Six Nations: Ireland 27 France 42
France put Ireland to the sword and utterly obliterated hopes of a Grand Slam, also ending any realistic designs on a historic three-peat next weekend. What’s more, France did so despite losing their talisman early in the piece, so shredding any notion that they might be overly dependent on Antoine Dupont.
Despite one of their battery of backrowers also playing much of the second half in midfield, France’s 7-1 split reaped a rich dividend as their amalgam of power and pace shredded Ireland in the third quarter. Ireland just do not have finishers like the jet-heeled Louis Bielle-Biarrey and Damian Penaud.
Their defence also smashed Ireland in the collisions, and the injection of the Bomb Squad did not dilute this in any way. Their backrow were immense, particularly Paul Boudehent.
It might have been a different game if Ireland had scored early but the ferocious tempo set by Ireland as they dominated possession and territory in the opening quarter crucially went unrewarded. Unlike the game two years ago, this high tempo did not reap some dues later on, even though the home side led 13-8 early in the second half.
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But a stunning 24-point salvo in 12 minutes by France turned the game on its head and with it the crowd’s soundtrack, as Les Bleus ultimately scored 34 unanswered points before a couple of late consolation scores brought a modicum of respectability to the scoreline.
However, as much as this was monumental day for France, it was a very sobering one for a comparatively blunt Ireland, who looked comparatively short of pace and power.
The build-up was given an additional, unwanted twist when James Lowe pulled up after what seemed an innocuous drill in the warm-up and was withdrawn, to be replaced by Calvin Nash. This felt like a significant blow, and was relayed to the paying customers just after the game started.
As chants of ‘Allez Les Bleus’ filled the brief lulls from the prematch music, over 40 minutes later the 8-6 scoreline in France’s favour didn’t come close to reflecting the unrelenting intensity or eventfulness of the exchanges.
Ireland dominated the first quarter, but four visits to the French 22, including a couple of penalties to the corner and multiphase attacks off ensuing launch plays met a ferocious blue wall. Dan Sheehan was tackled just short of the line by Francois Cros and then again after his tap penalty, before Caelan Doris was held up over the line superbly by a combination of Peato Mauvaka and Grégory Alldritt.
Sam Prendergast hit the upright with a 40-metre penalty and this seemed to be briefly compounded for Ireland when France repelled a 13-phase attack with increasing vigour and Penaud had Dupont in support from an ensuing turnover. But replays showed that Dupont had knocked the ball forward in deflecting Hugo Keenan’s pass to Jamie Osborne.
Initially, Ireland put together some strong defensive sets featuring a couple of superb turnovers by Doris, but France struck with their first launch play in the French 22. It emanated from Dupont and Romain Ntamack countering from Osborne’s long kick by recognising space on the edge before Ramos linked with the fleet-footed Bielle-Biarrey to kick ahead.
He was slightly tugged by Prendergast, but far more blatant and ill-advised was Joe McCarthy tugging Ramos by the back of his collar. The yellow card was inevitable and it almost felt like the try was too as the French catch-and-drive rumbled forward before Dupont peeled blind to put Bielle-Biarrey over in the corner.
As La Marseillaise echoed around the stadium, the only consolation for Ireland was that Ramos missed the touchline conversion. French confidence rose, evidenced by Bielle-Biarrey’s outrageous and audacious kick-pass across his own goal line to Penaud. Ireland held out the remainder of McCarthy’s sinbinning, during which Dupont was helped off to be replaced by Maxime Lucu.
This was the consequence of Sheehan turning a loose lineout into go-forward ball with a big carry, Dupont tackling him and then going down when Tadhg Beirne made a clearout. It looked legal, and didn’t seem malicious at all, although there might have been a slight side entry, and both Dupont and Alldritt made their complaints known to referee Angus Gardner.
Prendergast did open Ireland’s account with a penalty but this was immediately cancelled out by a very soft penalty, supposedly against Andrew Porter, seemingly given by Matthew Carley for blocking Penaud’s chase of the ensuing restart, for Ramos to make it 8-6.
Penaud needlessly took a quick throw which Ramos kicked away and then dallied near his own line and Prendergast ended the first half with a monstrous penalty from just inside halfway with the last kick of the half.
On the resumption, Ireland struck. Prendergast tapped a penalty against Jean-Baptiste Gros for a lazy run and Sheehan hit Beirne for the pack to set up a quick maul which inched forward before the hooker arrowed over by the corner flag through Lucu.
Championship minutes and all that. When Prendergast landed the touchline conversion for a 13-8 lead Ireland seemed well set but the French response was ominously swift and imposing, their close-in power game culminating in Gros offloading inventively in traffic for Lucu, who did the same for Boudehent to score.
