Reuters © Loosehead prop Fabien Barcella, who was a surprise addition to the France World Cup squad after battling for fitness following a serious injury, has been named to start his country's opening match in the tournament against Japan on Saturday. Barcella ruptured his Achilles tendon in August 2010 and while he played in France's 26-22 victory over Ireland in a warmup test last month, looked off the pace in that match and was a surprise inclusion in the World Cup squad at the expense of the vastly experienced Sylvain Marconnet. Coach Marc Lievremont also named Aurelien Rougerie to face Japan at North Harbour Stadium in Albany despite breaking his ankle three months ago though the enormous centre did play in France's buildup matches last month. Number eight Raphael Lakafia, who made his debut against Ireland in August, also forms an exciting loose forward trio with Imanol Harinordoquy and captain Thierry Dusautoir. Team: 15-Cedric Heymans, 14-Maxime Medard, 13-Aurelien Rougerie, 12-Fabrice Estebanez, 11-Vincent Clerc, 10-Francois Trinh-Duc, 9-Dimitri Yachvili, 8-Raphael Lakafia, 7-Imanol Harinordoquy, 6-Thierry Dusautoir (captain), 5-Lionel Nallet, 4-Julien Pierre, 3-Nicolas Mas, 2-William Servat, 1-Fabien Barcella. Replacements: 16- Dimitri Szarzewski, 17-Jean-Baptiste Poux, 18-Pascal Pape, 19-Julien Bonnaire, 20-Morgan Parra, 21-David Skrela, 22-David Marty. |
