The Late Show

And on the bill this evening; Modern Blues.

They may be new names to some of you, ladies & gentlemen, but don't let that worry you - they are mostly new names to each other, as well.

What on Earth Monsieur Lievremont is playing at this time is a question for drama critics as much as for sports pundits. A fly-half who has never played there before, a winger shifted to full-back, and an uncapped centre pre-packaged with a poor disciplinary record, as part of a centre pairing who have only played together once, in training...

If it was anyone other than France, one could simply blow a dismissive raspberry and talk about Wales' margin of victory.

But it isn't anyone other than France. Wales wore the unfamiliar mantle of the favourite at home against England impressively enough, but now they must carry that title forward onto the field at Stade de France. It was a first in twenty years against the English, but Wales going to Paris as favourites hasn't happened for an even longer time.

Thankfully, the powder keg is almost entirely anhydrous. The return of Shane Williams to the wing, and Gavin Henson on the replacements bench, gives Wales pretty much a full deck of cards to play behind the scrum. Things look a little sparer up front, with Luke Charteris and Dafydd Jones seeming rather light cover for a pack that must contain Harinordoquoy, Ouedrago, Dusutoir and Chabal...

Whoever wins this one will have achieved something special. Wales must find, if not a new dimension, then at least the occisional wild vector if the failings exposed by England are not to haunt them again. France must simply find each other.