Antoine Dupont leads France to Olympic gold with stellar performance against Fiji

The encounter was finely poised at the interval, but Dupont came off the bench to inspire the team as they ended Fiji's incredible run at the Games.

The Fijians had never lost a match at an Olympics but they ultimately succumbed to the brilliance of the France and Toulouse playmaker.

In a raucous atmosphere in Paris, the defending champions began superbly with Selestino Ravutaumada once again impressing.

Ravutaumada has been an absolute bulldozer in this event and his powerful surge gained the ground for Joseva Talacolo to go over.

That setback could have rocked the hosts but, instead of being cowed by the crowd, they were inspired and brilliant work from Andy Timo allowed Jefferson-Lee Joseph to touch down.

The teams were tied 7-7 at the break but France decided to bring on arguably the best rugby player in the world and that proved to be the difference.

Dupont has started on the bench in the majority of matches, but that tactic has paid dividends and it did so once again in the final.

Immediately from the restart, the 27-year-old got his hands on the ball, sprinted down the left-hand side, stepped past the defender and found Aaron Grandidier Nkanang to score.

That gave the hosts the lead and it was one they would not relinquish as Dupont continued to dominate. The brilliant playmaker crossed the whitewash twice, including one in the final minute as the French secured the gold medal.

After the disappointment of last year's Rugby World Cup, where they lost in the quarter-finals to the Springboks, this was the ideal tonic for both France and their main man.

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