France have recalled Yannick Jauzion in place of injured
centre Maxime Mermoz for their weekend trip to Ireland.
Mermoz
was forced off with a shoulder problem during
France's 34-21 home win against
Scotland on Saturday, and tests have now revealed
"severe ligament damage".
The
24-year-old is now expected to undergo surgery early this
week and is facing a three-month lay-off that will
effectively end his season.
It is a
cruel blow for the Perpignan centre after he had dislodged
Jauzion to earn his first start in more than a year 'Les
Bleus'.
Now,
however, his World Cup participation has been called into
question, with France set to name their 30-man squad in May
for the September competition.
One
man's loss is another's gain though, with Jauzion named as
the only change to France's 22-man squad to take on Ireland.
The veteran international, 32, now looks set to add to his
70 international caps just days after appearing to be cast
aside by Lièvremont.
"Yannick
was set to play for Toulouse against La Rochelle but instead
he will play in Dublin and I don't think he will complain,"
said the France head coach. "He was obviously disappointed
to be left out of the squad that played Scotland but I
wanted to see Maxime Mermoz in action.
"This
injury allows him to come back in and he certainly has a
desire to prove his worth. He is a real competitor, which I
have never doubted, and so much more than a spare wheel. If
I recall it means that I trust him," added Lièvremont.
The coach's statement appeared to confirm
that Jauzion would go straight back into the starting XV -
alongside Aurélien Rougerie - with Saturday's replacement
Clément Poitrenaud remaining on the bench.
Lièvremont also hinted there could be a change to his
half-back pairing with Dimitri Yachvili pushing hard to
start in place of scrum-half Morgan Parra. "Dimitri is very
good right now. It is a great comfort to have him because he
has a very good fluidity and a very lucid vision of the
game," said the France coach.
But he
praised his team's effort against Scotland as they began
their Six Nations with a confident victory. "I was very
happy with the performance, which had a lot of rhythm,
intensity and we were good at the basics."
Man-of-the-Match Maxime Médard, meanwhile, said he would
remain grounded despite admitting that the Scotland game was
probably his best in France colours. The Stade Toulousain
back has been in irresistible form for his club so far this
season - he is the leading try-score in Top 14 - and from
Saturday's evidence he has now taken that onto the
international stage as well after being largely overlooked
during France's disappointing November Tests.
"It's
always a pleasure to score," he said of his second-minute
try. "This is my best match in the France team. I managed to
free myself, to do what I do with my club. I tried and I
made the team, I just hope it will continue, but I know
nothing is guaranteed. But I have self-confidence now and I
think it's the best time to show my qualities as the World
Cup is only a few months away," he added.
France squad v Ireland:
Forwards: Domingo (Clermont Auvergne); Marconnet
(Biarritz); Guirado (Perpignan); Servat (Stade Toulousain);
Ducalcon (Castres); Mas (Perpignan); Nallet (Racing-Métro
92); Thion (Biarritz); Pierre (Clermont Auvergne); Bonnaire
(Clermont Auvergne); Dusautoir (Stade Toulousain, Capt);
Chabal (Racing-Métro 92); Harinordoquy (Biarritz)
Backs: Parra (Clermont Auvergne); Yachvili
(Biarritz); Traille (Biarritz); Trinh-Duc (Montpellier);
Jauzion (Stade Toulousain); Rougerie (Clermont Auvergne);
Clerc (Stade Toulousain); Huget (Bayonne); Médard (Stade
Toulousain); Poitrenaud (Stade Toulousain).
