From our special correspondent in Dublin,
We had sold you a little pompously in our morning article the most exciting poster in the history of the Six Nations Tournament. Well, in the end, even if our modesty suffered, we weren’t completely wrong. This Ireland – France thrilled the 52,000 spectators at Aviva Stadium and millions of rugby fans around the world (yes, even those who got up in the middle of the night, in Australia or New Zealand). The Blues lost (32-19) after three successes in a row over the clover players. They did not even bring back a point, while Andy Farrell’s men took the offensive bonus. But not everything is to be thrown away in this shock which perhaps foreshadows the next quarter-final of the World Cup.
The Blues are no longer invincible
If there was a place where we saw Fabien Galthié’s men, 2nd in the world, biting the dust, it was Dublin, lair of the Irish king of the oval planet, ascended to the throne at the end of his victorious tour of New Zealand last summer. And indeed, Fabien Galthié’s men fell at Aviva Stadium, and experienced the bitter taste of defeat for the first time since July 17, 2021 in Australia, with a team then bis, even ter (33-30).
The series ends at 14 victories (best national performance in history) and the absolute record of 18 successes, co-held by New Zealand and England and which the Blues could only equal in the event of a second Grand Slam in a row, will remain a chimera. It doesn’t matter after all, at the risk of shocking… Because it’s not this Saturday February 11, but next October 28, the day of the World Cup final, that Galthié and his gang aimed when they released their “arrow of the time”, at the beginning of 2020. And this time, the competition will be played entirely at home.
A game orgy
Sorry for ping-pong rugby fans, but the game of “repossession” is back, as announced by Fabien Galthié before the start of the Tournament, and we really aren’t going to complain about it. What was not necessarily visible during the Italian draft in Rome (24-29) was obvious in Dublin, especially during a first half of a level rarely seen. So yes, there was kicking, it was still an Ireland – France (and it’s rugby), but we saw some legendary actions, like the 80 try m of Damian Penaud (18th), however badly born with a pass from Romain Ntamack for no one in his own 22, or that, just after the dismissal, Irish of his vis-à-vis, the Irish winger James Lowe (20th).
It was above all the Blues who took as many risks as possible, even if it meant sometimes surprising each other (ahead of Jelonch in front of his line, 38th), by resuscitating a French Flair who was believed to be dead and buried, without flowers or crown. Long calmed down after being penalized 18 times in Rome (three penalties conceded in the first half with also a yellow card for Atonio), they were pushed further into error afterwards (seven in total, like their opponents) but we remain in the high international standard.
Awesome Irish
They lacked a colossal number of potential starters (centre Henshaw, scrum-half Gibson-Park, right prop Furlong, and hooker Sheehan), although it may be objected that Villière and Danty, essential to French success, last year in Saint-Denis, were also lacking. Their totem, Johnny Sexton came out (still) injured at the start of the second half, replaced at short notice by Ross Byrne, his substitute also at Leinster.
But the teammates of the formidable number 8 Caelan Doris, voted man of the match, still felled their rivals, overall dominating the match. So of course, they have a lower tackle percentage (80% against 92%), but they have “only” tackled 186 times, against 271 times for the Blues often cornered in front of their line.
More realistic, more resistant too, they folded the game with Ringrose’s test 8 minutes from the end. It was only then that the songs of their supporters, who were vastly superior in number, overwhelmed the “Allez les Bleus” and the Marseillaises repeatedly. The Irish, who will travel to Italy on February 25, the day before France – Scotland, have overcome their main obstacle on the track of a fourth Grand Slam, after 1948, 2009 and 2018.