Ireland v France

Ireland

15. Hugo Keenan (Leinster/UCD) 7 caps

14. Keith Earls (Munster/Young Munster) 89 caps
13. Garry Ringrose (Leinster/UCD) 31 caps
12. Robbie Henshaw (Leinster/Buccaneers) 48 caps
11. James Lowe (Leinster) 3 caps
10. Billy Burns (Ulster) 4 caps
9. Jamison Gibson Park (Leinster) 6 caps
1. Cian Healy (Leinster/Clontarf) 105 caps

2. Rob Herring (Ulster/Ballynahinch) 17 caps
3. Andrew Porter (Leinster/UCD) 33 caps
4. Tadhg Beirne (Munster/Lansdowne) 18 caps
5. Iain Henderson (Ulster/Academy) 59 caps CAPTAIN
6. Rhys Ruddock (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 26 caps
7. Josh van der Flier (Leinster/UCD) 29 caps
8. CJ Stander (Munster/Shannon) 47 caps
Replacements

16. Ronan Kelleher (Leinster/Lansdowne) 7 caps

17. Ed Byrne (Leinster/UCD) 3 caps
18. Tadhg Furlong (Leinster/Clontarf) 45 caps
19. Ultan Dillane (Connacht/Corinthians) 17 caps
20. Will Connors (Leinster/UCD) 6 caps
21. Craig Casey (Munster/Shannon) uncapped
22. Ross Byrne (Leinster/UCD) 11 caps
23. Jordan Larmour (Leinster/St Mary’s College) 25 caps


France

15. Brice Dulin
14. Damien Penaud
13. Arthur Vincent
12. Gael Fickou
11. Gabin Villiere
10. Matthieu Jalibert
9. Antoine Dupont

1. Cyril Baille
2. Julien Marchand
3. Mohamed Haouas
4. Bernard Le Roux
5. Paul Willemse
6. Anthony Jelonch
7. Charles Ollivon
8. Grégory Alldritt

Replacements: Pierre Bourgarit, Hassane Kolingar, Uini Atonio, Romain Taofifénua, Dylan Cretin, Baptiste Serin, Anthony Bouthier, Teddy Thomas

Sexton, Murray, Ryan, POM, Kilcoyne are missing. Most are injured.


Never fear though, the stars are lining up. Billy Burns' initials are the same as Beauden Barratt's.

France missing a few as well. Ntamack, Vakatawa, Ramos, Cros, a couple of props were changed over though that may have been something else.

Speaks to the depth of both that neither squad looks particularly hamstrung.

France have to be favourites for this based on form. Ireland have a fair shot though as they can match France in the pack and maybe a different 10 to Sexton can get Henshaw - Ringrose going. Looking forward to a good contest...hopefully not too much of an arm wrestle

Tie of the round for me.

France do look like they are the class act now England have flatlined. But Ireland were a solid match for Wales inspite of being a man down. If they sort out their "redzone" possession to tries conversion rate then France will have to be well on it to match them. Maybe home advantage not so much of thing under the current conditions but that should narrow the gap too.

Huge opportunity for the lad Burns. He looked pretty lively but will be remembered for the failure at the death in the previous game. How he bounces back from that is a great little side story to the game.

Big test for Ireland. One of the few (if any) big games I can recall Ireland have played recently without Sexton.

profitius wrote:Sexton, Murray, Ryan, POM, Kilcoyne are missing. Most are injured.


Never fear though, the stars are lining up. Billy Burns' initials are the same as Beauden Barratt's.

Burns is a good player and young so good that he has a chance to redeem himself. I reckon he will bounce back.

Earls too.

Collapse2005 wrote:

profitius wrote:Sexton, Murray, Ryan, POM, Kilcoyne are missing. Most are injured.


Never fear though, the stars are lining up. Billy Burns' initials are the same as Beauden Barratt's.

Burns is a good player and young so good that he has a chance to redeem himself. I reckon he will bounce back.

Earls too.

Earls should be finished at this level as he won't make the next world cup, not to mention the fact he's not actually very good at the minute. I never believed in preparing for a world cup this far out until what happened in that 2019 season, when almost all our top players form fell off a cliff and Schmidt was left with no option other than prey that their form somehow came back during the tournament. We really need to start becoming more ruthless in phasing players out of the squad.

You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

There's a massive bottleneck problem in Irish rugby. I believe the talent is there but most of those U20s who won the grand slam have to wait in line to get pro14 matches meanwhile the French team they beat have many players in the senior French squad and have been playing a good bit top 14 rugby. So the cycle of players making their debuts in their mid 20s will continue.


Earls was poor enough last weekend. He's been a bit off this season which is no surprise. He's in his mid thirties now which is ancient for a winger. Some players are past it but still the best we have. Sexton for example. Sexton can only last a few min and should be a sub.


