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text-decoration:none; } img {border:none;} The Sport Review: “Six
Nations: France look to overcome their bête noire” plus 2 more- Six Nations: France look to overcome their bête noire - Fantastic Fulham march on after historic Juventus win - Owen Hargreaves makes return for Man Utd reserves Six Nations: France look to overcome their bête noire Posted: 19 Mar 2010 12:57 PM PDT Martin Johnson's England play France on Saturday evening It's 5pm on a Sunday evening and England have just produced their best performance in years, as a well fancied French side have been put to the sword. Riki Flutey and Delon Armitage have both confirmed their arrivals on the international scene, Martin Johnson's future as England manager is secure and the future looks bright for the World Cup winning captain and his troops. Marc Lièvremont, on the other hand, is under extreme pressure with few signs of progress and now well into the second year of his tenure. Fast forward a year and England travel to Paris this weekend with Johnson now the man feeling the strain, and Lièvremont being lauded for having developed a squad capable of challenging the big three from the South. In the past twelve months France have travelled to New Zealand and won, taken apart the world champions South Africa in Toulouse, and then shattered Irish dreams of back to back grand slams in Paris. There have been more disappointments along the way; a comprehensive defeat in Sydney to end what had been a promising summer tour, and then the thumping in Marseille from an All Black side in a class of their own. However, Marc Lièvremont has built up a squad which has overcome the loss of several key players to dominate this year's Six Nations. Whilst England have to put up with the heavily criticized Tim Payne due to Andrew Sheridan's absence, France's second choice loosehead, Thomas Domingo, looks a dead cert for a team of the tournament. The homogeneity of the squad is frightening, and with the possible exception of fly half, you feel that they have the depth to cover any absences. So, to this weekend. Can England spoil the party? Or will France record their first win in three years against their biggest rivals? The odds are stacked against Martin Johnson and his team, but it wouldn't be the first time that England have overcome the underdogs tag to win against France. The tired, old cliché states that you never know which French team is going to turn up, and although Marc Lièvremont's side appear more consistent, this weekend they will need to prove it against the side who have really had the wood over them in recent years. Lièvremont chose to make just one change to his team after Sunday's hammering of the Italians, with the new star of French rugby, Mathieu Bastareaud, coming back into the side in place of David Marty for le crunch. Although a very private individual, Bastareaud has found it difficult to stay out of the limelight after his escapades in Wellington last summer, but he has reacted in the best possible fashion with impressive performances against Scotland and Ireland. However, the key for the French will be whether their hugely impressive pack can dominate England in the way that they have every other team so far. With the best scrum in the tournament, and an improving lineout, especially since the introduction of Julien Pierre in the second row, the English will certainly be tested. Add to that, an athletic yet powerful back row, and Morgan Parra releasing his backs with quick ball, and the task begins to look insurmountable. So what has Martin Johnson done to counter this? The biggest news is the omission of Jonny Wilkinson from the starting lineup. The Toulon star has looked horribly out of sorts so far in the championship, and his pass into touch against the Scots when England had an overlap was indicative of how things were going for him. In to replace him comes Toby Flood, and although it's a bold move, the French will be wary of the Leicester fly half, who has a very good record against them. Northampton duo Ben Foden and Chris Ashton will be expected to provide some attacking spark to what has looked an insipid backline so far, and Mike Tindall will bring experience into the midfield. Simon Shaw, Louis Deacon and Lewis Moody have been recalled into the English pack with Moody taking over the captaincy from the injured Steve Borthwick, whilst Joe Worsley reverts to blindside flanker where James Haskell has been fairly anonymous since his opening day brace against the Welsh. Realistically, France should have too much for England, and on the basis of what they have produced so far in the tournament, they would be fully deserving of a fifth grand slam in thirteen years. However, it is the unpredictability of this tournament that makes it so special, and England will be desperate to spring another surprise on Saturday evening. - Six Nations: Preview of all the weekend’s action - RBS Six Nations: Wales v France preview - Cipriani seeks new challenge with Melbourne Rebels Fantastic Fulham march on after historic Juventus win Posted: 19 Mar 2010 03:43 AM PDT Dempsey scored Fulham's winner on an historic night (Photo: Jarrett Campbell) Fulham 4-1 Juventus (agg 5-4) Casting an eye back to 2008 it would have been laughable to suggest that a Fulham side struggling to survive in the top flight would overcome one of the greatest names in world football a mere two years later. Juventus simply crumbled in the cauldron of noise generated within Craven Cottage on Thursday as Roy Hodgson’s side secured a 4-1 triumph. Fulham were in inspired form despite a weekend hammering at the hands of Manchester United. It is difficult to recall a tie which has generated such romanticism. The visit of the illustrious Italian outfit to the modest Fulham allowed for the imaginations of the Cottagers to run wild as they envisaged a glorious victory over the Old Lady. But the enormity of the task that faced the London side couldn’t be underestimated. Juventus have won Europe's top prize twice and claimed their sole UEFA Cup success in 1984 against FC Porto. Furthermore they are the second wealthiest club in Italy, ninth in the world. The travelling party included five World Cup winners and two expensive Brazilians. In comparison to the limited resources of Fulham