France head coach Fabien Galthie said on Saturday his side “are on the right path” for next year’s Rugby World Cup after edging Webb Ellis trophy holders South Africa 30-26 in Marseille.

Both teams had players sent off with the Springboks’ 2019 World Rugby Player of the year Pieter-Steph du Toit shown a red card inside the first quarter of an hour before last year’s award winner Antoine Dupont suffered the same fate after the break for the home side.

Les Bleus, the tournament’s hosts, have now beaten all of the top 10 ranked nations since Galthie took over after the 2019 World Cup.

“We had a powerful experience tonight and we won. We wanted to win in whatever way possible,” Galthie told France Televisions.

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