IT WAS TOTALLY OUT of character and in that sense, it underlined just how distraught Antoine Dupont was. This was a month ago.
It’s nearing midnight on Sunday 15 October and we’re in the press conference room at the Stade de France in Paris. Dupont is staring down at the table in front of him, utterly dejected.
Having made a miracle recovery from the fractured cheekbone he suffered only three weeks earlier, the French captain has just delivered a tour de force of a display in the World Cup quarter-final. Some of his involvements were sensational. But Dupont has the rancid taste of defeat in his mouth.
The Springboks have edged the French and the hosts are out of their World Cup, the World Cup for which Dupont was the poster boy. One of the French journalists asks about Ben O’Keeffe’s refereeing of the game and Dupont looks up sharply.
“What did you think?” responds Dupont, leaving it hanging in the air for effect. He then continues to outline his frustration, saying that he’s “not sure the refereeing was up to the level of what was at stake.”
It’s simply not an avenue that Dupont has gone down before. He is always polite, measured, and even reserved in this setting, but he’s clearly livid in the wake of France’s World Cup exit.
Indeed, throughout the game, he was audible over the ref mic, questioning and complaining about many of O’Keeffe’s decisions. But to bring it into the post-match press conference is a big step for Dupont. And his words undoubtedly fuel some of the bitter, relentless criticism of the Kiwi referee in the weeks that follow. Even today, French rugby is still not over it. There’s a widespread belief among les Blues’ supporters that O’Keeffe cost them the game.
That Dupont was willing to explicitly go on the record in that manner illustrates just how much the quarter-final defeat hurt him. It was supposed to finally be France’s chance to claim their first World Cup. With home advantage, their best team in well over a decade, all the resources they could dream of, and a brilliant coaching team, it felt like their destiny. Dupont was the heartbeat of it all.
Ultimately, they came up just short in an epic clash with the Springboks that would have been a fitting World Cup final. Dupont turned 27 today so he should be back for the 2027 World Cup in Australia but even if the French win that one, it clearly won’t be the same as it would have been on home soil.
For Dupont, all of this disappointment can only have fuelled what had been a developing plan to make a switch to 7s rugby in 2024 and take part in the Olympic Games, which will be held in Paris in July and August of next year.
As reported by French sports newspaper L’Équipe, Dupont will be part of the French 7s squad and so, he will once again be the poster boy for a big rugby tournament.
The rugby 7s competitions in the Olympics, which Ireland’s men’s and women’s teams will also be part of, take place at the end of July at Stade de France, so it will be familiar ground for Dupont even if he is taking a step into new territory with the seven-man code.
The Fédération Française de Rugby and Toulouse, Dupont’s club, are on board with his dream of winning a gold medal in the Olympics, while the France 7s set-up understandably expressed glee when it became clear the brilliant scrum-half was interested. This is now happening and will be fascinating to follow. Even if he will need to adapt, it will be a huge shock if Dupont is anything less than scintillating in 7s.
Toulouse and the France 15s team will suffer in their support for Dupont. It remains to be publicly clarified exactly what Dupont will miss over the coming season, but both of his regular teams will be missing him at key stages as he ensures he gets up to speed in 7s ahead of the Olympics. He will need to be in camp and competition with the 7s in order to find his rhythm.
Indeed, there are a growing number of reports in the French sports media that Dupont will miss some or possibly even all of the 2024 Six Nations, which gets underway in 11 weeks’ time with Ireland’s visit to take on France in Marseille on Friday 2 February. It would be an obvious boost to the Irish chances if Dupont is missing.
The rebranded SVNS Series has legs in late January, February, and early March, so there may be scope for Dupont taking his first competitive steps in those tournaments in Perth, Vancouver and/or LA. He also needs to be managed to ensure he’s firing for the Olympics in July.
It’s unclear whether Toulouse will be sans Dupont for the knock-out stages of the Top 14, with the final set for 29 June, and possibly also the Champions Cup, which concludes on 25 May. Negotiations and discussions around all of this are seemingly still ongoing.
Dupont is the captain and talisman of both teams, so they will be diminished by his absence whenever that is.
French sport is a big winner though. Dupont getting a proper build-up with the France 7s hugely increases their chances of success in the Olympics.
Excitingly, French rugby newspaper Midi Olympique has reported that his fellow France 15s internationals Arthur Vincent and Sekou Macalou will also be integrated into the 7s squad, while the spectacularly good France wing Damien Penaud is said to be keen as well. Precocious 20-year-old Louis Bielle-Biarrey is another who could switch.
Again, this might damage Fabien Galthié’s France 15s team, but it would make the Olympic 7s even more interesting.
They might have missed out on World Cup glory last month, but Dupont and France are determined to soften that blow with Olympic gold next year.