Gardner curiously did not interpret Thibaud Flament’s clear-out beyond the ball on O’Mahony to be illegal while Nash was also binned for a head-on-head hit on Pierre-Louis Barassi. And how France, to the delight of their more vociferous contingent of about 10,000 colourfully clad supporters, made hay.
The introduction of five of their Bomb Squad then had an immediate impact as France counter-rucked for turnover ball and Lucu fed Penaud, in his element in such circumstances. He weaved untouched deep into Ireland’s defence before floating a long pass to Bielle-Biarrey. With most mortals, there’d have been nothing on, but the jet-heeled winger set off, grubbered infield into the in-goal area and sped past covering defenders to win the touchdown just before the end-goal line.
That felt like pretty much game over and after a Ramos penalty that was certainly the case when another power play culminated in Oscar Jegou, the openside ostensibly playing in midfield, plunging over.
Ramos converted and added a penalty before Ireland’s noses were rubbed in the grass when they created extra numbers but Prendergast’s short pass intended for Robbie Henshaw for a walk-in was picked off by Ramos and he gave Penaud a run-in from halfway to equal Serge Blanco’s all-time French record of 38 tries.
That 14-point turnaround gave the scoreline a distorted look, but Ireland at least kept their heads up and kept going.
First Cian Healy rolled back the years to take a pass from the other centurion bidding farewell and plough through two defenders. Then Prendergast and Jack Crowley combined for Jack Conan to touchdown in the game’s final play.
But it was the French fans who continued to sing loudest, as they had done all day, and also, despite presentations to the three centurions, to linger longer. This was their day. And how.
SCORING SEQUENCE – 21 mins: Bielle-Biarrey try, 0-5; 35: Prendergast pen, 3-5; 36: Ramos pen, 3-8; 40+3: Prendergast pen, 6-8 (half-time 6-8); 43: Sheehan try, Prendergast con, 13-8; 47: Boudehent try, Ramons con, 13-15; 49: Bielle-Biarrey try, Ramos con, 13-22; 56: Ramos pen, 13-25; 59: Jegou try, Ramos con, 13-32; 68: Ramos pen, 13-35; 74: Penaud, Ramos con, 13-42; 77: Healy try, Prendergast con, 20-42; 80: Conan try, Prendergast con, 27-42.
IRELAND: Hugo Keenan (Leinster); Jamie Osborne (Leinster), Robbie Henshaw (Leinster), Bundee Aki (Connacht), Calvin Nash (Munster); Sam Prendergast (Leinster), Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster); Andrew Porter (Leinster), Dan Sheehan (Leinster), Finlay Bealham (Connacht); Joe McCarthy (Leinster), Tadhg Beirne (Munster); Peter O’Mahony (Munster), Josh van der Flier (Leinster), Caelan Doris (Leinster, capt).
Replacements: Jack Conan (Leinster) for O’Mahony, Ryan Baird (Leinster) for Van der Flier (both 48 mins); Jack Crowley (Munster) for Aki (55); James Ryan (Leinster) for McCarthy (57); Thomas Clarkson (Leinster) for Bealham (59); Van der Flier for Doris (65-75); Cian Healy (Leinster) for Porter, Rob Herring (Ulster) for Sheehan, Conor Murray (Munster) for Gibson-Park (all 68).
Yellow cards: McCarthy (20 mins), Nash (47).
FRANCE: Thomas Ramos (Toulouse); Damien Penaud (Bordeaux-Bègles), Pierre-Louis Barassi (Toulouse), Yoram Moefana (Bordeaux-Bègles), Louis Bielle-Biarrey (Bordeaux-Bègles); Romain Ntamack (Toulouse), Antoine Dupont (Toulouse, capt); Jean-Baptiste Gros (Toulon), Peato Mauvaka (Toulouse), Uini Atonio (La Rochelle); Thibaud Flament (Toulouse), Mickaël Guillard; François Cros (Toulouse), Paul Boudehent (La Rochelle), Grégory Alldritt (La Rochelle).
Replacements: Maxime Lucu (Bordeaux-Bègles) for Dupont (29 mins); Oscar Jegou (La Rochelle) for Barassi (46); Julien Marchand (Toulouse) for Mauvaka, Cyril Baille (Toulouse) for Gros, Emmanuel Meafou (Toulouse) for Guillard, Dorian Aldegheri (Toulouse) for Atonio, Anthony Jelonch (Toulouse) for Alldritt (all 48); Hugo Auradou (Pau) for Flament (75).
Yellow card: Cros (73).
Referee: Angus Gardner (Australia).
