Match Report

Flying start helps 14-man France past Scotland

Baudonne 2000
Maxime Baudonne crossed twice as France survived Enzo Reybier’s red card and a stirring Scottish fightback to record their third win of the 2021 Six Nations Under-20s.

Maxime Baudonne crossed twice as France survived Enzo Reybier’s red card and a stirring Scottish fightback to record their third win of the 2021 Six Nations Under-20s.

A rapid start saw a free-flowing Les Bleuets 24-0 to the good inside 18 minutes but Scotland fought their way back into the contest following Reybier’s 25th-minute sending off for a dangerous tackle.

With their rolling maul proving particularly potent, Scotland reduced the arrears to 31-21 and France had to summon all their defensive nous to prevent their lead becoming more precarious.

But Philippe Boher’s side rode the storm and a quickfire late double, including Baudonne’s second, sealed a 45-21 success to leave Scotland still searching for their first win of the campaign.

FRANCE OFF TO A FLYER

France started the game on the front foot and it took less than three minutes for Les Bleuets to open their account.

Pressure in the 22 paid off when the ball was popped to Baudonne, who burst into a gap that had opened up five metres out and dotted down under the posts.

Nolann Le Garrec added the extras before following up with a well-taken penalty from the 10-metre line and the traffic remained one-way throughout the early stages.

A superb piece of invention extended the lead as a perfectly-weighted crossfield kick found hooker Benjamin Boudou, who timed his pass inside to Reybier to perfection.

The wing fended off a last-ditch tackle to fly over down the right-hand side and Le Garrec’s conversion made it 17-0 after just 11 minutes.

France lost No.8 Theo Ntamack to the sin-bin for a high tackle shortly afterwards but that didn’t stop his teammates in the pack asserting their dominance and they were rewarded with an 18th-minute penalty try, with Tom Banatvala yellow carded to even up the numbers.

SCOTLAND BATTLE BACK AS REYBIER SEES RED

Les Bleuets were soon down to 14 men on a permanent basis, however, as Reybier saw red for a dangerous tackle on Thomas Glendinning after 25 minutes.

Scotland took immediate advantage, kicking to the corner from the resulting penalty and working through the phases on the French line before Harrison provided the finishing touch.

Following a lengthy TMO check for a potential knock-on, the try was awarded and Euan Cunningham added the extras to get Scotland on the board.

Undeterred by their numerical disadvantage, France ensured the bonus point was in the bag by half time through Leo Barre, who latched on to crash ball 10 metres out and powered over for a score converted by Le Garrec.

There was still time for one more try in an eventful first 40 minutes, which was brought to a conclusion by Harrison’s second score as Scotland again profited from a rolling maul to reduce the deficit to 31-14 at the break.

Buoyed by their improvement, Scotland started the second half as they had finished the first by again making maximum use of a kick to the corner.

The Scottish pack forced France to backtrack and replacement Ollie Leatherbarrow grounded the ball to put his side right back in contention.

FRANCE DIG IN AS SCOTLAND PRESS

Scotland kept pushing and found themselves camped on the French line just prior to the hour mark, with their tried and tested rolling maul coming into play once more.

France held firm, however, and earned themselves a penalty to clear their lines following a sustained spell of pressure – and Les Bleuets stole another well-placed lineout next time Scotland visited their 22.

Having survived the Scottish surge, the pendulum swung back towards France as they set about restoring their healthy cushion.

A string of penalties helped them do just that as they pinned Scotland back towards their own line and Les Bleuets were soon awarded their second penalty try of the afternoon, with Ollie Melville sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on which denied Alexandre Tchaptchet a walk in.

The outcome was sealed in style four minutes later as Baudonne crossed for his second, picking up just inside the 22 and sprinting past a tiring Scottish defence following an excellent break by Thibault Debaes.

PLAYER OF THE MATCH

Devastating in attack and solid in defence, Baudonne was deservedly named Player of the Match following an influential display.

The flanker’s brace bookended an impressive display by his side, who will be delighted with the result having played for 55 minutes with 14 men.