Lucu had deputised for Antoine Dupont at the World CupFabien Galthié pairs No 9 with Matthieu Jalibert at 10
Maxime Lucu has been named at scrum-half for France’s much-anticipated Six Nations opener against fellow heavyweights Ireland as Antoine Dupont is skipping the championship to prepare for the Olympics with the Rugby Sevens.
Les Bleus and Ireland will play in Marseille on Friday for their first Test since both were knocked out by South Africa and New Zealand respectively in the World Cup quarter-finals last year. The championship opener is being widely billed as the final that should have been.