“The second half against Australia was the culmination of all the hard work put in by the players,” he told irbu21.com from the team’s hotel on the outskirts of Clermont Ferrand. “I think the players realised that they can achieve their dream of winning this tournament.”
Over 13,000 fans will pack out the Parc Marcel Michelin on Sunday afternoon, and Ntamack is expecting the same level of support as against Australia at the semi final stage. “I think the players feed off the support and the noise created by the crowd. The fans in Auvergne are fantastic and they really get behind the players.”
France and South Africa have already met once in the tournament – a pool match at a wet Issoire which ended with a 14-10 win to South Africa. The game was as close as the scoreline suggests, with the home team pounding unsuccessfully against a young Springbok defence for the last 15 minutes of the game.
“We created a number of opportunities and were in the match all the way,” says Ntamack. “We may have committed a few small errors, but the final is another kettle of fish. South Africa will be out to defend their title and we’re expecting it to be really tough.”
For now, the emphasis for the players is to relax and recuperate. But the focus will soon turn to the serious business of winning a match on Sunday, which could see France crowned as the first-ever northern hemisphere winners of the IRB Under 21 World Championship crown.