The Blues rolled over Italy and offered themselves a historic victory.
It is an understatement to say that France did not tremble against Italy. The Blues were masters of their meeting from start to finish, or almost, calmly qualifying for the quarter-finals of the World Cup, facing pale Transalpines. In Lyon, the Galthié gang rolled out and even achieved a historic victory. At 31-0 at half-time, the mass was already said, but, even if the intensity decreased as the match progressed, Damian Penaud and his teammates continued to play their rugby to score with a hot iron in this last match of chicken.
How far away, even very far away, it seemed, the time when the XV of France displayed a certain reluctance in the face of the Nazionale. However, it was last February, during the VI Nations Tournament, and a narrow 24-29 victory. This time, it was the Blues confident in their strength, taking advantage of the many Italian mistakes, who sent a strong signal before the final phase of the competition… and broke a record.
Indeed, by winning 60-7, the Tricolores won their biggest victory against Italy in an official match. The previous record dates back to March 26, 1967. That day, France comfortably won in Toulon 60-13, during a test match. After marching on Namibia (94-0) with their biggest victory in the World Cup, the French established a new record, further affirming their status as the second team in the world rankings.