FRA
No.Name
15Geoffrey Palis, FB
14Teddy Thomas, W
T
13Remi Lamerat, C
12Henry Chavancy, C
11Virimi Vakatawa, W
10Matthieu Jalibert, FH
9Maxime Machenaud, SH
2
1Jefferson Poirot, P
2Guilhem Guirado, H
3Rabah Slimani, P
4Arthur Iturria, L
5Sebastien Vahaamahina, L
6Wenceslas Lauret, FL
7Yacouba Camara, FL
8Kevin Gourdon, N8
Replacements
16Adrien Pelissie, R
17Dany Priso, R
18Cedate Gomes Sa, R
19Paul Gabrillagues, R
20Marco Tauleigne, R
21Antoine Dupont, R
22Anthony Belleau, R
23Benjamin Fall, R

*Players currently on the pitch are shown in bold

Game Info

Venue: Stade de France
4:45 PM, February 3, 2018
All CommentaryKey Events

Match Commentary

81'+213-15 End of second half
81'+213-15 Drop goal - Johnny Sexton , Ireland
80'ALL OVER... The stadium begins to empty. Hearts have been broken by that monstrous strike from Sexton.
80'CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?! Sexton has just rained over the most extraordinary drop-goal from almost halfway.
80'36 phases in and France's defence is holding firm so far.
80'A daring crossfield kick from Sexton finds Earls and Ireland have worked their way up to the France 10m line...
80'Ireland up to halfway after umpteen phases... Great tension.
76'FRANCE PENALTY! The Irish set-piece is crushed and Belleau will presumably kick for goal here to leave the visitors needing a try.
76'Machenaud returns - somewhat controversially - at scrum-half as Dupont hobbles off. The official reason is that it's a head injury assessment, which allows Machenaud to return. Sexton complains.
76'Dupont is receiving treatment after collapsing awkwardly on his knee.
76'So. Five minutes left. A one-point lead. Can France kill the game?
76'Substitute on - Maxime Machenaud , France
76'Player substituted - Antoine Dupont , France
75'That was the moment French fans - and most rugby fans - had been waiting for. One creative spark; pretty much the only one all day. Earls knocks on in Irish territory and this is where France want to be.
75'Substitute on - Fergus McFadden , Ireland
75'Player substituted - Jacob Stockdale , Ireland
74'Player substituted - Guilhem Guirado , France
74'Substitute on - Adrien Pelissie , France
74'13-12 Conversion - Anthony Belleau , France
72'WOW! After a tame Lamerat kick appears to have surrendered France's chance, Thomas produces a moment of absolute magic. He receives the ball down the line and beats Kearney on the outside before surging inside Stockdale and touching down. Phenomenal finish. Belleau has the conversion for the lead and it's routine.
72'11-12 Try - Teddy Thomas , France
70'Player substituted - Tadhg Furlong , Ireland
70'Substitute on - John Ryan , Ireland
69'Simply limp stuff from France. There's no crash-running and no guile about their passing. Without at least one of those two things, they won't inflict much damage on a defensive line as well-drilled as Ireland's.
68'Substitute on - Devin Toner , Ireland
68'Player substituted - James Ryan , Ireland
68'Substitute on - Sean Cronin , Ireland
68'Player substituted - Rory Best , Ireland
67'France penalty as Earls goes high on Vakatawa. It's another chance to get deep into the visitors' territory. One moment of magic would light up this drab game and could snatch an unlikely win for France.
67'Player substituted - Wenceslas Lauret , France
67'Substitute on - Marco Tauleigne , France
67'Player substituted - Maxime Machenaud , France
67'Substitute on - Antoine Dupont , France
65'At last France put some width on the game and duly charge into the 22 with Vakatawa. The crowd respond. Several phases lacking penetration follow and Ireland again win a penalty as Vahaamahina plays Sexton off the ball. Borderline.
62'France have been ill-disciplined today. Guirado - who should know better - is penalised for being the wrong side at the ruck and Sexton can now put Ireland two scores ahead... but he hooks it badly! Who knows how costly THAT could be?
61'Substitute on - Paul Gabrillagues , France
61'Player substituted - Arthur Iturria , France
61'Substitute on - Jack McGrath , Ireland
61'Player substituted - Cian Healy , Ireland
59'Ireland triumph at the scrum and France are forced onto the back foot. Stander then wins a penalty as Guirado holds on. The visitors have edged the contact area all day.
58'A hint of momentum for France as they turn Ireland over in midfield... A converted try would put them ahead, of course. Kearney spills a high ball (rare) and the hosts now have an inviting attacking position.
55'Substitute on - Cedate Gomes Sa , France
55'Player substituted - Rabah Slimani , France
55'Substitute on - Dany Priso , France
55'Player substituted - Jefferson Poirot , France
54'6-12 Penalty goal - Maxime Machenaud , France
53'REDEMPTION? Vahaamahina and Poirot conspire to force a France penalty on the Ireland 22. That was much more savvy breakdown work and the deficit returns to six points.
50'Ireland are now knocking on the door deep in the French 22. This is where the game could get away from the hosts... To be fair to France, their rearguard defence has been decent. Again they pinch it and Machenaud bangs clear.
49'Vahaamahina is penalised for a third time as he blatantly plays the ball from an offside position again. He and Guirado are warned by the referee.
47'Just staggeringly poor decision-making from France. Both Vahaamahina and Lamerat play the ball from clearly offside positions. Sexton is presented with another easy opportunity to stretch the lead and does so.
47'3-12 Penalty goal - Johnny Sexton , Ireland
43'Just as they're building up a head of steam, Poirot is caught offside and Sexton can boot clear from the penalty. The unrest continues.
