Jalibert in box seat to replace Ntamack

The news broke on Monday, the day after his jaw. France fly-half and World Rugby’s Breakthrough Men’s Player of the Year for 2019 Romain Ntamack needed an operation on a double fracture sustained during Toulouse’s Christmas weekend win over Bordeaux.

- JAMES HARRINGTON

He will be out for six to eight weeks. Assuming the Six Nations goes ahead as scheduled and currently formatted, which is far from guaranteed given the current health and lockdown situations across competing countries, he will miss the tournament opener against Italy in Rome on February 6 and in all likelihood the trip to Dublin set to follow.

There’s no doubt the news is an early difficult-second-year blow for Fabien Galthie, who had more than his fair share of slices of selection good fortune in the bad luck year that was 2020. The spine of his side – Marchand-Alldritt-Dupont-Ntamack-Bouthier – stayed fit throughout the extended 2020 Six Nations. Just. Then Bouthier picked up an injury training for the Autumn Nations Cup campaign, and was somewhat muted on his out-of-position return to club action.

Ntamack was injured for the originally scheduled Six Nations match against Ireland, but fit and ready to go after a six-month coronavirus break for the rearranged game; meanwhile, Mohamed Haouas would have been banned for that match, too, had it gone ahead as scheduled, but was available to play when it finally kicked off.

And the cancellation of the Autumn Nations Cup game against Fiji meant Galthie kept his first-choice squad together for one additional week.

Make no mistake, however, losing Ntamack for at least one and more likely two games is a blow, but it’s not as if it’s him or bust in that position.