Following Ireland's 38-17 win over France in the opening game of this year's Six Nations, here are five takeaways from Friday's game in Marseille.
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Many called it the Six Nations decider, some even called it the Grand Slam decider, but we're all focused on enjoying tonight's moment as two of the best teams in world rugby go head-to-head. was doing. Admittedly, Les Bleus were far from that standard, but it was a memorable win for Ireland that is a great springboard for 2024.
Andy Farrell said before the match that there were no Rugby World Cup ghosts to exorcise, but it's very much business as usual for the Irish as they look to continue progressing into the crucial period in 2023. It feels like. The team will remain, but an injection of youth has taken advantage of the opportunity.
Hats off to the fresh faces of Jack Crowley, Joe McCarthy and Calvin Nash who took the opportunity and put in a commanding performance that showed Ireland were not affected by their loss to New Zealand in the quarter-finals. Ireland, if ever they were away, are back and looking better than ever.
Paul Willems has no complaints.
Les Bleus Rock was lucky to get back on the field after being left with a yellow card early in the game, having made contact with Ireland prop Andrew Porter. The Irishman required treatment and subsequent evaluation for his head injury, but luckily he returned while Willemse was sitting in the bin.
One would have thought the French second-rower would have kept the powder dry afterwards at Marseille after avoiding an increased penalty due to his reduced height. But that wasn't the case for French fans. Willemse committed a similar indiscretion against Caelan Doris 20 minutes later and referee Carl Dixon showed him a second yellow card, resulting in a red card and France had no choice but to climb that mountain. . In the end it was amazing.
Irish long-running rock duo
Putting McCarthy in the second row was one of the big talking points in Ireland selection, but given his performance in Leinster, it had a lot to do with form. McCarthy has proven to be a perfect tight headlock as he boasts incredible power on set pieces and carries up the field. On Friday, that was evident as he gave the Irishman a number of advances and blended perfectly with the mobility and skilled Tadhg Beirne in the engine room.
McCarthy was rewarded for his efforts, winning the official Player of the Match award, which he fully deserved after the performances that put him on the map.
A big fight tonight in Joe McCarthy's 6 Nations debut.
Very physical. Looks perfectly at home at the test level.#Flavia
— EK rugby analysis (@ek_rugby) February 2, 2024
Ireland's weakness: Scrum
This was the Achilles heel in the World Cup quarter-final against New Zealand, and while it's not as high now as it was in 2023, it's certainly a problem.
Ireland faced perhaps their biggest set-piece challenge in this year's Six Nations, but memories of the quarter-finals are remembered as Porter came in from an angle, went down and was comfortably beaten by Wini Atonio and then Dorian. It was clearly visible. Aldegeli.
Similarly, Tadhg Furlong struggled to contain Cyril Bayu and then Leda Wardi. Farrell will be concerned about his performance in the front row, especially ahead of his upcoming tour to South Africa in July. Most of the attacking and defending in the scrum will be carried out by the props, but Dan Sheehan will have a share of the responsibility as well, and so will the rest of the pack.
This gave France a way back into the game, and while France failed to make the most of it, other teams might be able to make the most of it.
France's defense failed and lacked Dupont's brilliance
If Shaun Edwards had hair before kick-off, he would have ripped it all out by half-time when Ireland managed to drill a hole in the center of the French defense – sacrilege at this level. .
This was an unusual sight for a defense led by Edwards, and while Ireland can be highly praised for being effective in creating and taking gaps, much of it was due to sheer laziness and disorganization on the part of the French players who were watching. , was due to lack of enthusiasm. I was exhausted early in the game. Beirne's goal clearly showed this, as he ran through the gap created by Jonathan Danti and Pete Maubaka due to the Les Bleus defense's folding and lack of alignment.
All in all, the Frenchman looked really flat and started the 2024 Six Nations in a similar fashion to 2023, but with a big hole in his No. 9 jumper. Maxime Luk is good in his own right, but today France needed Antoine Dupont, the main talisman to energize the team.
Dupont's multi-legged sending off was a huge failure as Ireland dominated the kicking contest, but the presence of Romain Ntamak would have helped too, but Luuk and his replacement Nolan Le Garrec had no choice. France didn't get any of the offensive impetus from Dupont that usually prompts a comeback.
read more: Ireland player evaluation: New player shines in big win against France in the opening game of the Six Nations