and the more average — but motivated — collection of players Roy Hodgson has at his disposal, it was clear that the London side would be fighting an uphill battle. Add to that the 3-1 deficit from the first leg at the Stadio Olimpico — an underlining of the enormity of the challenge that awaited. Matters worsened within 90 seconds of Thursday’s clash as David Trezeguet slotted a low shot past Mark Schwarzer to reinforce Juventus' aggregate lead. It was a severe blow that threatened to drain the belief from the English team. But this Fulham squad have emerged from previous battles with adversity and survived, and Thursday night was no different. Hodgson will have been aware that Juventus surrendered a commanding 3-0 lead to Sienna in last week's round of Serie A games. Indeed the Italians held their slender advantage for less than seven minutes. Bobby Zamora neatly controlled a chipped ball, out-muscled defender Fabio Cannavaro and restored parity with a drilled shot after a sleek swivel which bamboozled the Juventus goalkeeper, Antonio Chimenti. A Zoltan Gera brace inflicted further misery upon the Italians. The first came from a slick interchange between Zamora and Davies with the Welsh midfielder slotting the ball across goal into the path of the Hungarian midfielder. The second goal from the penalty spot after a Duff cross struck Diego's hand. At this point it seemed inevitable that Roy Hodgson's players would secure victory, such was their style and commanding influence on the game. Juventus have proven a fragile entity throughout the duration of their Serie A campaign and they capitulated under the pressure. Fabio Cannavaro received his marching orders for fouling Gera, who appeared to be racing through on goal. The World Cup winner endured a torrid thirty minutes before earning a red card. The former Real Madrid star was simply dour as he produced a handful of moments of suspect defending under the watchful gaze of former boss Fabio Capello. Juventus went down to nine men when French defender Zebina was adjudged to have lashed out at Irish winger Duff. With the tie finely balanced at 3-1 (agg 4-4), it was fitting that a sublime goal would send Fulham into the hat for the quarter-final draw. Substitute Clint Dempsey had been on the pitch a matter of minutes when he conjured up a magical chip on the outskirts of the penalty area. It secured the Cottagers passage into the next round as they knocked out the mighty Juventus and claimed what must go down in the Fulham analogues as the greatest victory in their history. “This must come close to the greatest night of the club’s history,” said manager Roy Hodgson. “On a personal note, I am not sure I can recall such a recovery. I am on top of the world." Clearly in a jubilant mood, the former Inter Milan boss jokingly remarked: "We should just do a Rocky Marciano and retire now because it’s not going to get any better than this." Damien Duff rolled back the years with a display which left fans marvelling at the undoubted talent of the left winger. He proved a constant threat with his ingenious trickery causing a multitude of problems. Bobby Zamora impressed at the head of the Fulham attack showing great strength and deft feet. Of course Dempsey rightly deserves the plaudits for his special strike which ultimately was difference between the two teams. "I just thought: ‘what the heck’ and tried to put it in the far post and it went in," said Dempsey. "Nine times out of 10 you won’t make it but sometimes you’ve got to take a risk." When asked about the evolution of Fulham under the stewardship of Hodgson, the American remarked: "It’s life, everything changes and you have to keep working hard." - Bobby Zamora staking his claim for England call-up - Hull City appoint Iain Dowie as Phil Brown’s replacement - Roy Hodgson’s Fulham continue to impress Owen Hargreaves makes return for Man Utd reserves Posted: 19 Mar 2010 02:08 AM PDT Owen Hargreaves playing at Altrincham FC's Moss Lane ground on Thursday night Owen Hargreaves took the latest step on the road to make England's World Cup squad last night, as he turned out for Manchester United reserves. Hargreaves played the first 45 minutes of a 2-0 victory over Burnley on a wet night at Altrincham FC's Moss Lane ground. There were no real moments of magic from him, but there were encouraging signs for United. Though he looked a little unsure on the ball in the early stages, the 29-year-old appeared to have regained a lot of his pace. As the half went on, he seemed to grow in confidence, taking on players, and creating a couple of chances with extremely precise through balls. Most importantly for United, he seemed comfortable making quick turns and feints — something which would have been a key concern after extensive knee surgery. The conditions were not ideal as the rain came down, and he was brought off at half time by manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Hargreaves has not played for United since November 2008, following operations on both knees, in an attempt to cure his long-standing tendonitis problem. The midfielder was one of the few bright spots for England in 2006 and, if fit, could play an important part in South Africa. There will be some concern at Hargreaves' post-match comments to MUTV, where he mentioned he is still having injections in his knees. Cortisone injections were a key part of his ongoing treatment prior to surgery, and it will be a worrying sign if they need to be continued. For his part, Hargreaves said he is focussing on taking things as they come, and fighting his way back into United's first team. If he can impress Fabio Capello, all the better for him, and for England. Meanwhile, United's chief exec David Gill seems unable to escape the discontent of United fans. Gill was at the game to watch his son Oliver play, and would have been unable to avoid hearing the sizeable contingent of fans clad in green and gold, who sang songs objecting to the Glazer ownership throughout the game. - Six Nations: France look to overcome their bête noire - Fantastic Fulham march on after historic Juventus win - Hockey: England secure semi-final spot at the World Cup You are subscribed to email updates from The Sport Review To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. 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