship competition, are hungry for a title. “We have a lot of ambition for this tournament, just like the other teams. I think we have the potential. It’s a big challenge for us and we’re very excited about it,” promises the scrum-half.

“It wasn’t easy to watch the guys. Last year's result was not what we expected. But, once again, I had other objectives while being focused on my sevens career. I think that even if we were not at our best level, the end result was not so bad. We finished second in the tournament. We had a good series in November and we must continue, keep the momentum for the Six Nations."

While it has been said he is more focused on European (Champions Cup) and international events (Autumn Nations Series, Six Nations) than on the Top 14, he doesn't let much outside of rugby distract him - whether that be advertising, media opportunities, trips, concerts, spending time with the LA Chargers, or meeting another sporting GOAT in Lionel Messi.

“I'm just focusing on my current goal. I have enough things to focus on every day as best I can, like trying to improve my game,” he says matter-of-factly. “We have a lot of ambitions with Toulouse this year, as with the French team, and I just focus on that. I try not to lose energy on other things. I save my energy for the field."

What the sevens brought to his game

Often dissatisfied with his own performance, which he still considers to have room for improvement, he confides that his experience was able to provide him with skills that he did not have. According to Dupont, the sevens made him even better in his game. As he puts it: “I find that the biggest difference is the physical preparation. Cardio is completely different, but in the course of the game, there are still quite a few similarities.

“In sevens, we have to be good in all rugby skills [...] We have to be good at rucks, make good passes, be quick. I think I need to work on certain skills that I didn't necessarily work on before, like in the ruck, for example. I worked on my throws too, even if that's less useful to me in XVs. But the ruck is the most important thing I worked on in sevens."

“Afterwards, there is everything around the matches, the tournaments, the environment. The energy is completely different. There was a lot of atmosphere in the stadiums and in the locker rooms, we listened to a lot of music. It's different. It was good for me to have another experience in terms of preparation in rugby. I think I needed that, especially last year"

Three away matches

Preparation with Les Bleus began on Monday 20th January at the national rugby centre in Marcoussis. “We would like to have more time to prepare, but two weeks before the first match is good, especially with a bye weekend, even in the middle of the Top 14. It's a comfort for us and it gives us more time to be the best we can possibly be for the first match,” says the 28-year-old.

This year, French play the first and last matches of the Championship at home, and the middle three away. “I think it’s a magical tournament where all the stadiums are incredible. All stadiums have their specificities, but I love playing everywhere,” he says.

“At the Allianz [in Twickenham], it will be a huge match, the same in Dublin and Rome. Perhaps the loudest stadium is Cardiff with the roof closed. We have good memories there. It’s hard to communicate with each other when we’re in the field. We get goosebumps every time we go there."

There is no doubt that he will have goosebumps near kick-off against Wales at the Stade de France on Friday 31st January. It will then be 685 days, or one year, 10 months and 13 days since this living legend of the game last had a taste of the Six Nations.