France Under-20s coach Thomas Lièvremont urged his side to finish their Championship on a high when they tackle their Welsh counterparts at Stade Sapiac on Friday night.
France Under-20s coach Thomas Lièvremont urged his side to finish their Championship on a high when they tackle their Welsh counterparts at Stade Sapiac on Friday night.
Former France No.8 Lievremont earned 35 caps for France between 1996 and 2006, while he has guided Les Bleuets to victories over Scotland Under-20s and Italy Under-20s.
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The French youngsters did lose heavily to Grand Slam-chasing England Under-20s, but the improvement in evidence in their subsequent games has left the 43-year-old feeling optimistic about his squad ahead of the clash in Montauban.
“The most important thing was to go on working and progressing during this competition. That’s why we are happy, we are making that happen,” the former Biarritz man said.
“When you start and you are beaten by 60 points it is awful for a coach, the manager and for the players.
“Even though we lost in Ireland, our game was a lot better. No we have to finish correctly against Wales.
“The Under-20s Six Nations is the best competition we could dream of to prepare these players because it is the same way the senior team are playing.
“I have a mission. I have been a coach at professional clubs but I stopped because I wanted to give my passion to others.
“The best for me was to work with young players and help them grow up to be better than they are.”
Lievremont also underlined the importance of interaction between Guy Noves’ senior squad and the Under-20s side in preparing a future generation for Les Bleus.
“We have to work with the other French coaches to do the same things and to have the same system,” he said.
“In France we often have matches between the Under-20s and the senior side. Last week before Italy, we had an opposition between the forwards and backs. It was very special.
“It was hard, it was tough but at the end of training the players were so happy. That’s our job, to make them grow.
“The Championship is effectively the same for both the young and senior players and we want to work hard one day to reach that level.”