The same 23 players who were involved as France avoided an RBS 6 Nations

"whitewash" by drawing with Ireland last weekend have earned the right to remain on duty against Scotland on Saturday. However, Philippe Saint-Andre, their head coach, has been unable to resist some tinkering.

He has made three changes to his side, at least one of which appears to have surprised the visitors to Paris since Grant Gilchrist, Scotland's debutant lock, had indicated that he expected to be up against Yoann Maestri and Christophe Samson. Instead Saint-Andre has set up a like-for-like contest in giving Sebastien Vahaamahina, younger than Gilchrist at 21, his first start.

In terms of international experience the Frenchman has a marginal advantage since, like Gilchrist, he had his first taste of Test action in the autumn but, unlike the Scot, who watched helplessly as his side lost to Tonga, Vahaamahina came off the bench to win a first cap in the comprehensive defeat of Australia, before earning a second in Dublin.

Gilchrist has got the better of Maestri before – as part of the Edinburgh team that defeated Toulouse in last year's Heineken Cup quarter-final – while he should be able to find out all he needs to about Vahaamahina from Al Strokosch, a clubmate of the Frenchman's at Perpignan. What confronts the Scottish debutant, then, looks rather less intimidating than it might have been.

The same may not pertain to the midfield, where Matt Scott and Sean Lamont must deal with the bovine Mathieu Bastareaud, with Florian Fritz dropping to the bench. The 24-year-old Toulon centre's latest recall may have been partly influenced by the fact that his only two Test tries to date were scored at Murrayfield in 2010, kicking off what was to be a grand slam campaign.

The other change is in the back row as Antonie Claassen, the 28-year-old son of a Springbok captain and a late arrival on the scene, makes his first Test start for France, having won his only previous caps as a replacement against both England and Ireland.