Aaron Grandidier-Nkanang scored two tries on his France debut as Les Bleus came from behind to beat Australia 42-26 in the second round of the Nations Championship at Lang Park in Brisbane on Saturday (11 July).
The London-born wing, who won gold with France’s rugby sevens team at the Olympic Games Paris 2024, finished superbly in the corner in the first half before grounding Matthieu Jalibert’s kick early in the second.
Australia led 21-12 at half-time after flanker Fraser McReight crossed twice, while France’s Emmanuel Meafou, who scored the game’s opening try, sat in the sin-bin for a high tackle. Replacement hooker Brandon Paenga-Amosa also touched down for the hosts.
France took control after the break, scoring 30 points without reply through Grandidier-Nkanang, Romain Ntamack, Florian Verhaeghe and Theo Attissogbe. Jeremy Williams’ late try earned Australia a bonus point but couldn’t prevent a sixth successive defeat.
The result gave France, who lost to New Zealand last week, a first win in Brisbane since 1972 and a fourth straight victory over Australia. They face Japan in Tokyo next, while the Wallabies meet Italy in Joe Schmidt’s final game in charge before Les Kiss takes over.