It used to be the case that France were the most deadly counter-attackers in the world but they have been surpassed by the All Blacks. If you look at the statistics in their games they often do not have the majority of possession. This is because they also kick the ball far more often than people realise; the key being that their kicking game is very good and allied to a highly effective chasing game. They use it to play deep in their opponents’ territory and to generate significant pressure and mistakes.