Player ratings: Clueless
A few players did their best for their country, however, most looked clueless on the field. The final score also flattered them a bit as Ireland could have won with a much bigger margin.
Warren Fortune rates the French players.
15 Scott Spedding
Was his team's best player on the field with his vision in the backline and his solid play in defence. His long range boot also kept his team in the game.
7/10
14 Noa Nakaitaci
Was a spectator on the wing and did not look for work to assist his team in such a big game.
2/10
13 Mathieu Bastareaud
A dismal performance by the centre. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights when he got the ball and he gave his team no pace in the backline.
1/10
12 Wesley Fofana
Did what he could with the poor ball he got. He made a couple of metres with a few runs, but other than that it was a quiet game for the centre.
4/10
11 Brice Dulin
Showed a great willingness to spark something on attack for his team and always ran into the gap. Besides Spedding, he was the other bright light in a poor French team.
5/10
10 Frederic Michalak
The enigmatic flyhalf was a big disappointment on attack as could not create anything on attack. He passed most of the ball he got as well.
4/10
9 Sebastien Tillous Borde
His slow service from the ruck did not help a ponderous French backline. He was predictable and lacked creativity as well.
4/10
8 Louis Picamoles
Got his team over the advantage line with his massive frame. He also tackled out of his skin for his team.
6/10
7 Damien Chouly
An Industrious performance by the flank. He did what was asked of him in the physical exchanges and like Picamoles he gave everything on defence.
6/10
6 Thierry Dusautoir (captain)
A brave performance by the captain. He put his body on the line in defence and also rescued his team on a number of occasions at the breakdowns with some good steals. However, he became quiet in the second half when his team really needed him.
5/10
5 Yoann Maestri
Was much better than his lock partner but did not impose himself physically on the game like he normally does. He was ok in the line-outs and made plenty of tackles.
5/10
4 Pascal Pape
Was poor in the line-outs and did not give his team the aggression they needed up front.
3/10
3 Rabah Slimani
Was put under pressure in the scrums by Cian Healy and hardly made any carries with the ball he got. However, he did showed his commitment on defence with a number of tackles.
5/10
2 Guilhem Guirado
Despite the inefficiencies of his teammates, it was a good showing by the hooker. However, he struggled to find his jumpers in the line-outs, which proved costly in such a big game.
3/10
1 Eddy Ben Arous
He won his team a penalty in the game's first scrum but then seemed to lose his way a bit after that. He also conceded way too many turnovers as well.
4/10
Replacements:
16 Benjamin Kayser (On for G Guirado, 58 min)
Only ran with the ball once when he was on the field and his throwing in at the line-out was not much better than Guirado's.
4/10
17 Vincent Debaty (On for EB Arous, 65 min)
Not enough time to be rated.
18 Nicolas Mas (On for R Slimani, 63 min)
Struggled in the scrums when he came on – in fact he got owned in the scrums when he came on.
2/10
19 Alexandre Flanquart (On for P Pape, 73 min)
Not enough time to be rated.
20 Bernard Le Roux (On for D Chouly, 55 min)
They were better off leaving Chouly on the field. He did not make an impact at all.
2/10
21 Morgan Parra (On for ST Borde, 55 min)
He looked to run the ball more than Sebastien Tillous Borde, but gave the ball away at crucial moments and also conceded a penalty as well.
5/10
22 Remi Tales (On for F Michalak, 55 min)
Like Frederic Michalak he failed to ignite his backline and looked like he was just making up the numbers on the field.
4/10
23 Alexandre Dumoulin (On for M Bastareaud, 62 min)
Did more on the field in 18 minutes than what Mathieu Bastareaud did for 62 minutes. However, he also looked clueless on a number of occasions.
4/10
