Key events
I can’t find a clip to show you the Boulard try that was given which I think is a knock on. The full-back has separation between herself and the ball before she grounds it, I don’t think it should have been given! Anyone out there who has seen it have any thoughts? Let me know via Twitter or email.
Such a physical game!
Half-time! France 17-0 Scotland
France win it back and Bourdon kicks off! The scoreline is as expected but the performance on the pitch is much more close than the points suggest. The visitors have applied a lot of pressure but they have not been clinical which is the main difference. France have been clinical whenever they have been in the 22, apart from the opening try which was ruled out. Huge second 40 to come.
42 min: Scotland are still hitting the line here, they are desperate to get some points before half-time! They are going metre by metre.
40 min: Tremouliere puts in a fabulous kick to gain a lot of territory, it’s not quite a 50:22 and so it’s a Scotland line-out. It was intercepted but it’s knocked on! Almost the bonus-point!
39 min: Scotland must be frustrated, they have put so much pressure on the French and have come up with nothing. France have a few chances and convert them.
CONVERTED TRY! France 17-0 Scotland (Boulard, 37′)
There’s the maul but Scotland bring it down quickly. France are running it through the hands and Boulard is on the wing to crash over. Tremoulieregets the kick!
36 min: This time France win the penalty at the scrum! This game is back and forth, Tremouliere kicks to the corner and a driving maul is surely coming.
35 min: There was a break in play with the teams taking on some water. We are back with a scrum.
35 min: Gallagher looks to puncture the French defence but her offload is intercepted and now France are looking for their third score. Another handling error from the hosts though with a forward pass, some uncharacteristic errors from France this afternoon.
33 min: Scotland’s line-out is good but in the resulting attack Konkel-Roberts is tackled well by Picut. Possession exchanges hands and Tremouliere kicks away with it out on the full! A few wry kicks from the French 10 today.
32 min: Scotland win the scrum penalty! The visitors have done well at the set piece today, a great effort after it was destroyed by England in the first round.
30 min: Bourdon received some treatment but she is staying on. The referee has warned France to speed things up at the line-out, they are taking their time to form the set piece. They get the ball away quickly but Llorens puts in a forward pass, Scotland with the scrum again.
29 min: Phases and phases from Scotland, they need a reward for their work but Escudero puts in a great tackle to push Scotland back at least five metres. They continue to chip away but Boujard wins a breakdown penalty! The French defence is immense.
28 min: Scotland do really well to defend a maul and they win a penalty. The scrum is once again good from Scotland after a reset and the visitors are off on the attack.
26 min: There was also a dangerous looking tackle from France in the build-up to that contentious try, if I’m Scotland I’m feeling very aggrieved right now! We are back in action and France have the ball once more.
TRY! France 10-0 Scotland (Boulard, 24′)
That is contentious, I would disagree with that call! The TMO has judged there to be a grounding so we stick with the onfield decision. Tremouliere misses the kick.
24 min: That looks like a clear knock on from Boulard, surely this isn’t going to be a try?
24 min: Boulard kicks through but she doesn’t quite get to it with Musgrove disrupting her, the referee is going to TMO for grounding. Could this be a try?
23 min: The maul is eventually brought down and France go through the hands. This is great defence from Scotland, repelling France five metres out. Tremouliere thought she was over but the referee says she is short!
22 min: Belisle is okay to continue and Scotland lose out at the line-out. France have formed a maul
22 min: This game is ferocious and time is off again for more treatment, this time for Belisle.
22 min: Apologies, it was a line-out not a scrum. The set piece was loose but Scotland come away with it and are plucking through the phases again. Scotland needed points from that but France have turned it over! So frustrating for the visitors. Boujard almost gets away but a great tackle sees her out of touch.
20 min: Scotland have been pushed backwards and Nelson puts in the kick, Tremouliere collects and kicks away but it is straight out! We come back for another Scotland scrum, the visitors need to maintain this pressure.
19 min: The Scotland scrum is good enough for them to come away with it. Rollie looked as though she knocked on but Scotland are still with the ball.
18 min: France are loose with it but they do come away with the ball. The French eventually opt to kick away and the kicking game is back – it’s been a key part of this game. Scotland win the battle this time, forcing France into a knock on.
16 min: Everyone is okay to continue and we get back underway with a clean French line-out. They form a maul but Scotland defend it well, forcing Tremouliere to kick it away. Rollie kicks away and again we have a French line-out.
15 min: Nelson kicks through and the kicking exchanges are here again. Nelson finds touch and we have a French line-out. There is a slight break in play ahead of the set piece with multiple players needing treatment
14 min: Scotland need to make sure this opening score doesn’t shake them. They looked dangerous for a good period there, they need to maintain that.
TRY! France 5-0 Scotland (Bourdon, 12′)
Menager kicked away and Scotland are on the attack again. Nelson pops a kick in but France collect, they run it through the hands and Bourdon races to the line. What a counter! Tremouliere misses the kick.
12 min: The driving maul is good but is going sideways instead of forwards, France do well to bring it down and turn it over. She clears their lines and Rollie comes through as Scotland attack again. A crossfield kick comes in and they try to find Grant but Menager collects.
10 min: Scotland kicked to the corner and they have a driving maul, they almost get over but it’s not quite there. We come back for another penalty and Scotland for the corner again!
9 min: France’s set piece is good and Bourdon is charged down! But France gather and attempt to get out of their own half but Scotland win a penalty for a tackle off the ball. McGhie is off and has been replaced by Grant, the wing is crying in the stands.
8 min: Wow, McGhie finds some space but the French defence is so good! They tackle and win the breakdown penalty! McGhie looks like she took a knock from that, she is receiving treatment for an ankle. They are playing on at the moment though with McGhie off to the side, strange.
