France coach breaks his silence after World Cup heartache
The coach of France, Fabien Galthie, is adamant that he wouldn’t alter a thing regarding how his squad handled their defeat to the Springboks.
Fabien Galthie, the head coach of the France national rugby team, grimaces during a press conference on November 8, 2023, in Paris following his team’s World Cup quarterfinal exit. (Image by AFP/FRANCK FIFE)
The coach of France, Fabien Galthie, bemoaned the loss to the Springboks in the Rugby World Cup quarterfinal, which seemed to have erased four years of hard work.
Galthie claimed that the extent of their defeat and the point at which they were eliminated exacerbated France’s suffering.
France in mourning after RWC loss
He continued by saying that the rugby community and the team were in mourning. “We went through a period of mourning,” Galthie remarked. Galthie has not talked to the media since the evening of the October 15 setback.
“After four years of arduous work, four years of successful work with eighty percent wins, and all those records, it’s a huge disappointment.”Being world champions was the only goal we had in mind. No one else existed.
“If we had lost by one point in the semifinal, the disappointment would have been the same. If we had lost by one point in the championship game, the disappointment would have remained the same.
The week that we would have had extra makes a difference.
“The difference is enormous because we wanted to experience these moments that we’ve been working towards for four years. So the disappointment is enormous.”
Galthie is staying on
As the brains behind France, Galthie and his technical staff will remain in place and work towards Australia hosting the 2027 World Cup.
After that heartbreaking one-point loss, he is adamant that he would not approach anything about the encounter against the Springboks differently.
Galthie declared, “If I had to do it over again, I would do it the same way, both strategically and tactically.”
In February 2024, France will resume their Six Nations campaign against the reigning champions, Ireland.