This year's Six Nations will officially kick off on February 6 but for France things really start on January 20 when coach Marc Lièvremont names his squad for the Championship. But THE question on every fan's lips is how many times will his line-up change during the Championship?

Will the French coach stick with the same group for the whole Championship in order to build some team momentum? Or will he want to see as many players as possible one last time, in order to keep everyone on their toes ahead of the next RWC that kicks off in just 20 months time?

Perpignan star Maxime Mermoz will miss the first game against Scotland - who will replace him? Will the Catalan centre return to the side for the remainder of the battle? Who will get the nod at scrum-half in the wake of six month ban handed down to Stade Français No.9 Julien Dupuy? Perhaps Morgan Parra - but he is not guaranteed a start with Clermont. Or maybe Frédéric Michalak, the talented but erratic utility back from Toulouse?

The fans have had enough of experimentation - they want to see France go and win the title and not just another talent scouting campaign. France will play at home against Ireland, Grand Slam winner last year, and England, who they haven't beaten at home since 2006. Since the game turned professional, every French coach has won at least one Grand Slam - Jean-Claude Skréla alone in 1997, and with Pierre Villepreux in 1998, Bernard Laporte in 2002 and 2004 - and fans want 2010 to be Lièvremont's year.

Jean Palfrey