Harry Byrne should be in the squad. Promote talent.

The whole system needs reviewing but the problem is provinces come first and Ireland second.

profitius wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

There's a massive bottleneck problem in Irish rugby. I believe the talent is there but most of those U20s who won the grand slam have to wait in line to get pro14 matches meanwhile the French team they beat have many players in the senior French squad and have been playing a good bit top 14 rugby. So the cycle of players making their debuts in their mid 20s will continue.


Earls was poor enough last weekend. He's been a bit off this season which is no surprise. He's in his mid thirties now which is ancient for a winger. Some players are past it but still the best we have. Sexton for example. Sexton can only last a few min and should be a sub.


Harry Byrne should be in the squad. Promote talent.

The whole system needs reviewing but the problem is provinces come first and Ireland second.

You could counter that by looking at any year in the last 10 years where France were in the doldrums despite having two fully professional leagues plus more full time pros in the federal divisions. I'm sure they've envied our system in the past. I believe the cream will always rise to the top, we simply are going through a baron spell of producing world class players. We were spoilt in the Schmidt years.

profitius wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

There's a massive bottleneck problem in Irish rugby. I believe the talent is there but most of those U20s who won the grand slam have to wait in line to get pro14 matches meanwhile the French team they beat have many players in the senior French squad and have been playing a good bit top 14 rugby. So the cycle of players making their debuts in their mid 20s will continue.


Earls was poor enough last weekend. He's been a bit off this season which is no surprise. He's in his mid thirties now which is ancient for a winger. Some players are past it but still the best we have. Sexton for example. Sexton can only last a few min and should be a sub.


Harry Byrne should be in the squad. Promote talent.

The whole system needs reviewing but the problem is provinces come first and Ireland second.

I agree completely on Sexton, the more I think of it the more Im kind of looking forward to seeing Burns get a chance on Sunday. Sexton was a great player but I wonder if our attack is so blunt because of him, basically because he is just a bit too predictable and well known so everyone knows what to expect from us now.

Not too worried about him being injury prone given he almost always plays and often takes on a lot of very physical stuff too, big tackles, clean outs etc. He also has over 100 caps which would be hard if you really were injury prone.

Burns when he came on v Wales had some nice runs and plays, hope to see more.

I sadly have to agree on Earls. I still think that when on form, there is no better finisher in the Irish game but he is not the future so Ireland should be looking further.

I would have preferred Larmour start at 15 with Keenan on Earls wing for this one but Farrell has gone for experience in Earls, even if he is not in form. A decision i disagree with.

Delighted for Craig Casey, he is a stunning 9 and is most definitely the future for Ireland.

On balance, injuries and suspension considering, this is not a bad Irish side. They should match France in the pack. The centers and back 3 defense will have to be on top for though i feel.

My heart says Ireland but my head says France by 8.

Earls has had one bad game. Scored twice in his previous game against Scotland. I agree we should be planning for 2023 but think the reaction has been fickle. Sexton has gradually lost his running game over the last few years but I'm not convinced Burns is the answer, he's a nice ball player but is he really international class? We do look in trouble there unless Carbery can make a comeback, I'd prefer Carty right now but maybe Farrell doesn't trust his goalkicking. I've defended Murray for a while and don't think he's been as bad as has been made out but it doesn't look like his running/sniping game is coming back at this stage. Have no idea what Farrell has against Cooney.

Agree with prof about the bottleneck issue. Feels like 4 provinces isn't enough for the size of the player pool, I mean they compete well because they have great strength in depth but it's hard for Farrell to promote Harry Byrne for example when he's not starting the big games for Leinster. People often point at France in terms of blooding youth but the pathway is more open with 14 clubs.

I was reasonably confident Ireland could have a good tournament, thought POM aside they performed well last week but with the unavailables France tomorrow looks pretty daunting. We've only lost one home 6N fixture in the last 8 years so won't write us off but in Ryan, POM, Murray and Sexton you're taking out arguably our 4 most prominent leaders.

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

Healy is still good surprisingly, maybe not as good in the scrum as he was. You still have Kilcoyne, and the Ulster guys looked pretty handy. It’s amazing what has happened to Jack McGrath, used to look world class.

No matter what else happens, Healy will always be a tough guy who brings whatever sweat and blood he can.

I'm curious about the new half backs. Gibson Park is quicker than Murray so that should help with the attack. Burns isn't top class but he has a good rugby brain and watching him for Ulster, he has nice variety in his game. Very like Jack Carty actually.

Gibson Park definitely has quicker service than Murray Prof, that was evident in the Wales game when he came on. I think that Casey is actually quicker and more accurate than Gibson Park but it would have been some ask on him to start against a red hot French team, his time will come. It just makes the non selection of Cooney even more bizarre as he, for me, is the best 9 in Ireland.

