Trent Robinson and Laurent Frayssinous to lead France in World Cup

Frayssinous, also 43, who succeeded Robinson in the Dragons hot seat in 2013, becomes the new French head coach, taking over on a full-time basis from Aurelien Cologni, who has been sacked after five years in the post.

Frayssinous, who played internationally for France, was sacked by the Dragons in 2017 after a poor run of form and subsequently appointed as coach of Ottawa Aces but found himself without a job when the newly-formed Canadian club deferred its entry into League 1 until 2022.

The French Federation has also appointed another former international, David Collado, as manager.

The shake-up follows the election of a new president in Luc Lacoste, who admits the appointments represent a bold move.

Lacoste said: “Certain mistakes from the past have have required us to make some hard choices. We want them to be daring and nevertheless realistic.

“The Club France must be the flagship of our sport and our federation. Starting from today, it goes into a decisive period, with the sole objective to bring honour to our colours during the next World Cup in England.”

Lacoste is especially delighted with the commitment shown by Robinson, a fluent French speaker who played for and coached Toulouse before moving to Perpignan and is married to a French woman.

Lacoste said: “His experience at a very high level should allow the French team to grow quickly and soon find themselves in the top five of the world elite. His involvement is a credit to the French team and its ambitions.”