{"id":23443,"date":"2021-02-14T17:31:09","date_gmt":"2021-02-14T17:31:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/?p=23443"},"modified":"2021-02-14T17:43:10","modified_gmt":"2021-02-14T17:43:10","slug":"six-nations-2021-france-end-flawed-irelands-six-nations-hopes","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.anfocal.ie\/index.php\/six-nations-2021-france-end-flawed-irelands-six-nations-hopes\/","title":{"rendered":"Six Nations 2021: France End Flawed Ireland’s Six Nations Hopes"},"content":{"rendered":"

Ireland 13-15 France<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ireland’s hopes for silverware in 2021 were brought to an end after a strong France side came away with victory in Dublin.<\/p>\n

The boys in green started as they meant to go on with another impressive lineout steal.<\/p>\n

A ping-pong game occurred between both sides as they looked to assert dominance early on.<\/p>\n

An impressive kick from Ireland winger James Lowe led to another lineout steal courtesy of last week\u2019s An Focal Man of the Match Tadhg Beirne.<\/p>\n

A stunning kick from French fullback Brice Dulin attempted to turn Ireland\u2019s early momentum on its head as it bounced out in Ireland\u2019s 22.<\/p>\n

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La Rochelle’s Brice Dulin has impressed at 15 for Fabien Galthie’s side.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The Irish reacted strongly but a lineout error gave France an opportunity to lead the game which fly-half Mathieu Jalibert was unable to take advantage of, missing his first kick of the tournament<\/p>\n

France\u2019s defence looked as strong as it did last week with Les Bleus stifling the Irish in the first quarter.<\/p>\n

Dulin continued his strong start with more strong kicks and impressive catches but a mistake from prop Mohammed Haouas almost undid his work before Irish fly-half Billy Burns missed the resulting kick.<\/p>\n

The Ulsterman rectified his error a minute later to get the game\u2019s first points after 20 minutes.<\/p>\n

France messed up another lineout when Irish captain Iain Henderson forced a knock-on and conceded another penalty after winger Keith Earls was tripped up by France\u2019s Bernard Le Roux, earning the lock ten minutes on the sidelines.<\/p>\n

James Lowe was denied a first Six Nations try after the television match official deemed that Stade Francais inside centre Gael Fickou had successfully pushed the New Zealand-born winger\u2019s leg into touch.<\/p>\n

A disappointing Ireland set-piece brought an end to their drive.<\/p>\n

France showed their hosts how to be clinical soon after surviving Ireland\u2019s efforts with captain Charles Ollivon getting over the line after a defensive error by Ireland number nine Jamison Gibson-Park.<\/p>\n

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Jamison Gibson-Park’s error, similar to both of Lowe’s error in the tournament, exposed a hole in Ireland’s defence plan.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Jalibert made no mistake with his second kick of the game and gave his side a 7-3 lead.<\/p>\n

Anthony Jelonch was punished for not wrapping and Ireland were able to get near the French 22 once again as Le Roux returned.<\/p>\n

France\u2019s scrum showed their strength at the end of the first half, causing Cian Healy to concede a penalty which Jalibert duly took advantage of, giving the Six Nations favourites a seven-point lead at half-time.<\/p>\n

Ireland were lucky at the start of the second-half after hooker Julien Marchand broke through their defences on the Irish 22 but a communication error between scrum-half Antoine Dupont and lock Paul Willemse killed the move.<\/p>\n

Ross Byrne replaced Billy Burns after being deemed in need of a head injury assessment (HIA).<\/p>\n

Iain Henderson and Cian Healy were temporarily replaced, needing their own HIAs after Ultan Dillane and Ed Byrne after colliding.<\/p>\n

The Irishmen were let off the hook once again after Arthur Vincent rushed a pass out wide which could have led to a second try for his side.<\/p>\n

Lowe\u2019s kicking saved the side after they struggled to get out of their own half, but an unsafe lineout attack ended any chance of Irish pressure.<\/p>\n

Ireland showed a lack of communication with a string of unimpressive plays and errors.<\/p>\n

France orchestrated some smart play with Dupont, Jalibert and Fickou conducting the symphony.<\/p>\n

Lowe made a second defensive error in two games and allowed winger Damian Penaud to cross over for France\u2019s second try of the game but another Jalibert miss soured the taste of the French movement.<\/p>\n

Replacement hooker Ronan Kelleher made an instant impact after capitalising on a fortunate bounce to score his first international try.<\/p>\n

Ross Byrne added the conversion to bring the game within five and Healy and Henderson returned to the pitch.<\/p>\n

Ireland grew back into the game after their rub of the green and Ross Byrne showed his confidence, choosing to take a 44-metre kick without consulting with Henderson and then slotting it over with ease.<\/p>\n

The men in green continued to apply pressure with their newfound confidence evident but mistakes continued to haunt the side.<\/p>\n

Bordeaux\u2019s Jalibert missed another penalty, with the ball banging off the post for the second time in the match.<\/p>\n

Ireland continued to fight for a result and impressed at the breakdown, successfully turning France over and looked to move the ball into the French half.<\/p>\n

However, Shaun Edwards\u2019 well-drilled defence pushed the Irish back and won the ball in the red to bring the game to an end.<\/p>\n

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Shaun Edwards has made France a team to be feared.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

France improved their claim for a first championship in 11 years with a second win for opposition in Dublin since 2012, stopping Ireland from taking their winning streak at home against Les Bleus to five.<\/p>\n

They look unstoppable so far in 2021 and, with most other teams stumbling, could run away with the silverware this season.<\/p>\n

The game against Scotland could possibly be their toughest in the tournament but they will still enter the game as favourites.<\/p>\n

Ireland\u2019s hopes of a return to the top of European rugby are all but over after losing their first two games in the Six Nations for the first time.<\/p>\n

Andy Farrell\u2019s side could pick up their first win upon their return against Italy after next week\u2019s break but may find the final two weeks of the tournament just as frustrating as the first two.<\/p>\n

An Focal\u2019s MOTM \u2013 Brice Dulin<\/strong><\/p>\n

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Ireland 13-15 France Ireland’s hopes for silverware in 2021 were brought to an end after a strong France side came away with victory in Dublin. The boys in green started as they meant to go on with another impressive lineout steal. A ping-pong game occurred between both sides as they looked to assert dominance early […]<\/p>\n

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