Six Nations: Dusautoir asks for patience as France seek to add substance to style

"Our team is young and we must learn from this experience. You have to give us time,” he said.

“I know it is idiotic to say that because we have been saying that for a year and a half. We are capable of producing a game that everyone is waiting for but at the moment it isn’t the game that wins matches.

“We want it to become a winning style. We have to continue on this path, while not forgetting about the other phases of rugby, which are essentials. It is a beautiful style, but we are not winning. We are still lacking something,” he admitted.

“But when we play too much, people have a go at us for playing too much and when we don’t play enough people also have a go at us for that too. We need to be left in peace so that we can work on what we need to,” added the Toulouse flanker.

The notoriously difficult to please French press has also been having a go at the continued selection of Lionel Nallet as captain, despite the Castres man suffering a downturn in form at present. But head coach Marc Lièvremont insisted Nallet would remain in charge on the field.

“At no time have we envisaged changing our captain,” he stressed. “He is our captain. In no way is it a handicap to start him. We are very happy with his performance.”

He did, however, admit to a collective failing among the forwards and called for greater intensity against Scotland at the Stade de France on Saturday.

“For the first time in a year we have been deficient up front,” he said. “People have spoken a lot about our style of play but having fight is the premier element in this sport. We have obviously talked about this between ourselves.”

Lièvremont was also at pains to explain that Sebastien Chabal’s demotion to the substitutes bench – with Romain Millo-Chluski starting in his place – was not a simple question of the French icon being dropped.

“Sebastien Chabal has not been punished like certain people would think. We have simply decided to make a bit of a turnover. As was the case in November, the changes come especially up front,” said Lièvremont.

“We know the explosive qualities Sebastien can bring. Romain Millo-Chluski brings a bit more consistency in the rucks and the close game. But this is not a reaction after a defeat,” added the coach.

Lièvremont has also been forced to call up Clermont's uncapped prop Thomas Domingo following Faure's injury.

Domingo, 23, has struggled to command a regular place in the Clermont starting line-up, but such is the current paucity of French front row forwards he is now in the 23-man national squad.

His call-up follows the addition of Dax's Renaud Boyoud earlier in the week as cover for Benoit Lecouls.

Meanwhile, Scotland coach Frank Hadden has criticised his players after their 26-13 home loss against Wales.

“The full scale of our defeat, broken down, was the fact we were outplayed in most areas. If we were to win we needed at least half a dozen to front up and play to their full potential and others bouncing off the back of that leadership, but it didn’t happen,” he said.

And looking ahead to the French game he said it was vital the Scots got off to a positive start.

“We’ve got to stamp our authority in the first 15 minutes in France. We can’t allow them to go on the front foot in their own back yard,” he warned.

Hadden’s preparations have been hit by a series of injuries with Perpignan lock Nathan Hines now ruled out for up to five weeks after confirmation that he requires knee surgery.

After delaying his team announcement by 24 hours to give players more time to recover Hadden eventually unveiled his starting XV on Wednesday, with brothers Thom and Max Evans both included after being controversially left out against Wales.

Scotland XV: H Southwell (Edinburgh); S Danielli (Ulster); M Evans (Glasgow); G Morrison (Glasgow); T Evans (Glasgow); P Godman (Edinburgh); M Blair (Edinburgh, capt); A Jocobsen (Edinburgh); R Ford (Edinburgh); A Dickinson (Gloucester); J White (Sale); J Hamilton (Edinburgh); A Strokosch (Gloucester); S Taylor (Stade Francais); J Barclay (Edinburgh).

Replacements: D Hall (Glasgow); M Low (Glasgow); K Brown (Glasgow); S Gray (Northampton); C Cusiter (Perpignan); C Paterson (Edinburgh); N De Luca (Edinburgh).

Proof that the world is going mad comes in the shape of a potentially unhinged punter from Ireland who has wagered £20,000 on Wales beating England on Saturday.

Betting on a Wales win may be fair enough, but £20,000 on a two-horse race is either crazy or brilliantly ballsy.

“Confidence is very high in the valleys at the moment and punters are licking their lips about the prospect of another Welsh victory,” said a spokesman for Ladbrokes bookmakers.

They may be licking their lips at the moment but will they be licking their wounds come Saturday evening?

Back in Top 14 the ongoing credit-crunch has even hit cash-rich Toulon, with the General Council of Var announcing that it will cut its current €450,000 subsidy to the club.

Toulon president Mourad Boudjellal has apparently said that he will not fund the shortfall, posing a potential problem which the DNACG will be keen to clarify.

The League’s financial watchdog has had a busy time of it recently and has confirmed that both Montauban and pro D2 outfit FC Auch Gers now have a transfer ban in place after their respective financial problems this season.

On the contract front Perpignan’s international winger Julien Candelon has signed for another three years, and Toulouse’s Argentine hooker Alberto Vernet-Basualdo has extended for two.