Two years has not been long enough for France's scars to heal from losing in the 2023 Rugby World Cup quarterfinals. A titanic tussle with South Africa became an instant classic in a heaving Stade de France. The Springboks edged it 29-28 and went on to win the trophy that the French thought was finally going to be theirs. They'd cherished home advantage, won their previous 18 home games, and talismanic captain Antoine Dupont was cleared to play with a broken cheekbone . “It was our World Cup and they came and stole it off us. It was such a great game,” scrumhalf Maxime Lucu told European Professional Club Rugby this week. “We can't wait to take them on. They're back-to-back world champions. Everything's set up perfectly for a great game.” France owns the Six Nations title and the party-poo

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