Ireland's hopes of winning a third Six Nations title in a row are all but gone after Saturday's 10-9 defeat to France in Paris, and it is not just the championship table which makes for miserable reading for Joe Schmidt.

Despite being edged out narrowly by the French and drawing with Wales, statistically Ireland haven’t been too hot in the competition after the opening two games.

The most damning number for Ireland is tries scored. Indeed, the defending champions have managed just one score in 160 minutes, Connor Murray crossing in the first half against Wales in Dublin, meaning Ireland have gone three halves without crossing the whitewash.

For a bit of context, England have run in seven tries, while even Italy have managed two in their fixtures against England and France.

Ireland have garnered a lot of criticism for their conservative style of play, and again, the statistics back this up. Joe Schmidt’s side have only completed three offloads so far, as opposed to France’s 25, a number which is hardly an endorsement for their brand of rugby.

Ireland have also gained the fewest metres out of any side in the competition, but tellingly they have racked up the second highest amount of carries. This highlights how a lot of Ireland’s attacking plan has centred around the likes of CJ Stander trying to batter their way over the gainline.

And it appears the malaise has also spread to Ireland’s defence, with 31 missed tackles the joint-highest in the tournament alongside the Azzurri.

But the one number that really matters is the one point out of four Ireland have collected so far.