Ireland v France

Possibly the biggest match of the Six Nations takes place in the second round of fixtures today.

All France need to do is avoid defeat to leapfrog Ireland to become world No.1 in the rankings. "It's everyone who comes to the game buying into it and we're a part of that package. We need to be as together as possible...playing the game as it come in front of us and backing ourselves." Good start for the visitors and they win a penalty for their efforts. From a ruck the ball comes to Finlay Bealham and the prop plays a delightful inside pass to the onrushing Hugo Keenan who breaks clear of the France backline and scores from some 25 yards out. Ireland have started the stronger of the two but France have defended brilliantly so far and once again they get the better of the men in green when up against it. From the drop out Ireland move the ball back towards the France 22. I've been praising the France defence but this time it's the Ireland defence that deserves a round of applause. It's a France line out BUT Ireland steal and are once again a yard from the France line, surely they can get over the whitewash now? France are the brighter of the two at the moment. They are running the ball well and at pace before they move it left and Dumortier is hit late BUT it's ruled OK and the hosts breathe a sigh of relief. Ireland are keeping France in their own half at the moment - with a six-point lead that will, obviously, suit the hosts.

The world's top two men's sides go head to head in Dublin in a mouth-watering Six Nations clash: here's the start time, how to watch the match, ...

France coach Fabian Galthie: "Ireland are one of the best adversaries we have played but that will not prevent us being ambitious on Saturday, Today Ireland is the best team in the world since last summer after their second win over the All Blacks. "We have gone with the same personnel due to the performance firstly, the victory with a bonus, therefore they achieved their target. It is a remarkable achievement by the Irish federation, of the four provinces, of their academies, one cannot but congratulate them. When you get to the World Cup, you’ve a smaller squad. Ireland coach Andy Farrell: "The team is pretty similar, which is a good thing, it means we’re healthy enough. With Sheehan, who has picked up a hamstring injury, out of the matchday squad, Ronan Kelleher is named on the bench. Internationally rugby is only going to get bigger and better, so therefore it’s always going to be about the squad. However, they have only won once in their last five visits to the Aviva Stadium as they secured a narrow 15-13 win in 2021. Obviously he’s a fantastic player at the top of his form. Ireland host France in Dublin this weekend in the most-anticipated fixture of this year's Guinness Six Nations championship. Stuart McCloskey and Garry Ringrose continue their partnership in midfield while the back three of Hugo Keenan, Mack Hansen and James Lowe is unchanged from the opening round. France, however, were pushed much harder by a determined Italy in Rome, with only a late Mathieu Jalibert try sealing a 29-24 bonus point win to deny the hosts a famous victory.

The game is not only likely to decide the outcome of this Six Nations, with the teams tipped as potential Grand Slam winners, France could also leapfrog Ireland ...

But I make the decision to be a referee, make the decision to be on social media. While Erasmus would later receive a suspension from World Rugby, Barnes and his family became the target of online abuse - with the referee even reporting two perpetrators to the police. Barnes has gone on to become a familiar face to rugby fans all over the globe, taking charge of games at multiple Six Nations Championships and four World Cups. He has also refereed in the Heineken Cup, taking charge of his first final in 2010, while he holds the all-time appearances record in the English Premiership. He went on to break this record when he took charge of France v South Africa. Born in Gloucestershire in 1979, Barnes started playing rugby at the age of eight and took up refereeing as a teenager.

Both teams arrived at the Aviva shortly before 1pm, with fans making their way to the Dublin 4 venue from early in the morning. Today's match will be shown live ...

Ireland 22-16 France Ireland 12-13 France Ireland 19-16 France Today's match will be shown live on both RTE Two and ITV, with kick-off scheduled for 2.15pm. The draw is 22/1. Ireland 25-19 France

The social sharing buttons have been hidden due to cookie preferences. Please allow functional cookies for this to work. Manage Cookies. Six Nations Betting ...