43'France string together some passes off the base of a scrum and work their way into Irish territory. It's about time they produced some Gallic magic, quite frankly...
41'We're back in action here. Belleau remains on so Jalibert's debut looks to be over. Sexton drop-kicks low. Machenaud clears.
41'3-9 End of first half
40'Palis chips the ball into touch in the France 22 and that'll be the half. A somewhat uninspiring opening 40 minutes, if truth be told. Neither side has played with any element of risk and when it comes to being effective at percentage rugby, Ireland are likely to come out on top.
40'3-9 Start of second half
39'3-9 Penalty goal - Johnny Sexton , Ireland
38'Ireland are awarded another penalty as Vahaamahina needlessly hits Murray at a ruck. Sexton slots another routine kick and the French are six behind once again.
37'Nasty collision as Van der Flier's knee gives way and he crashes his head into Guirado. The flanker limps of with the help of the physios.
37'Player substituted - Josh van der Flier , Ireland
37'Substitute on - Dan Leavy , Ireland
36'3-6 Penalty goal - Maxime Machenaud , France
34'Good steal from Gourdon and France capitalise on the momentum as Guirado forces a penalty with some diligent burrowing at the ruck. A chance to halve the deficit, here, and it'll be Machenaud...
32'Ireland knocking on the door in the France 22 after Stander barges Thomas backwards. It ends in a France turnover, though, and Palis eventually kicks clear.
30'Jalibert is receiving treatment after being run over by Aki, who is also hurt. The Frenchman's knee seems to be the problem and Belleau is lacing his boots on the sidelines.
30'Substitute on - Anthony Belleau , France
30'Player substituted - Matthieu Jalibert , France
29'First penalty at the scrum and it goes to Ireland. Slimani is unhappy about it as Sexton bangs play up to halfway.
26'Slimani hacks through as Ireland spill possession at the ruck. Ireland eventually find touch and the French are penalised from the lineout for a disconnected maul. Frustrating for the hosts.
23'La Marseillaise strikes up as Palis tries to gather his own up n' under. He fails under no pressure. Thomas is then shoved into touch and the French team need to reward their supporters with something positive soon.
22'0-6 Penalty goal - Johnny Sexton , Ireland
21'Drop goal-missed
20'France try to hurry Ireland up in midfield with a rush defence but the visitors show good handling to gain significant ground through Earls out wide. Sexton misses a freebie drop-goal with a penalty coming and the lead is probably about to be doubled.
16'Vakatawa singles out Sexton again and runs straight at the Ireland 10. Presumably, Ireland will be doing the same to Jalibert at every opportunity.
15'The crowd roar as Jalibert attempts to pierce the Irish drift defence. He offloads to Vakatawa but the wing's kick is wayward and it's Irish ball on the 22.
13'Sloppy. Very sloppy. France win a free-kick at the scrum but in his haste to catch Ireland on the retreat, Gourdon knocks on. There's a collective groan around the stadium.
11'First scrum and France hold their own despite conceding around 30kg in weight. Palis takes a subsequent high ball well and the home side are enjoying a decent if unspectacular spell.
9'Vakatawa bounces Sexton off in midfield. That gets the crowd going and France go through 14 phases before the momentum breaks down.
8'That's poor from Belleau, who pulls wide of the near post. Ireland spring into action with urgency. Can they get Sexton to within range for what would be a match-winning drop-goal?
5'Jalibert gets creative for the first time but his chip is ill-timed and gifts Ireland possession in French territory. Sexton then shows him how it's done with a neat dink that bounces into the corner. France clear. Edgy stuff.
3'0-3 Penalty goal - Johnny Sexton , Ireland
2'First Ireland set move and it cuts the French three-quarter line to ribbons. The French scramble defence concedes a penalty and Sexton should knock over the simplest of kicks.
1'This sort of game, meanwhile, is just what Ireland want. Their brand of rugby is the exact opposite of France's tradition. Sexton's sensible kicking and discipline in defence have suffocated so many opponents and, at this stage, look enough again today.
1'It must be incredibly irksome being a French rugby fan these days. Not only are their side seemingly incapable of winning regularly against the big sides but the style is bereft of what is traditionally French rugby's 'raison d'etre' - adventure.
1'We are UNDERWAY. Jalibert's first task is to kick off and he goes deep. Murray returns with interest and France are then forced into touch on halfway.
1'The Irish anthem is treated with respect by the home crowd, who then blast out La Marseillaise with great panache. We're pretty much ready to go.
1'The teams are about to emerge and, as usual in Paris, the atmosphere is raucous. The Irish are likely to play percentage rugby and try to force Jalibert into his shell. Can the teenager herald the dawn of a new era under Jacques Brunel?
1'All eyes will be on the home side's teenage fly-half, Matthieu Jalibert. One of the primary problems for France in recent times has been their failure to find a consistent 10, so there's a great deal of pressure on the shoulders of Bordeaux-Begles starlet Jalibert - and he's only been a professional three months...
1'Good evening to you. It's an intriguing Six Nations opener for France and Ireland in Paris, with the underdog hosts looking to emulate Wales' display against Scotland by serving their guests a thrashing.
1'0-0 Start of first half

Six Nations Championship 2018 News