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French fans expect Les Bleus to reach the Final
By Sasha Distel August 16 2007
France would probably be one of the favourites for the World Cup even if it wasn’t being held on home ground. The fact that all their games will be played in France can only do their prospects good, and if any team is going to upset favourites New Zealand, there’s no reason why it shouldn’t be les Bleus.

They won at Twickenham in their first warm-up game against England, and promptly announced they’d be fielding almost a second string in the follow-up match in Marseilles.
Bernard LaporteBut their preparations have gone well, and coach Bernard Laporte (right)would love to go out on a historic victory.
With a mixture of huge experience, massive promise and the usual healthy helping of Gallic flair, France will be difficult to beat in any game.
They are in Pool D with Ireland, Argentina, Georgia and Namibia, and it would be a major shock if they didn’t finish top and unbeaten.
Then they would play the runners-up in Pool C, likely to be Italy or Scotland, so the path to the semi-finals appears to offer them some fairly smooth progress, unlikely to meet the Kiwis until the Final.  
But, of course, France have been known to lose the plot in big competitions before, and it’s just as possible that will happen in France as anywhere else.
However, French fans expect to see them in the final, and they expect the opponents to be the All Blacks.Forwards: Pieter de Villiers, Sylvain Marconnet, Olivier Milloud, Jean-Baptiste Poux, Raphael Ibanez, Sebastien Bruno, Dimitri Szarzewski, Sebastien Chabal, Fabien Pelous, Jerome Thion, Lionel Nallet, Serge Betsen, Julien Bonnaire, Imanol Harinordoquy, Thierry Dusautoir, Yannick Nyanga, Remy Martin. Backs: Pierre Mignoni, Jean-Baptiste Elissalde, Frederic Michalak, David Skrela, Lionel Beauxis, Yannick Jauzion, Damien Traille, David Marty, Christophe Dominici, Cedric Heymans, Vincent Clerc, Aurelien Rougerie, Clement Poitrenaud. 

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