20 Oct 2011

France determined to show no fear

9:22 pm on 20 October 2011

France must face the All Blacks without fear and produce their best performance of the tournament if they are to have any hope of an upset in Sunday's Rugby World Cup final, lock Pascal Pape says.

France lost to New Zealand and Tonga in the pool phase of the tournament and struggled to beat a 14-man Welsh side 9-8 in the semi-finals last weekend.

But the French have a history of beating the All Blacks in the World Cup and were the last team to beat the hosts at Eden Park in Auckland in 1994.

"We have not had a great tournament but we are in the final," Pape said on Thursday. "When you play sport, the focus is always on the title.

"This is the World Cup final and if there is any fear, we might as well not bother turning up. The motivation is extreme. We can't fear this match. We know the French are behind us despite everything."

Pape, 31, made his international debut in 2004 and was in the French side that beat the All Blacks in Dunedin in 2009, Reuters reports.

"The bar is very high and, if we do not follow through, there will be problems. It is up to us to do a lot better. We have to play better than the rugby we played against them in the pool stage."

Flanker Julien Bonnaire, 33, said the All Blacks had a complete team and France would need to sustain pressure on them for the full 80 minutes.

"They are all great players - and not just the back row - the team as a whole.

"They are tough in terms of impact and they have solid defence. They have it all and good for them. They will be everywhere on the pitch and we have nothing to lose.

Bonnaire will gain his 70th cap on Sunday night and said his side must not be intimidated by taking on the All Blacks in front of a partisan crowd of 60,000.

"We should not be afraid of winning. We have great qualities ourselves. We can't give up at all until the last minute."