By Megan Jenkins
Wales were on the wrong end of a Six Nations thrashing by France, a second half masterclass by the visitors their undoing after a promising start.
The hosts took the lead at Cardiff Arms Park when France’s Yllana Brosseau was sent to the sin bin in the 13th minuite.
Wales were awarded a penalty try a minute later, giving them a 7–0 lead and possession firmly in their favour.
It got worse for France as Pauline Bourdon Sansus followed Brosseau to the bin two minutes later, reducing the visitors to 13 players.
But France showed resilience.
In the 21st minute, Madoussou Fall powered over to get France on the scoreboard, and Carla Arbez added the conversion to level the match at 7–7.
Despite their numerical disadvantage, France steadied themselves and stayed on level terms heading into the break.
The second half told a very different story.
France came out with renewed intensity and precision. Just five minutes after the restart, Manae Feleu crossed the line to give the visitors the lead for the first time, with Arbez converting to make it 14–7.
From there, the visitors took complete control.
Wales’ challenge became even harder in the 52nd minute when Gwen Crabb saw a yellow card. France capitalised immediately, as Lea Murie finished clinically just a minute later to extend the lead to 19–7.
The French attack continued to flow with confidence and accuracy.
Sansus, back on the field after her earlier sin-binning, added a try in the 58th minute, with Arbez again converting.
Wales struggled to contain the relentless French tempo, and gaps began to appear across the defensive line.
The closing stages saw France run riot. Anais Grando added two late tries, the first converted by Lina Queyroi, sealing an emphatic scoreline that did not reflect the competitiveness of the opening half.
While Wales showed early promise and discipline to exploit France’s indiscipline, they were ultimately overwhelmed by a clinical and dominant second-half performance.