Or it could be the night when Wales make it five wins in a row over France and get set for an epic showdown with England at Twickenham Stadium in round four. There is so much at stake – the atmosphere will be electric!
It promises to be the biggest game of the championship to date and the Principality Stadium will be filled to over-flowing for another spectacular occasion under the lights and closed roof. Here is everything you need to know ahead of the game.
STATS & FACTS
- Wales are unbeaten in their last six RBS 6 Nations encounters since their home defeat to England in round 1 last year.
- Wales have not been defeated in a round 3 fixture since France visited Cardiff on a Friday night in 2010.
- Warren Gatland’s side have won their last four matches at the Principality Stadium since Ireland beat them in a World Cup warm up match in August.
- France have begun their 2016 RBS 6 Nations campaign with a pair of victories but have not won their opening three games in a season since they last took a Grand Slam in 2010.
- France’s only defeat in their last four RBS 6 Nations encounters was to England at Twickenham in round 5 last year.
- Wales have won their last four clashes with France since the RWC 2011 semi-final in Auckland, which France won 9-8.
- The only try that France have scored against Wales in the last 421 minutes of rugby came when Brice Dulin scored late in last year’s encounter in Paris.
- France have lost on their last four visits to the Principality Stadium, two of those in RWC 2015, to Ireland and New Zealand.
ON THE PITCH
- George North had made more metres (177) and beaten more defenders (14) than any other player in this season’s RBS 6 Nations.
- Taulupe Faletau has made the most tackles (33) without missing one.
- The French team have had the most carries (224) and made the most metres (795).
- France have achieved twice as many offloads as any other country in 2016.
THE TEAMS
- Warren Gatland made three changes to the side that beat Scotland. Alex Cuthbert replaces his Cardiff Blues team mate Tom James on the wing, Dan Lydiate takes over from Ospreys colleague Justin Tipuric in the back row and Bradley Davies replaces the injured Luke Charteris in the second row.
- Jake Ball comes onto the replacements bench to replace Davies.
- The Wales team has 660 test caps between them; the bench has a further 292 caps. The average age of the walk-on team is 26.6 years; the average on the bench is 27.5
- Guy Noves made five changes to his side following their second successive win of the championship against Ireland. Three of the changes are in the pack when Rabah Slimani comes in at loose head prop, Paul Jedrasiak packs down in the second row and Antoine Burban plays for the first time since 2014 in the back row.
- The Stade Francais Paris wing Djibril Camara makes his debut on the wing, Maxime Machenaud swaps places with Sebastien Bezy at scrum half as he moves up from the bench and the uncapped La Rochelle prop Vincent Pelo join Francois Trinh-Duc and Gael Fickou on the bench.
- The French team has 243 test caps between them; the bench has a further 132 caps. The average age of the walk-on team is 26.6 years; the average on the bench is 25.6
HISTORY
- Wales are seeking to make it five wins in a row over France, something they haven’t achieved since the fifties, when they won six in a row between 1952-1957.
- Only three of the French side have beaten Wales – the skipper Guilhem Guirado, Maxime Medard and Francois Trinh-Duc.
- Gethin Jenkins is bidding to join Sir Gareth Edwards and JPR Williams with seven victories over the French. Edwards and Williams also had two draws. It will be Jenkins’ 14th appearance against France if he comes off the bench.
- The new French coach Guy Noves made his Five Nations debut in Cardiff in 1978 when Wales won the Grand Slam shoot-out. Wales won 16-7.
