FRANCE COACH JACQUES Brunel has named uncapped 19-year-old Matthieu Jalibert in his 32-man squad ahead of the 2018 Six Nations.
The Bordeaux scrum-half is the standout name for les bleus as they get set to take on Ireland in their opening game of the tournament on 3 February.
Brunel worked with Jailbert at Bordeaux so should be well aware of his ability, especially in attack.
In all, there are 17 players under the age of 25 in the squad, which is without the likes of Louis Picamoles, Baptiste Serin and Francois Trinh-Duc.
Matheiu Bastareaud has been named, though he has been suspended for three weeks following an EPCR hearing into his use of a homophobic slur during Toulon’s Champions Cup win over Benneton on Sunday and will miss the game with Ireland.
The France squad in full:
Forwards (18)
Camille Chat (Racing 92) 10 caps
Guilhem Guirado (Toulon) 56 caps (captain)
Christopher Tolofua (Saracens) 7 caps
Eddy Ben Arous (Racing 92) 19 caps
Cedate Gomes Sa (Racing 92) uncapped
Jefferson Poirot (Bordeaux Bègles) 14 caps
Dany Priso (La Rochelle) uncapped
Rabah Slimani (Clermont Auvergne) 41 caps
Paul Gabrillagues (Stade Français) 2 caps
Arthur Iturria (Clermont Auvergne) 1 cap
Félix Lambey (Lyon) uncapped
Sébastien Vahaamahina (Clermont Auvergne) 28 caps
Yacouba Camara (Toulouse) 6 caps
Kevin Gourdon (La Rochelle) 15 caps
Anthony Jelonch (Castres Olympique) 2 caps
Wenceslas Lauret (Racing 92) 12 caps
Sékou Macalou (Stade Français) 1 cap
Marco Tauleigne (Bordeaux Bègles) uncapped
Backs (14)
Antoine Dupont (Toulouse) 6 caps
Maxime Machenaud (Racing 92) 31 caps
Morgan Parra (Clermont Auvergne) 66 caps
Anthony Belleau (Toulon) 2 caps
Matthieu Jalibert (Bordeaux Bègles) uncapped
Mathieu Bastareaud (Toulon) 42 caps
Henry Chavancy (Racing 92) 3 caps
Geoffrey Doumayrou (La Rochelle) 2 caps
Rémi Lamerat (Clermont Auvergne) 16 caps
Benjamin Fall (Montpellier) 6 caps
Teddy Thomas (Racing 92) 8 caps
Virimi Vakatawa (Racing 92) 15 caps
Brice Dulin (Racing 92) 29 caps
Geoffrey Palis (Castres Olympique) uncapped
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Great news. Well done.
This girl is the real deal well done.
Well done x
Was watching Sarah, she blew the field away, great prospect for olympics
We have the talent congrats Sarah ☆☆☆☆☆
thats some winning margin in a major competition. Fantastic race. Well done
The competition was blown away!!! This girls got a great future! Go Sarah!
Good woman!
Well done young lady, great to hear news like this..
Great race, watched in on Eurosport. She was comfortable all the way around. Well done!
COYGIG!!!
Fab performance, well done.
RTE DIDNT even mention it on there news. She is the real deal. Come on Sunday for the double. It’s on Eurosport
@Martin Sinnott: I’ll be tuning in. Best of luck Sarah!
Congratulations Sarah; superb gold
Great stuff.
Superb to see an Irish athlete competing and dominating in such an event, and breaking records into the bargain. Well done to her, her family, coaches, etc. They all play a part in such successes.
My only concern for her might be having to run in hot temperatures. It looks like the weather there suited her, given our poor Irish disposition towards heat! I hope she proves me wrong, regularly, if she keeps competing.