Three new caps for France

Mar 6 2008 by Our Correspondent, Western Mail

FRANCE head coach Marc Lievremont’s revolving door policy continued yesterday when he named three uncapped players in his starting XV for Sunday’s Six Nations championship clash with Italy.

Lievremont has shown during his brief time in charge of Les Bleus that he is not scared to throw fresh talent in at the deep end and Fabien Barcella, Ibrahim Diarra and Yann David are the latest players to benefit ahead of this weekend’s game with the Azzurri.

Auch prop Barcella, Montauban flanker Diarra and Bourgoin centre David, 19, will make their debuts from the off at the Stade de France, with Lievremont making a total of nine changes to the side which lost 24-13 to England last time out.

Two other uncapped players, hooker Guillem Guirado and scrum-half Julien Tomas, are set to pick up their first caps off the bench.

Elsewhere, full-back Anthony Floch, who has one cap to his name, will make his first start.

France: A Floch, A Rougerie (both Clermont-Auvergne), Y Jauzion (Toulouse), Y David (Bourgoin), J Malzieu (Clermont-Auvergne); F Trinh-Duc (Montpellier), D Yachvili (Biarritz); F Barcella (Auch), D Szarzewski (Stade Francais), N Mas (Perpignan), L Nallet (Castres, capt), J Thion (Biarritz), F Ouedraogo (Montpellier), I Diarra (Montauban), L Picamoles (Montpellier).