Canada can finally exhale after ending their 11-year winless streak against France with a gritty 14-5 victory over the third place nation on Wednesday evening.
Two second half tries and a full 80-minute defensive effort in front of a capacity crowd at Stade Bourillon in Dijon saw Canada let go of their decade-old French demons.
This is a huge victory for the fourth-ranked nation, as they were atypically Canadian by boldly announcing they came to France expecting to win.
The National Senior Women’s Team have been perpetual bridesmaids to the French at the last two World Cups, and prior to this evening’s victory, had only ever beat the European nation once.
The city of Dijon played perfect host to the international match, which unfortunately got off to a stuttered start.
Handling errors, penalties and the referee’s whistle were the antagonists of the stop-start first half. Momentum was a stranger to both teams, and the 3000 in attendance were left listless as play was continually interrupted after two or three phases.
The French actually held a slight advantage in possession after 40, but they failed to turn the stat into a score. Individually good athletes, their backline was disconnected and had to rely on the boot of their flyhalf and fullback for territory.
10 minutes into the second half, it looked like something finally clicked for Canada. The tourists began to dominate the breakdown area and one-on-one battles, and the confidence gained led to their first try.
Araba Chintoh stamped her return to international rugby after a five-year absence with five points. The 6’1” lock was a key for the Canadians in the air and on the ground.
Chintoh scored the first try of the game by diving across the line after scrumhalf Julia Sugawara made a 20m break following a sneaky turnover.
The Toronto Scottish will be proud as two of their players tallied both tries for Canada. Cheryl Phillips (pictured), who normally plays in the outside backs, looked more than comfortable in the number 13 jersey.
Phillips made several line breaks, but she stood out especially because of her defensive play. Phillips squandered a few would-be opportunities by making brilliant ball-and-all tackles.
New cap Andrea Burk slotted both conversions, including one from inside the 15m line, and was solid for the full 80.
France’s Fanny Horta scored a late try as Les Bleus opted to tap a penalty directly in front of the posts, but a missed easy conversion meant the French would never really threaten Canada’s lead.
Match captain Maria Gallo played alongside positional rookie Phillips in the centres and was very impressed with her teammate.
“I never doubted her. It was her first time ever at 13 and she played really well. Coming from fullback, she has that vision and she’s a natural strike runner.”
Gallo was complimentary of all five new caps, as they were all earned in high-pressure positions.
“Two of the new caps were in the front row, and two were in the back three," she said. "Front row comes with a lot of responsibility and with the amount the French kick, so does the back three.
"I thought the new girls handled it great. Corinne [Jacobsen] even stepped up at halftime with a speech; she’s a natural leader.”
Head coach Johnathan Long was quietly pleased with the NSWT tonight.
“The girls put the plan into action. We said we were going to use our attacking defense to create opportunities and we did just that. We kept France on their back foot with our aggression.”
Long singled out Chintoh for the role she played in Canada’s historic win.
“What a fantastic return for Chintoh. She had a few brilliant lineout jumps and she got around the field beautifully," said the first year coach.
Seeing the opportunity for development before the 2010 World Cup, both nations used the midweek test to give a handful of new caps their first trot.
France made a few late impact subs and Canada should be wary; the insertion of Sandrine Agricole at flyhalf made for a huge difference. Agricole’s 38 caps and kicking skills were a threat and she can be expected to start at 10 for France on Saturday.
“Once they put in their key players, they’re top notch. The flyhalf and fullback have a tremendous kicking game so we have to be prepared for that come Saturday. It’s going to be a huge aspect of the game,” said Long.
Gallo has 48 caps for Canada and was unfortunately privy to the two World Cup losses at the hands of France, so the win tonight held extra relief for her.
“I’ve never beat France. It feels so amazing, but we’re not the same team we were four years ago, you can’t even compare.”
The NSWT has a quick three-day turnaround before facing the French again at the 80 000 capacity Stade de France.
Canada will remain in Dijon until Friday morning, when they will bus the four hours back to Paris for their much-anticipated test match.
Saturday’s test will kick off at 3pm CET at the infamous stadium prior to a men’s international test between France and Samoa.
Adding even more weight to this victory, the IRB announced the 2010 World Cup pools earlier today, and Canada will be in a group with Scotland, Sweden, and France.
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FT: Canada 14 – 5 France
HT: 0 - 0
Canada
Tries: Araba Chintoh, Cheryl Phillips
Cons: Andrea Burk (2)
France
Tries: Fanny Horta
France
1. Stephanie Loyer 2. Clemence Olivier 3. Sandrine Legros 4. Clemence Audebert 5. Carole Lignon 6. Sylvie Bernard 7. Lucie Canal 8. Manon Andre 9. Stephanie Provost (captain) 10. Cindy Reynaud 11. Fanny Griselin 12. Celine Heguy 13. Fanny Horta 14. Hayate Chrouki 15. Anais Lagougine
Replacements: 16. Laetitia Salles 17. Nadege Labbey 19. Sandra Rabier 20. Marie Alice Yahe 21. Aurelie Bailon 22. Sandrine Agricole
Canada
1. Tabitha Stavrou 2. Brandi van Eeuwen 3. Corinne Jacobsen 4. Araba Chintoh 5. Paige Burdett 6. Heather Jaques 7. Shannon Kane 8. Barbara Mervin 9. Julia Sugawara 10. Anna Schnell 11. Andrea Burk 12. Maria Gallo (captain) 13. Cheryl Phillips 14. Julianne Zussman 15. Darcy Patterson
Replacements: 16. Marlene Donaldson 17. Kim Donaldson 18. Kelly Russell 19. Megan Gibbs 20. Laura Stoughton 21. Sarah Ulmer 22. Brooke Hilditch
New Canada Caps
Andrea Burk (Capilano)
Corinne Jacobsen (Burnaby Lake Rugby Club)
Shannon Kane (Velox Valkyries)
Darcy Patterson (Capilano/UBC)
Brandi van Eeuwen (Cowichan RFC)
