Dubroca gains new cap for second test

Press, 12 July 1979, Page 30

Dubroca gains new cap for second test

Auckland

The new French cap, the tight-head prop, Daniel Dubroca, will pack against the All Black, Brad Johnstone, in the second test between New Zealand and France at Eden Park on Saturday.

Dubroca was named in thej French test side by his man-| ager, Yves Noe, before the team flew from Invercargill j to Auckland late yesterday I morning. He is the one new cap in the team, which includes! three changes from the side! which lost the first test 23-9 } at Lancaster Park last Satur-i day. Dubroca replaces Guyj Colomine who is still nurs-1 ing an injured shoulder after* the test, the Oloron lock. * Alain Maleig, has been in-l eluded in place of Patrick* Salas, and the half-back Jerome Gallion has regained} his position from Yves La-1 farge. The thick-set Dubroca is not unduly concerned about* the prospect of packing* down against Johnstone for} the second time in his} career. The first time the pair} met was when Graham* Mourie’s 1977 All Black! team played against a! French selection side in Agen. The team announcement by Mr Noe, brought great joy to Gallion who experienced bitter disappointment over his Christchurch sidelining. Lafarge can be considered; a little unlucky not to retain} his place as Gallion's per-1 formance against Southland. on Tuesday was below his! best form. The Toulon half-back has been struggling to find his best form on tour and he will want to erase New Zealanders’ memories of his I indifferent games against

Waikato, Wellington and Southland. Dubroca consolidated his test place with a solid game against Southland. He is a more mobile forward than Colomine around the field, a solid scrummager and surprisingly adept on the tackle. Colomine is also nursing an injured shoulder after the first test. Maleig has obviously been brought into the team to add solidity to the middle of the French line-out. Once again Salas can consider himself a little unlucky not to get the nod. Against the Southland forward pack he lay on the bottom of rucks and mauls. Much will be asked of the 1.85 m, 95.7 kg Maleig in the test line-outs against NewZealand lock forwards Frank Oliver and Andy Haden. The Frenchmen will obviously try to get enough ball in the forwards to enable their talented threequarter line of Jean-Luc Averous, Didier Codornious and Frederic Costes to display its innovative skills. The new All Black coach, Eric Watson, is not worried about having to motivate his team for the second test against France on Saturday after their 14-point w-in in the first test last Saturday. “Working the boys up to the test will not be any problem,” Mr Watson said yesterday. “They know’ there is plenty of room for improvement in the All Black team. They also know- that the French will improve after) past Saturday’s test and will be all the harder to beat. 1

“When the All Blacks went into the third test against Australia 2-0 in the series the Wallabies went mad at Eden Park. There is every chance that the French may go mad at Eden Park on Saturday.” The All Blacks, who are staying at the Poenamo] Motor Inn, on the North Shore, will train at the Takapuna Club ground or Hato Petera College at 10 a.m. and 2.30 p.m. today, and plan a light run tomor|row morning. | The early arrivals trained I for almost an hour at Takaipuna yesterday afternoon, land did some solid work ! against a “patched-up” j A u c k 1 a n d representative i scrum. | Frank Oliver and Leicester j Rutledge, the All Black forI wards who are recovering from injuries, watched the scrum training. Mr Russ Thomas, the All Black manager, said that Oliver had physiotherapy on his bruised back yesterday, “and felt 100 per cent after it.” Rutledge will play with strapping over the headcut he received playing for Southland against the French on Tuesday. Both Oliver and Rutledge will train only lightly today, but Mr Thomas said they would be more heavily involved at training tomorrow morning. Brian McKechnie, the I Southland utility back, was the only All Black missing from a team meeting last evening. He is expected to be in Auckland in time for training today.