Looking at England v Italy at 3pm on Sunday at Twickenham, I fancy England to cover the spread of -18. I believe Ireland will win Sunday, although it may be a close game I do expect them to cover the spread of -4. With Johnny Sexton being confirmed fit for the clash and coach Farrell wanting to finally get one over the French, Ireland will be ready to go.

The top two in the world face off at the Aviva Stadium in a game that will most likely go a long way to deciding who claims this year's Six Nations ...

- 📻 Listen - 📺 Watch - 66 min - Ireland 25-19 France 69 min - Ireland 25-19 France 71 min - Ireland 25-19 France

After 19 phases an Ireland attacker manages to wriggle free of French attention. Doris moves the ball out of contact on the left and finds Ringrose who charges ...

Farrell has succeeded where Joe Schmidt failed by adding significant depth to his squad, evidenced by the fact that even without key players like a Tadhg Furlong, Dan Sheehan and Jamison Gibson-Park, there was no impact to their level of their performance. Since losing to France in Paris last year, Farrell’s side have won an historic series in New Zealand and beaten world champions South Africa. Yet it is the significance both for their Grand Slam hopes and for laying down a marker ahead of the World Cup in France, where the two sides could meet in the quarter-finals, that will be of most import to Farrell.

Follow along live as the two top ranked sides in the world clash at the Aviva Stadium.

Ireland 0 France 3 Ireland 19 France 13 Ireland 22 France 16 Ireland 22 France 16. Ireland v France at Lansdowne Road, the vast majority of the chips in the middle of the table. Ireland 25 France 19 Ireland 32 France 19 Ireland 7 France 3 Ireland 19 France 16 Ireland 25 France 16 Sexton slots the conversion and Ireland lead again. Barnes gives the Ireland full-back the benefit of the doubt and Ireland play on.

The clash between the two top-ranked sides in the world delivered above and beyond what could possibly have been expected.

There were some forceful hits but the frequency of them was far below his 2022 best. A bundle of energy on both sides of the ball and his battle with the Irish locks was one of the most impressive head-to-heads. 9/10 Time stopped for his first-half tackle on Hansen; one of the great try-savers. France's maestro was well marshalled by Ireland in attack, but remains the heartbeat of his side. Kicked immaculately – including a drop goal – and looked a threat with the ball, but did not convince in the air. There was a fear, with the departures of Herring and Sexton, and with Ireland down to their third-choice tighthead, that France would dominate the latter stages. A scrap between him and Ardie Savea for the No 8 jersey in a world XV has become a reality. Held his own at the scrummage and his reverse pass for Keenan's try was a pip. The timing of his defensive interventions was almost telepathic and his finish for the final try typical of his quality. As dependable a wing as there is in world rugby; his error count is miniscule. [Ireland kept their dream of a Grand Slam alive](https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2023/02/11/ireland-v-france-six-nations-2023-live-score-latest-updates/) as they got the better of France in a pulsating clash at the Aviva Stadium.

Caelan Doris, Andrew Porter, Garry Ringrose and Hugo Keenan all enjoyed huge games.

His was a management of the week as much as the match, with injuries mounting and changes having to be made. Typically went through a mountain of work both carrying the ball and making a nuisance of himself. Was busy in the engine room and secured a turnover in the first half. A great feed to Hugo Keenan for his try in the first half. Always up fast on his man and took the ball on willingly. But he put Keenan away for a run and handled himself well in the second half.

Following a 32-19 victory for Ireland over France in their Six Nations fixture, here's our five takeaways from the match at the Aviva Stadium.

