Drawing up a 32-strong list for a World Cup means both choosing and giving up. For France women’s co-head coaches David Ortiz and Gaëlle Mignot, the job is done. On Saturday, at the CNR in Marcoussis, they unveiled the squad selected for world rugby’s major event, which will run from 22 August to 27 September in England.

In the scrum-half column, only two names appear. That of Toulouse’s Pauline Bourdon, an undisputed leader in this France side, and Romagnat’s Alexandra Chambon. Two is not many already in such a specialised position, one that demands specific skills and means two number 9s are needed on every team sheet (a starter and a replacement). But that is not all. Pauline Bourdon has to serve a two-match suspension, handed down after comments deemed strident about the officiating following the Élite 1 final between Stade Toulousain and Stade Bordelais.

In practice, the former Bayonne player will therefore be unable to play in Saturday’s fearsome test match in Mont-de-Marsan against England, nor in France’s opening World Cup pool game on 23 August against Italy at Sandy Park in Exeter (21:15). Alexandra Chambon will therefore start both matches, with back-up on the bench from a player who normally operates in a position other than scrum-half.

“We’re aware that we could potentially be exposed over the next two matches“

A bold, even risky gamble, but one the staff fully own. “It’s a choice that was made looking beyond these two matches, David Ortiz explained on Saturday as the list was announced. We organised our squad with 19 forwards and 13 backs, which meant making judgement calls in certain positions. We’re fortunate today to have versatility that allows us to cover the position beyond Pauline and Alexandra. We’re aware that we could potentially be exposed over the next two matches, but that versatility behind will allow us to balance our lines.”

The France staff insist this option was not considered on a whim and has been worked on throughout their tenure. “We’ve worked on it a lot over the past three years, on adaptability. We didn’t want to lock players into a single position. Today, we can see in training that we can move certain lines around without it affecting our game.”

Saturday’s “Crunch” against an England side already looking razor-sharp – as shown by the flood of points, 97-7, they put on Spain – will be a real litmus test. Fingers crossed to avoid the worst-case scenario, namely an early injury to Alexandra Chambon that would leave France seriously vulnerable against such opposition, two weeks before the start of the World Cup.