France fighting their grand illusion as England pursue grand slam in Paris

Les Bleus have plumbed new depths in the Six Nations this season and their coach, Guy Novès, is feeling the strain of intense national scrutinyGuy Novès cancelled his customary press conference on Wednesday in the buildup to his team’s final match of this Six Nations against England on Saturday. Hitherto the new France coach had performed his media duties with due diligence but Sunday’s defeat by Scotland has already cooled relations.Cracks in the relationship began to appear after the 19-10 defeat by Wales, the scoreline masking the true extent of the gulf in class. Though that defeat was Fra…