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Michalak back as Gelez is dropped

Chris Hewett
Thursday 13 March 2003 01:00 GMT
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The outside-halves of Europe's Six Nations are dropping like flies – or, in the case of the hapless François Gelez, being dropped like a hot pomme de terre. Wales and Scotland have each been through three stand-offs in as many matches, Ireland have been without Ronan O'Gara, the Italians have had to battle through in the absence of Diego Dominguez and England have lost Charlie Hodgson for a minimum of six months. Suddenly, the No 10 shirt has all the security of an endowment policy.

Gelez, the young Agen goal-kicker who replaced the struggling Gerald Merceron after the Tricolores' defeat at Twickenham last month, has been omitted from the squad for the match with Italy in Rome on Sunday week. Frederic Michalak, the extraordinary prodigy from Toulouse whose positional versatility would make him the French equivalent of Austin Healey if he also possessed the ability to talk the hind legs off a donkey, has been restored to the élite party for the first time since the pre-Christmas internationals.

If this is no particular surprise – Gelez missed his kicks against Ireland in Dublin last weekend and finished a distant second to David Humphreys in the tactical contest – it raises serious questions about French chances of challenging for the World Cup in Australia later this year. Last season, Merceron and Fabien Galthié scaled the heights with their half-back partnership, guiding the Tricolores to a Grand Slam. With Merceron out of form and Galthié out of commission through injury, they are back down in the foothills.

Bernard Laporte, the national coach, acknowledged as much yesterday. "We are putting a lot of our hope in Michalak," he said. "He practises his goalkicking every day and we need to see if he can become a good kicker at international level. If he can do this, it will be a great help to us. We are not punishing Gelez and the door is not closed to him – if he recovers his best form, we will pick him – but we need to warn people that they must deserve their place in the squad."

Laporte has made another change, this time in the front row. Christian Califano, summoned from the English Premiership to fill the hole created by Pieter de Villiers' brush with the French Sports Ministry dope-testers, has been packed back off to Saracens without so much as a fond adieu. Olivier Milloud, of Bourgoin, a tough-nut prop who can play on either side of the scrum, joins Jean-Jacques Crenca and Sylvain Marconnet in the 22-man party.

On the Premiership front, Northampton will rest two of their international tight forwards, the Scottish prop Tom Smith and the Welsh lock Steve Williams, for this weekend's trip to Bath. In addition, the England hooker Steve Thompson will start on the bench. The Midlanders have agreed a one-year contractual extension with Nick Beal, their 32-year-old full-back, and awarded the talented young academy flanker Darren Fox with a two-year deal.

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