French in fear of Auckland marauders

The pride of France took a beating last year when a band of marauders led by Adrian Stead, Tim Powell and Ian Walker invaded their turf and won, handsomely, the Tour de France à la Voile, sailing's equivalent of the famous annual cycle race.

That Tony Buckingham's campaign, with his lieutenant Kevin Sproul, should also have managed a podium place in third just rubbed additional sea salt into the wound.

Neither of them is back this time, but, in Le Havre yesterday the nerves were still raw as 44 boats started their 24-race, 1500-mile journey. While their rugby union brethren are lining up today for their Test match against the All Blacks in Wellington, so the French face another Kiwi threat, this one drawn from the America's Cup entrant, Team New Zealand.

The Aucklanders came mighty close to earning victory in 1999 when they were second. This time their European summer tour has taken on heroic proportions as Dean Barker, the man to whom Russell Coutts handed the helm, opens his account in northern France. He then flies to Marstrand and on to Ravenna for match race engagements.

The Kiwis were nowhere near as prepared as they would like ­ "it's a shambles,'' Barker admitted ­ but they are still fired up, not least by the British example, to beat the French professionals at their own game. As are a boat representing the British University Sailing Team, skippered by the 22-year-old Simon Shaw.