France lock Pascal Papé described receiving a first recall to the national team since getting injured in this year’s RBS 6 Nations as a great honour.
The 32-year-old lock, capped 46 times for his country, picked up a back injury while captaining his side in their 23-18 loss to Italy in the opening match of the 2013 Six Nations.
The complaint forced him to watch on from the sidelines for the remainder of the games as Les Bleus recorded their worst-ever finish to a Six Nations campaign, finishing bottom with just one win.
He was also ruled out their summer tour to New Zealand with a return to club side Stade Francais only coming at the start of this season.
But back to fitness, and recalled to squad ahead of their autumn internationals, Papé admitted regaining his place had been a constant motivation for him.
“It’s always a pleasure to be recalled to the French team, even at my age,” he said. “Perhaps more so than usual this time because the last time I was with the team, it ended on a bad note with the injury at the start of the tournament.
“It was very frustrating. So to rejoin six months after is a big honour for me.
“During my recovery my main priority was obviously to rediscover my form and my place with Stade Francais but the French national team was always at the back of my mind.
“I always wanted to regain a place on the French team, it was something that kept me going when times were tough.”
