'Special day' for Howley's heroes (From Andover Advertiser)
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'Special day' for Howley's heroes
7:53am Sunday 10th February 2013 in National Sport News © Press Association 2013
Rob Howley was a happy man after Wales' win over France
Rob Howley described Wales' RBS 6 Nations victory over France in Paris on Saturday as "a pretty special day" for his team.
Wales' 16-6 triumph was their first at Stade de France since 2005 and biggest in the French capital for 38 years.
"It is a pretty special day for the Wales team," interim head coach Howley said.
"We kept on saying we hadn't become a bad team overnight. Fine margins are the difference in Test match rugby.
"The players showed character and our defence put France under a lot of pressure. The players deserve all the accolades."
Wing George North's 73rd-minute try sealed the deal for Wales, while full-back Leigh Halfpenny kicked three penalties and a conversion to end a run of eight successive defeats.
France failed to score a try against Wales for the third successive game - a barren run that includes the 2011 World Cup semi-final in New Zealand - as they were restricted to two Frederic Michalak penalties.
"It was a huge defensive effort - we defended particularly well," Howley added. "We were effective in terms of putting pressure on the ball, and our defence was absolutely outstanding."