His might just be a form thing, but France will be much more concerned about their midfield combination and his next selection meeting could be quite an interesting one. Fabien Galthie needs to have a rethink in his backline – Yoram Moefana isn’t giving him the asset he needs at 12, nor is Ntamack playing anything remotely like both of the Irish out-halves who played in this match. But in fairness, the Toulouse pivot is missing the power of Jonathan Danty straightening the attack at 12 – France struggled to get any form of carry momentum from those backs and it was only the tireless carries of the outstanding Thibaud Flament (11), Jelonch (8) and outside centre Gael Fickou (14) that kept France going forward. Sure, there were some standouts, but this was a 23-man effort, aptly fulfilling their promise to be the #TeamofUs. Ireland had 23 heroes, but one man in green, Caelan Doris, might just be classed as a superhero as he added to his growing reputation by putting in a performance of world-class standard, gaining him player of the match award. [Ireland](https://www.planetrugby.com/team/ireland)‘s tighthead Finlay Bealham is in danger of having his front-row union card removed from him after his exquisite pass to send Hugo Keenan scooting over for a try.

Ireland and France face off in the second weekend of the 2023 Six Nations. The two sides are currently at the top of World Rugby's global rankings, and each ...

From the resultant line-out, Ireland power towards the French line and slowly move the ball from right to left. Ramos sets off down the right before cutting inside to find support, with Baille, Alldritt and Jelonch all offloading before Penaud breaks through a tackle to sprint away and score in the left corner! The Irish build the pressure and Sexton fires a wide pass to Lowe. He has a clear run to the line and dives for the corner, getting the ball down before being put into touch by Penaud! He's stopped by Fickou metres short of the line and offloads to Hansen, but he's prevented from grounding the ball by Dupont showing incredible strength! He can't get the ball down thanks to incredible scramble defence from France, and the hosts will have a scrum five metres from the tryline! James Lowe looked to be in touch for all money, but he dotted the ball down just in time to get Ireland back into the game! 45 mins: France turn the ball over and race out of their own 22 on the counter. Byrne lobs the ball wide to Lowe, but he's put into touch and play comes back for the penalty. The free-scoring fun of the first half gave way to a second half dominated by the home side, and Garry Ringrose's late try capped off a magnificent display from front to back, securing the bonus point and putting Andy Farrell's side in control of their year's Six Nations. His players responded in tow, completely dominating contact, breakdown and set-piece throughout the second period to deny France a sniff of the try-line, before scoring one more of their own to cap of a resounding victory. Ireland reaffirmed their credentials as the world's Number One side with a fantastic display to stun France in a 32-19 Six Nations victory.

Which players stood out for Ireland in the French clash? Hugo Keenan. Did so well for the opening try and showed great pace for Hansen's chance.

One super restart take, as well as a key tackle on Fickou and a try-saver on Penaud. Carried hard and just kept on putting in the hits, making 13 before he left the field for Tom O’Toole. In position for another great kick to the backfield, which caused chaos early on, and then, well, a spectacular finish for his try, though somewhat lucky to get it. The Leinster centre had another influential game and surged through for the bonus-point try. Involved in an early wrap-around and some good defensive work as well as his half charge down in the lead-up to Lowe’s score. Did so well for the opening try and showed great pace for Hansen’s chance.

Ireland 32-19 France: The 2023 Six Nations title could well be heading to Dublin after a brilliant win for Andy Farrell's Ireland.

Andy Farrell's side laid down a Six Nations marker with a 32-19 defeat of France in a back-and-forth encounter.

It stayed that way through much of the second half, when the game had an altogether different flavour. That made it 13-12 and the game lurched further Ireland’s way when Atonio was shown a yellow card for a high tackle on Rob Herring, who left the field with a brain injury. Everyone was still waiting for the replays on the big screens when France got themselves into trouble from the restart. Another penalty cut the lead to one point, then Damian Penaud snatched it back with one of the great freewheeling tries. It was a half that spun and twisted in the wind, all wild breaks, walloping collisions, frantic tackles and fingertip passes. It was Ireland’s first victory against France in three years, and the first, by anyone, anywhere, since the summer of 2021.

Ireland took a big step towards the Six Nations title and put down a marker ahead of the World Cup later this year as they battled to a thrilling 32-19 win ...