Rugby-Capilla set for France debut as Galthie names team to face Fiji


Rugby Union - Six Nations Championship - France v England - Stade de France, Saint-Denis, France - March 14, 2026 France head coach Fabien Galthie before the match REUTERS/Gonzalo Fuentes/File Photo

Nov 5 (Reuters) - Uncapped ⁠loose forwardEsteban Capilla could make his France debut ⁠off the bench after being named in the ‌matchday 23 by coach Fabien Galthie for Saturday's Nations Championship fixture against Fiji in Lyon.

• Antoine Dupont will captain the side ​fromscrumhalf and partner Romain Ntamack in ⁠the halfback pairing

•Yoram Moefana ⁠and Kalvin Gourgues form the centre pairing, with livewire ⁠Louis ‌Bielle-Biarrey and English-born Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang on the wings and Theo Attissogbe at fullback

•Maxime Lamothe ⁠starts at hooker alongside props Jean-Baptiste Gros ​and Sipili Falatea ‌in the front row, while Florian Verhaeghe and ⁠Mickaël Guillard ​form the lock pairing

• Francois Cros starts at number eight, with loose forwards Cameron Woki and Paul Boudehent ⁠also selected

• Former Sevens player Capilla ​earns his place in the squad after an injury on Wednesday to Oscar Jegou

• France also face South Africa ⁠on November 13 and Argentina eight days later, ahead of the Nations Championship finals weekend

Team: 15-ThéoAttissogbe, 14-Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang, 13-Kalvin Gourgues, 12-Yoram Moefana, 11-Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10-Romain Ntamack, ​9-Antoine Dupont (captain), 8-François Cros, 7-Paul ⁠Boudehent, 6-Cameron Woki, 5-Mickaël Guillard, 4-Florian Verhaeghe, 3-Sipili Falatea, ​2-Maxime Lamothe, 1-Jean-Baptiste Gros

Replacements: 16-PeatoMauvaka, 17-Jefferson ‌Poirot, 18-Regis Montagne, 19-Charles Ollivon, ​20-Tom Staniforth, 21-Esteban Capilla, 22-Maxime Lucu, 23-Emilien Gailleton

(Reporting by Nick Said; Editing by Ken Ferris)

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