Philippe Saint-Andre said he took a large part of the blame after his last game as France coach ended in a 62-13 World Cup humiliation by New Zealand, a team he dubbed the “Brazilians of rugby”.
Saint-Andre was jeered incessantly by French fans when his face was shown on the big screen at Cardiff’s Millennium Stadium after Saturday’s quarter-final.
“To be honest I would rather be applauded than booed,” Saint-Andre said of the reaction to the nine-try mauling that sees the All Blacks progress to a semi-final against South Africa. The French will head to the airport for a flight home.
“I’m mostly disappointed for the players today because we cannot say they didn’t give everything.
“In our sport we have to show dignity in victory or defeat,” the former France captain and winger said.
“Congratulations to New Zealand on an exceptional performance.
But when asked how much of the fault was his, he added: “I must take a lot of it. There is no problem there.
“I have had a lot of blows over the last four years, but I had no problem with that after I accepted the post.
“I’ve had some very good moments with the players and staff and I think the players will stand up again and will keep fighting for France.”
Saint-Andre, who lost 23 out of 45 games in charge, has never been the most popular coach. He took over from Marc Lievremont following the 2011 World Cup, in which France lost 8-7 to the All Blacks in the final.
He has used an enormous number of players, constantly tinkering with combinations seen as crucial to driving the team. Half-backs, midfield and the front-row were never nailed down.
And with little training time given to international players because of the demands of the lucrative Top 14 domestic league, Saint-Andre has often railed against benefits other teams have by spending more time together.
“After such a defeat, the feeling of powerlessness and impotence we had for most of the game, there’s not much more to say,” skipper Thierry Dusautoir said.
“To leave the competition in this way is complicated. We never had enough space to exist in this match. At times there were some good moves but invevitablly there was a counter attack or we were stopped.”
Saint-Andre hailed the All Blacks for a sublime performance built on the power of their pack, the tight eight offering the rapid backline a platform to showcase some silky off-loading skills.
“They are the Brazilians of rugby, they are fast and they win 80 per cent of the duels,” he said.
“At the end of the first half we were almost there but we conceded another try and after half-time there was that yellow card and every time we lost a ball they punished us severely.
“We have good rugby players, but New Zealand have players who are reactive, they show speed and technique of the highest quality.”
the french
Roar Rookie
Redsking, stability is good in coaching and the best examples and Graham Henry with NZ and Warren Gaitland with Wales. The down side is the earlu sacling2 of Jones who went on bigger and stronger from there. Since then Organizations have learnt from that and are less prone for overreacting at every loss. PSA did a good job as coach of Gloucester, Sale and Toulon so i dont agree with you on his credentials. He was less psychologically head strong and less astute with his players than Lievremont althougn he had little coaching experience.
the french
Roar Rookie
This is a goos idea Paul. In Rugby terms it would equate to the SANZAR model where players are contracted to their Union. In Europe the players are owned by the clubs.
RedsKing
Guest
I'm not Australian and have a fairly neutral view on Robbie Deans' time with the Wallabies. My point is that coaches can still have jobs with very poor results, where as in previous years they would be shown the door after only 5 or so losses.
vic rugby
Guest
Your personal dislike of deans has nothing to do with this article
RedsKing
Guest
Maybe France should hire an actual good coach this time? Much like the Springboks, they've had 8 years now with 2 garbage coaches. Both of these coaches should have never been chosen and their results should have meant both should have been fired 2 years into their contracts. Robbie Deans' reign seems to have made other nations more acceptable of poor results. I remember back before Deans came along, if a coach lost 5-6 games in a row, his head was immediately on the chopping block. Look at Eddie Jones' results in 2005. He had an injury ravaged Wallaby side that didn't get thrashed (for the most part) yet they lost 5 games in a row and Eddie was fired. Now look at the garbage that these modern coaches serve up.... they can lose almost all their games in the year yet still keep their job. This breeds mediocrity.
Paul from Melbourne
Guest
The only way for the French to advance from here is to nationalize rugby. They have done it to banks, airlines, they should now do it to rugby and then they can set the agenda and priorities of the national team above that of club rugby. Otherwise I can only see it getting worse from here.
RedsKing
Guest
"So what would you say that you actually do around here?" "I am the coach" "Mmmm, yeah. If you could go ahead and not come in to work ever again, that would just be grrrrrreeeeeat, mkay? Thanks!"
the french
Roar Rookie
I am baffled at what PSA has become and i dont know know he could have had a fall from grace of such proportions. He was a respected coach in France because of his successes in France and England. Lievremont never had this luxury and Not many have achieved thatwhat PSA had already achieved. He was also equipped with assistant coaches (Lagisquet and Bru) that have both played and coached at the highest level and had demonstrated their worth. He finishes booed, in his communication for the last 2.5 years he has appeared weak and deflated, he has been micro managed by his administration with the appointment of Blanco to look over his shoulder and with a team that is struggling to hold together let alone play. In his post match declaration he still played mister nice guy taking the blame for players that were pathetic throughout the tournament (not only today). How do you reach such lows? He cannot be sole responsible for this debacle but in his fall he seems to be solely taking the blame. Lievremont didnt do that and in hindsight his tactics were more effective. i hope the French will learn from the All Blacks transformation process after 2003 which is a bench for any organization (sport or business) when they started back to square 1. It will be a lot harder to accomplish for Guy Noves, PSA's successor, a no noone sense chap who wont put up with the rubbish of the French rugby federation. Indeed, Taylorman pointed out the demands of top 14 and European cups are a lot greater than ever and the clubs control the players not the ligue. A great day for the All Blacks. A sad day for France but which can lead to opportunities if they are fully embraced.
taylorman
Roar Guru
True Sean, unfortunately, historically at least it's an apt analogy.
Sean Turner
Roar Guru
He does realise the irony in labelling the all blacks the "brazilians of rugby" on the eve of a semi-final right? Given recent events, there arent too many more titles that make me more uncomfortable than that one.
taylorman
Roar Guru
France definitely suffering from the top 14 demands. They need to sort that relationship out. A true test side doesn't magically appear. It's got to be a product of its foundations, and they look like there all over the place, the clubs getting greedier and greedier.
Pita
Guest
Alleus les black!!