World Footy News

Cyril Talon, president of the French Commission for Australian Football (CNFA) and national team manager, says Team France is "200%" certain to make their International Cup debut down under in 2011.

Les Bleus are one of a group of European nations who are hoping to make the pilgrimage to the home of footy for the first time this year, and have a big year of preparations in front of them, including international friendly matches, the ANZAC memorial match and national team training camps.

France has been home to Australian football clubs for some time now, with a few ups and downs along the way, but the past few seasons have seen rapid growth, with a number of club tournaments, the creation of a national league and seven senior clubs now in existence.

Talon explains that the squad currently consists of 26 players, eight each from the Paris Cockerels and Bordeaux Bombers, five from the newly-renamed Toulouse Hawks, three currently based in Montreal, Canada and two who are playing in Australia.

As with many other national teams, the amateur nature of the sport outside Australia means selection is sometimes restricted by who can afford to travel. "The best French players have the priority - the coaching team together with the club coaches and presidents decided the best ones - but the problem is that some of the best players can't afford to travel to Australia."

Talon says there are somewhere in the region of 50-70 potential French team members, spread across the clubs in France, as well as clubs as distant as Glasgow or Montreal, but realistically there are about thirty players who could make the grade. "We have a lot of new young guys with potential, around 20 years old," Talon says.

Season 2008 was a watershed year for French footy, with the first French Cup, the creation of three new teams, and France's national team placing 6th at the EU Cup and 1st at an international 9s tournament in Valls, Catalonia. Talon says the 2010-11 season will be just as big.

"This season 2010-2011 is an important season for us, more and more French players in our clubs, A and B grade 9-a-side national teams, one team at 18-a-side, playing at the first EC championship with Iceland in the last August, where 8 French players joined with their team, Euro Cup in Milan, French Cup, French Championship, Mediterranean Cup, Anzac Cup, a new team in Marseille, and great work from the national commission in coordinating rules, umpiring and so on."

The national team held a training camp in Toulouse last October, two weeks before the Euro cup in Milan, and then another last December in Bordeaux, including a 9-a-side match France A vs France B. This will be followed by a third training camp in Lacanau on February 19th.

The first official 18-a-side match for the French national team will be the 2011 ANZAC Cup commemorative match in Villers-Bretonneux, France versus the "Aussie Spirit", made up of Australian expats in Europe, on the 24th April. A friendly match aginst Germany is scheduled for June 11th in Paris, and a final training camp in Hossegor during July.

They have been also been offered friendlies against Switzerland, Italy, Spain and Iceland, the last of whom they have had a strong relationships since helping to fill out their squad at the European Championships.

Talon was hoping be an onfield team member down under in 2011, but has been ruled out due to a major knee injury. "My dream was to play at the IC, but I have a major injury in my knee (ruptured ACL) so I'm working hard for the national commission as president to develop and structure footy in France, and as a General Manager for the French team to create a real national team with a good level and good team spirit and to participate in the international competitions."

Sharing the coaching duties are the Aussie-Frenchman Adam Le Nevez from Strasbourg, who unfortunately can't make the trip down under, and Graham Andrews from the Paris Cockerels. There is a further possibility that Luke Anderson, coach of the Montreal Saints, will also be assisting at the IC.

Other support staff included CNFA secretary Thomas Urban from Toulouse, and Icelandic veteran and former Denmark captain Páll Thomas Finnsson, whose experience has been greatly appreciated both by his Paris teammates and the other French clubs.

At the Australian end, Team France are in contact with an amateur footy club in St Kilda, as well as with the Coolangatta-Tweed Heads Blues in Queensland, with whom 3 or 4 French players are very interested in taking up the offer to play the 2011 local season in preparation the IC.

"We want mobilise the French community in Melbourne and Sydney to support us. But also any Australian who wants to support France. If any firm or enterprise want to sponsor us don't hesitate. We are looking for very cheap accomodation in Melbourne and Sydney," Talon says.

Team France have an apparel partnership with young French brand OZtyle, who will supply all the total equipment for the national team, with a special France guernsey for the IC. Oztyle is the official sponsor two "top 14" professional Rugby Union teams, as well as 5 "Pro D2" teams.

"We want prove that France is a footy nation now, with good players and good team. We try to offer a good, respectable and "brilliant" game. We've played in the Euro Cup competition since the beginning in 2004, even before our local competition started in 2008. We have always played with only French players - for us it's not to choose the best players, but to build something serious and strong in your country and in the French minds.

"One of the first Australian football matches played ouside Australia was in France, in the Somme during the First World War, in 1916. So we are a part of the footy history and we have a kind of heritage."

"When I started playing footy at the beginning of 2008, my principal aim was that France participates in the IC 2008, but it was too short to organize that and there was only 3 teams. In fact, we have needed a couple of years more to present our national team for this international competition. 30 people who'll pay around 2,500 Euros each for the common challenge, it's a great effort and fantastic thing."

"We hope that the players will get a great experience to become ambassadors on their return in France."

Below: France at the 2010 Euro Cup