What is your assessment of this Tournament after this last success against Wales (41-28)?
We had a complicated start to Six Nations with somewhat mixed performances. The ending is pretty good. These last two games show how successful the fifteen of France can be when we play at our level. This is encouraging ahead of what awaits us in a few months. We knew today (SATURDAY) that we no longer had our fate in our hands but that we had to give the best of ourselves to give ourselves a chance to achieve something great.
You collected a lot of points against the Welsh…
Yes, that’s true late in the game but that wasn’t the case against England. I’m not sure that’s one of the big points to work on. There was maybe a bit of a struggle potentially staying in the game at the end because of the gap we had created. Sometimes it’s hard to stay very focused. For us the objective was to achieve a good performance. The defense is one of our strengths with a great ability to stop attacks and undermine opposing offensives. We will build around our strengths to achieve matches like those against England and Wales.
Is the fifteen of France ready for the World Cup?
I don’t know. We will have long weeks of preparation before the World Cup. We wanted to show that it was very difficult to play against us when we impose our rhythm, to show the whole world that we are ready and that we will be a serious customer.
“We have perhaps the biggest meeting of our career ahead of us”
Ethan Dumortier, on the World Cup in France
Is it hard not to think about the World Cup?
Yes, of course because it’s a bit special, it will take place with us. We are doing a bit of everything in preparation for this World Cup. During the four years of its mandate, this team has built a lot of things. The icing on the cake is of course the World Cup at home. This will be the next step. We have achieved great things and now we have perhaps the biggest meeting of our careers ahead of us.
As an individual, how did you experience your first Tournament and your first selections?
It was a great experience that I will remember all my life. But, as I said, nothing is certain for me. My goal will be to continue to progress to bring more if I have the chance to come back. On the intensity, it is another level than the Top 14 necessarily. It’s not up to me to judge whether I scored points. It’s the staff who will decide whether to call me back or not. I tried to give my all and have no regrets. We’ll see where the future takes me. If I am lucky enough to be selected for the World Cup, I will give it my all, as I did for this Six Nations.
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