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On the 9.34 train from London Paddington to Bristol Temple Meads, a group of moustachioed Frenchmen sat around a table discussing the Six Nations.
‘England will be the team to beat,’ they said, scoffing their bacon and egg muffins.
French confidence has still not recovered from their disastrous World Cup campaign of 2023. Scrum-half Antoine Dupont has plagued by injury and coach Fabien Galthie has received his fair share of scrutiny.
But Bordeaux’s ruthless entertainers are giving them a wave of belief. They remain unbeaten in Europe and their fly-half Matthieu Jalibert is lodging an irresistible claim to wear France’s No 10 jersey.
Galthie is being backed into a corner. Shortly before kick-off, his trusted play-maker Romain Ntamack was ruled out of the opening rounds of the Six Nations with a kidney problem.
Last year, Jalibert was dropped following the defeat by England. Galthie used full-back Thomas Ramos as his secondary No10 when Ntamack missed the autumn and Jalibert was nowhere to be seen.
Dupont has an unconventional way of carrying the ball around the ruck and Jalibert has struggled to form a consistent half-back partnership with him in the French team. But the evidence is quickly mounting that Galthie must find a solution.
‘Matthieu has got a special vision,’ said his Bordeaux team-mate Louis Bielle-Biarrey, who scored a hat-trick at Ashton Gate, re-affirming his status as the world’s in-form winger.
‘You don’t need to talk to him. He sees the space and has good hands and good kicks, so it’s really easy to play with him. When you play with him, you know he will make good choices.
In the wet conditions in Bristol, Jailbert’s speed of thought came to the fore.
Bordeaux punished Bristolian handling errors in the rain, ending the hosts’ winning run at Ashton Gate that dates back to November.
Four tries from zero rucks showcased their turnover attack, leaving France’s Six Nations rivals meticulously studying footage of the Top 14 team.
The French pounced on dropped balls, as the Englishmen overplayed their hand. Bordeaux turned to the blistering speed of their transition attack.
‘If you look at today’s game as an example, Matthieu manged things wonderfully,’ said Bordeaux coach Noel McNamara.
Louis Bielle-Biarrey scored three tries and reaffirmed his status as the world's in-form winger
‘In terms of field position, the quality of kicking and the quality of defence, he was 100%. His kicking game was exemplary. Of course you can translate it through to the international game.
‘For me, he’s been the form 10 in Europe, not just for the last few weeks but for an extended period of time. I’ve no doubt he can translate that; the question is whether he will get an opportunity and I really hope that he does - whether there are injuries or not.’
Bristol coach Pat Lam had billed this fixture as the biggest game of his nine-year tenure.
It was an opportunity for the hosts to book a home play-off, but the wet weather conditions prevented both team’s attacks from cutting loose.
After the match, Lam heaped praise on the opposition No 10. ‘He’s the kind of player we’d like to have here,’ he said.
Matthieu Jalibert was instrumental throughout Bordeaux's Champions Cup victory
With Toulouse and La Rochelle both stumbling through the pool stages of the Champions Cup, Bordeaux are the team flying the French flag. They will march into the play-off as tournament favourites.
‘It’s hard to gauge where French rugby is as a whole off the back of the Champions Cup so far,’ said McNamara. ‘There’s been positives and a couple of blowouts as well. Some teams have taken it really seriously and a couple haven’t taken it as seriously.
‘Certainly the level of the Top 14 is very high and France have to be among the favourites. You have to feel that the English teams have progressed. England coming off the back of the summer series, the performance of the Lions players, the performance of Ellis Genge today and the performance of their teams in the Champions Cup… they are in a good space, too.’
But if Galthie can find a way to harness Jalibert’s talents, then it is France who should be the team to beat.
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