7 min: Scotland eventually run it and they go through the phases. This France defence is hard to penetrate, they have 90% tackle success in the tournament, but Orr finds a few metres. They are hitting them hard here.
6 min: Scotland have the scrum from the forward pass and it is another strong set piece by the visitors. The kicking game comes into play once more.
NO TRY! France 0-0 Scotland
Oh my word, they have overturned their decision! The crowd are booing, they judge Bourdon had a forward pass to Escudero.
5 min: Hang on though! They are checking for a forward pass!
TRY! France 5-0 Scotland (Escudero, 4′)
There is the opener! Tremouliere chips over the top and catches her own kick, France go through the hands and Escudero had Scotland players hanging off of her as she crashes over.
4 min: After a reset Scotland’s scrum is clean and they run it from deep. McGhie makes a great break but Scotland then kick away. The kicking game comes into play with France winning it, they are heading to the line!
2 min: Oh my word France are almost away! Mattinson sends a box kick high and Boulard gets a break, she kicks through but it goes out before she can reach it. Scotland’s line-out sees France knock on and Scotland have the first scrum.
Kick-off! France 0-0 Scotland
Here we go! Will Scotland pull off a shock? Or will France be able to continue their perfect run this tournament? Slight delay to the kick-off as iPlayer lags!
The players are out and the anthems will shortly be in full flow, France have a big crowd and they are up for this! What a thrilling match we have coming up.
The players will be out soon! How do you see this shaking out? I am predicting a France win today.
There have already been two games this weekend with England defeating a valiant Wales 59-3 and Italy pulling off 24-7 win over Ireland in a gritty game. You can catch up with the action in the England match, which puts them clear five points clear at the top of the table as things stand, in our match report:
Scotland head coach Bryan Easson has said ahead of the match: “Following the first two rounds, we’ve seen two or three things that we need to fix, including continuing working on our speed of play and also being more clinical inside the gold zone area. It’s always a tough challenge going to France but it is also an exciting opportunity which everyone is relishing, especially as we are expecting a huge crowd and a great atmosphere on Sunday.”
Scotland prop Anne Young has spoken about the team’s belief ahead of this clash. She said: “It’s game management, being clinical. We’ve come close to France, we drew with them a few years ago, it’s not undoable for us, and it’s a game we are targeting. We talk about belief all the time and it’s important to us going into a new week. Every game is a fresh opportunity for us to show what we can do.”
France men’s team manager Raphael Ibanez attended the women’s team’s shirt presentation yesterday ahead of their clash with Scotland. Ibaenz described it as an “honour”.
Bon match aux Bleues contre l’Ecosse demain 🇫🇷
C’est un véritable honneur d’avoir pu vous remettre les maillots ce soir. pic.twitter.com/jOaV5eQAs7— Raphaël Ibañez (@Ibanez_Raphael) April 15, 2023
I absolutely love fun facts so if you have any let me know. It doesn’t have to be about rugby, just any you have! Let me know via email or Twitter.
The last time France lost at home to Scotland in a Test match was in 2003. It isn’t impossible for Scotland to win but it will be a tough ask.
The match officials for the game are: referee Lauren Jenner (FIR), touch judges Clara Munarini (FIR) and Katherine Ritchie (RFU) and the TMO is Leo Colgan.
Lisa Thomson is back in the Scotland squad after helping Great Britain win bronze in the sevens game in Hong Kong. She starts and will win her 50th cap for her country when she runs out. Scotland head coach Bryan Easson said: “It’s brilliant to see Lisa get her 50th cap this Sunday as she’s been a stalwart for Scotland Women for a long time now.”
France have made seven changes to their starting XV with Emilie Boulard back at 15, Melissande Llorens starts on the wing and Jessy Tremouliere is at fly-half. In the forwards, there are two new props with Assia Khalfaoui and Yllana Brosseau coming in. And the final two changes sees Gaelle Hermet and Maelle Picut start.
France: Boulard; Boujard, M Menager, Vernier, Llorens; Trémoulière, Bourdon; Brosseau, Sochat, Khalfaoui, Picut, Forlani (C), Berthoumieu, Hermet, Escudero
Replacements: Riffonneau, Mwayembe, Bernadou, R Menager, Annery, Chambon, Arbez, Filopon.
Scotland, meanwhile, have made four changes to their starting line-up. Jade Konkel-Roberts returns from injury to start at No 8 and there is another change to the back row with Evie Gallagher in for Rachel McLachlan. In the backs, Lisa Thomson returns and Liz Musgrove gets her first start of the tournament.
Scotland: Rollie; Musgrove, Orr, Thomson, McGhie; Nelson, Mattinson; Bartlett, Skeldon, Belisle, O’Donnell, McMillan, Malcolm (C), Gallagher, Konkel-Roberts
Replacements: Rettie, Young, Clarke, Donaldson, McLachlan, McDonald, Smith, Grant
Hello and welcome to the last game of round three of the Women’s Six Nations! France take on Scotland in what should be a good battle on the pitch.
So far France have beaten Italy and defeated Ireland with a bonus-point win and sit in third. They have put in impressive performances, especially after going down to 14 following Annaelle Deshayes red card against Ireland. However, France have more gears to go through and the team will be ready to prove what they can do this afternoon.
Scotland, meanwhile, are fifth after losing to England and Wales. Captain Rachel Malcolm said ahead of the tournament the team are looking to adapt their attack and fans have seen what they are capable of, particularly against Wales. They will want more of that to come through to down favourites France.
The team news is in and I’ll bring that to you shortly. Stay tuned ahead of kick-off at 3.15pm BST.
