France makes statement following Ireland demolition job
MATCH REPORT: France showed they mean business in the 2026 Six Nations after thrashing Ireland 36-14 in the opening clash on Thursday evening at the Stade de France.
A double by Louis Bielle-Biarrey and tries by Charles Ollivon, Matthew Jalibert and Theo Attissogbe sealed a five-try to two win for Les Bleus.
Despite Jamison Gibson-Park’s accurate box kicking, France won the aerial battle handsomely and exposed the Irish out wide on multiple occasions.
Ireland came back strongly in the second half when their bench got deployed, but it was too little too late for Andy Farrell’s troops.
France claims the first Solidarity Cup contested by the two respective nations from this contest onwards.
*To recap all the action, CLICK HERE!
The warning signs came early for Ireland when the visitors were exposed out wide with Bielle-Biarrey making a linebreak, which almost resulted in a score.
It was that man Bielle-Biarrey who opened the scoring for France in the 13th minute, running down the same blindside, beating two defenders in the process, with Tomas Ramos adding the extras.
Flyhalf Jalibert crossed the line for France’s second try in the 21st minute following a scrum stemmed from Ireland taking the ball back into their in-goal area. The conversion was missed by Ramos.
Ramos slotted a penalty in the 27th minute to extend France’s lead to 15 points following a side entry at the breakdown by Joe McCarthy.
Things went from bad to worse after France took the ball through the hands following a chip by Jalibert, sending Ollivon over in the corner for his side’s third try, converted by Ramos in the 35th minute.
France had one final attacking opportunity before half-time as Jalibert opted for a grubber kick which successfully went out on the five metre line, but the referee called for the break as the clock went into the red.
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A freakish try came in the form of Bielle-Biarrey when Antoine Dupont kicked the ball ahead, and Ramos followed up with a kick of his own to send the electric winger over for a brace and the bonus point score in the 47th minute, with Ramos adding the extras.
Ireland finally got on the board through Nick Timoney in the 59th minute, which Sam Prendergast converted.
The visitors bagged their second try three minutes later through Michael Milne as the momentum shifted to Ireland, with Prendergast adding the extras.
Ireland came close to getting their third score, but a knock-on five meters out from France’s line denied them the opportunity with seven minutes to go.
France sealed the deal on the stroke of fulltime with a try by Attissogbe, with Ramos’ conversion sealing an emphatic 22-point win.
Player of the Match: Louis Bielle-Biarrey’s positional play and two tries make him a strong contender. Mickael Gilluard carried strongly and made 16 in total, but our award goes to Matthieu Jalibert, who came into this match under some pressure but delivered with his accurate play, decision-making and controlling the overall tempo.
Scorers
For France:
Tries: Bielle-Biarrey 2, Jalibert, Ollivon, Attissogbe
Cons: Ramos 4
Pens: Ramos
For Ireland:
Tries: Timoney, Milne
Cons: Predergast 2
Teams
France: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Theo Attissogbe, 13 Nicolas Depoortere, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, 9 Antoine Dupont (captain), 8 Anthony Jelonch, 7 Oscar Jegou, 6 Francois Cros, 5 Mickael Guillard, 4 Charles Ollivon, 3 Dorian Aldegheri, 2 Julien Marchand, 1 Jean-Baptiste Gros
Replacements: 16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Rodrigue Neti, 18 Regis Montagne, 19 Hugo Auradou, 20 Emmanuel Meafou, 21 Lenni Nouchi, 22 Baptiste Serin, 23 Kalvin Gourgues
Ireland: 15 Jamie Osborne, 14 Tommy O’Brien, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Stuart McCloskey, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Sam Predergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Cian Predergast, 5 Tadgh Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Thomas Clarkson, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Jeremy Loughman.
Replacements: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Michael Milne, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 James Ryan, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Nick Timoney, 22 Craig Casey, 23 Jack Crowley.
Referee: Karl Dickson (England)
Assistant referees: Angus Gardner (Australia), Jordan Way (Australia)
TMO: Ian Tempest (England)