I still do not think that France will steam roll Ireland, i expect them to win but i also think that Ireland will push them.

eirebilly wrote:Gibson Park definitely has quicker service than Murray Prof, that was evident in the Wales game when he came on. I think that Casey is actually quicker and more accurate than Gibson Park but it would have been some ask on him to start against a red hot French team, his time will come. It just makes the non selection of Cooney even more bizarre as he, for me, is the best 9 in Ireland.

I still do not think that France will steam roll Ireland, i expect them to win but i also think that Ireland will push them.

I'd expect Casey to get 5min near the end. Depending how close it is. If they need scores he might be thrown on earlier. He has a breaking threat too so might find a few gaps. But yeah, Cooney should be involved. Think himself and Harry Byrne have been called up.


France by 10 points I'd say. Ireland will have all the possession but it's terrible weather. Good for counter attacking rugby which is how France are set up.

I think this is where we see how good France is becoming. Ireland has a lot of good players, so will always be dangerous. I think this is hard to call because of the Beaudoin Barrett...oops, I mean Billy Burns, and Gibson-Park combination. And also because we really haven't seen this France team hit its straps yet. Certainly must-see tv!

mikey_dragon wrote:

LeinsterFan4life wrote:

Collapse2005 wrote:You are probably right, so at least Murray and Sexton are out.

I cant believe Healy is still around albeit on merit too.

Yeah he's still playing ok, but it is alarming to see how little depth we have in a lot of positions now. Tbh this is the weakest Ireland squad I can remember and yet I still believe we can pull out a win on Sunday.

Healy is still good surprisingly, maybe not as good in the scrum as he was. You still have Kilcoyne, and the Ulster  guys looked pretty handy. It’s amazing what has happened to Jack McGrath, used to look world class.

I do genuinely forget Jack McGrath exists, which is crazy when you think at one stage he was so good he was actually starting ahead of Healy for Leinster, which eventually led to him being called up to the lions. This decesion into obscurity in terms of being called up to the Ireland squad seems to happen to quite a lot of players that leave Leinster.

Good to see the ref speaking french.

Worst kick in 6 nations history? Goal kicking has been bad across the board this winter but that was truely abysmal

You can always trust France to do something brainless.

Harsh call that considering on field decision.

No 7&1/2 wrote:Harsh call that considering on field decision.

Yeah feel it should be benefit of the doubt, picture was not clear it touched the line at all

Just like Cueto in the 2007 RWC final.

That was a try

Gooseberry wrote:

No 7&1/2 wrote:Harsh call that considering on field decision.

Yeah feel it should be benefit of the doubt, picture was not clear it touched the line at all

Ah
Looking at the wrong foot!

Cant be many teams worse at turning field position into points than Ireland the past few tests. They should have this in the bed by now.

No 7&1/2 wrote:

Gooseberry wrote:

No 7&1/2 wrote:Harsh call that considering on field decision.

Yeah feel it should be benefit of the doubt, picture was not clear it touched the line at all

Ah
Looking at the wrong foot!

Ah makes sense now, TV pictures clipped that foot!

Meltdown from Ireland... A man up and defending like...

Wow what a try!

TightHEAD wrote:Just like Cueto in the 2007 RWC final.

That was a try

Take it back, it wasn't a try right foot in touch, why didn't they show that in the replay?

Cueto was a try.

Great try by France,

Close game this France slitely in the lead at half time, will Ireland come out and take the lead to win the game. They Ireland do not lose many game playing at home.

Brutal first half of Rugby. Ireland's attack has all the coordination of a slug with polio.

France don't even look as if they are out of first gear, with more possession more chances will be created by them. Its going to be a long second half for Ireland.

France deserve to be in front. Ireland have all the ball but you're supposed to score points.

Don't really think that's been the problem today. Our only proper chance to attack so far has been the Lowe attempt.

Dulin was causing us a lot of problems with his kicking though

Dupont going full Ben youngs.

That's gonna hurt the two Irish lads in the morning...

God, Furlong is a unit.

Dupont makes up for his previous. Just a magnificent player.

profitius wrote:France deserve to be in front. Ireland have all the ball but you're supposed to score points.

All very Italianesque.

And a bit of luck.

Very unlucky for France that, good work form Ollivon but goes straight to Kelliher.

The officials need to watch the offside line - France not getting back behind the line at most rucks when Ireland recycle quickly ...

Anyone else finding the ref annoying with all his Franglais?

hugehandoff wrote:Anyone else finding the ref annoying with all his Franglais?

No. Should be more refs doing it. Clearly not fluent but will improve. Should be doing the same for Italy.

Ireland looked a bit toothless but close at the end. Nice score for England.

Can't see anyone stopping France this year.