Jerome Thion wants to see the French pack prove a point by producing a dominant display against Italy.
France lock determined to silence critics in Paris
Jerome Thion wants to see the French pack prove a point by producing a dominant display against Italy in Sundays RBS Six Nations clash.
France welcome Italy to Paris on the back of a barrage of abuse from the media after their scrum failed to compete with Scotland, Ireland and England in the first three matches of the tournament.
With the Italians notoriously strong scrummagers, Les Bleus are being tipped to struggle in that department again this weekend.
However, Thion is determined to compete and outmuscle the Azzurri pack when he makes his return to the France starting line-up for the first time since the World Cup defeat to Argentina last October.
"We know that the Italian pack would love to show its strength against us,"
he said.
"But on our side, we want to prove to everybody that what has been said and
written about the French scrum is wrong.
Overlooked
"We have worked enormously hard in this department this week. And we want to see our pack performing again."
The 30-year-old was one of former France head coach Bernard Laporte's key players, however a below-par start to Marc Lievremont's reign saw him overlooked for the first two matches against Scotland and Ireland.
The Biarritz forward was recalled to the bench in the defeat to England a fortnight ago, and revealed he doesn't have any complaints at not being a regular member of Lievremont's starting XV.
"I had some difficulties upon returning after the World Cup," said Thion
"With Biarritz, the start to the season was difficult and my own personal
displays were not as good as people would have hoped.
"It was logical that I was not called up. But since then, I have put in the
necessary effort to get back into the squad."
