Top French players want to tour NZ
Top French rugby players are kicking back against an official French Rugby Federation stance that key Test players should not be selected for the annual July tours to the Southern Hemisphere.
The chance to play the All Blacks this year is behind the challenge to the French policy, which has been applied to players involved in the finals of the Top 14 club competition in France. This policy applied to French tours of Australia in 2021, Japan (2022) and Argentina (2024).
An amendment in October last year between the FFR and the French Players' Association said, 'the finalists of the Top 14 will not be selected for these international periods'. But a meeting will be held in France on Thursday as more players have told coach Fabien Galthie they want to play in New Zealand.
Included in the group are Emmanuel Meafou, Romain Ntamack and Gregory Alldritt.
One of the players' representatives said there needed to be an agreement to lighten the schedule for players, but it also needed to be acknowledged that some games were essential, and a New Zealand tour was among them.
"To put yourself on the sidelines of world rugby by not sending our best players to the southern hemisphere is to put yourself in danger. Let's remember that the showcase is the French team."
Galthie said after their final Six Nations game against Scotland that they could think about the players' requests if an arrangement could be found.
He told players that they wanted to take the best possible team to New Zealand, but the No1 criterion was the players' health.
Player recovery times will be a crucial aspect of Thursday's discussion.
Meafou told Midi Olympique, "Of course, I want to go to New Zealand. Any player who wants to play at the highest level will say the same thing. For us, we want to play the biggest games.
"The All Blacks are one of the best teams in the world. To become the best, you have to beat the best.
"So, even if we are coming out of a season of 10 or 11 months, even if we still have to keep going, and even if we have to fly 30 hours, and I know how long it takes to get there, the most effective way to be the best is to beat the best.
"If I am chosen in the group going to New Zealand, it will be huge. I was born in New Zealand, and even though I didn't stay there long, I have a lot of family and friends there. I grew up in Australia.
"I'm saying yes to going on tour, even though we're in the Top 14 finals. At the same time, it will depend how my body feels. But if everything goes well, it would be a great pleasure to play for France in the country where I was born, against one of the best teams in the world."