If France coach Marc Lièvremont hates the English, The Independent's James Lawton suggests is its because he fears humiliation for France in World Cup year.
"A number of hard questions will be asked at Twickenham this evening, not least at the front of the scrum, but let's start at the beginning.
"Who are these English upon whom French coach Marc Lièvremont heaps the old and bilious charge that they have created a common front of hatred, stretching from Waterford to Waitangi? They are, of course, a mongrel nation – one with the habit down the centuries of turning quite ferocious when sufficiently roused. This might well have been the underlying concern exercising Lièvremont this week.
"Pressure builds sharply in the rugby parish in a World Cup year and you don't have to be the deepest student of the game to know that recent history has come to rest firmly on the side of the English and their ability to rise up, even in the most parlous circumstances, and have a truly serious go at winning the tournament."
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