Yoram Moefana is set to make his first Guinness Six Nations start after being named in France’s team to take on Ireland in Paris on Saturday.
The Bordeaux-Bègles centre comes in for the injured Jonathan Danty in one of two changes made by Fabien Galthié for the clash at the Stade de France.
The other change sees François Cros replace Dylan Cretin in the back row while among the replacements, Thibaud Flament comes in as France go for a 6-2 bench split.
It means that Cameron Woki will continue in the second row, alongside Paul Willemse, with Cros joined by Anthony Jelonch and Grégory Alldritt in the back row.
Up front, Cyril Baille, Julien Marchand and Uini Atonio will make up the front row, while Antoine Dupont captains the side from scrum-half alongside Romain Ntamack.
Moefana links up with Gaël Fickou in the centres, with the back three made up of Damian Penaud, Gabin Villière and Melvyn Jaminet.
And Galthié explained that he had full faith in Moefana, with the France coach giving him the nod ahead of the more experienced Virimi Vakatawa.
He said: “We have been following since we have been here. He was with the France Under-20s. He went to play for Bordeaux and when we had to change the squads for the Autumn Nations Cup in November 2020, we didn’t hesitate.
“He stood out despite his young age. When he played, he was good. We couldn’t take him on the tour of Australia because he was injured. This year he has been playing well for his club, he has experience with us and some selections. He is ready physically and psychologically. He has a team around him to help him to fulfil his potential and talent. And he has lots of it.”
France team to face Ireland:
France: 15. Melvyn Jaminet, 14. Damian Penaud, 13. Gaël Fickou, 12. Yoram Moefana, 11. Gabin Villière, 10. Romain Ntamack. 9. Antoine Dupont, 1. Cyril Baille, 2. Julien Marchand, 3. Uini Atonio, 4. Cameron Woki, 5. Paul Willemse, 6. François Cros, 7. Anthony Jelonch, 8. Grégory Alldritt.
Replacements: 16. Peato Mauvaka, 17. Jean-Baptiste Gros, 18. Demba Bamba, 19. Romain Taofifenua, 20. Thibaud Flament, 21. François Cros, 22. Maxime Lucu, 23. Thomas Ramos.
