Ireland v France
Musgrave Park, Cork
Result: Ireland 3 France 53
Player of the Match: Pauline Bourdon
In the 20th minute a red card was shown – to France.
Those two conflicting facts (result and card) show us the yawning gaps that lie between the six competing nations, with Ireland suffering most direly of all at present.
Their current form may account for the less than full stadium that is Munster’s pride and joy. When the IRFU settled on a third and fourth consecutive use of Musgrave Park, they must have been imagining happier times. Still, over 5,000 came along.
On debut at full-back Morgane Bourgeois was involved early, having to net a searching downwind kick by Dannah O’Brien. She managed it well to set her side on the march. It took them eight minutes to score their first try, from Audrey Forlani, who seems a player renewed after her appointment as skipper.
We saw French handling at its best here. Marine Ménager and Cyrielle Banet made dangerous half-breaks, then Carla Arbez hoisted a searching kick into the backfield. The bounce favoured Caroline Boujard, who had the skill to get over the line.
That move alone revealed the inexperience of the Irish backs: only one player was anywhere near where the ball landed; where were the rest of the back-three?
The French were full of invention, running lines that the defence found hard to predict. Ménager cut back inside as if she back been watching a Scarratt highlights reel.
When Ireland did mount a raid, they offered a lot of pick-and-goes, but the moment the ball was spread wide there was a handling error.
Red means Danger
Then came the incident that should have proved decisive. Annaëlle Deshayes made a dangerously high tackle for which there could be no possible mitigation. Once more Hollie Davidson had to show red.
O’Brien kicked the penalty, but sadly that was to prove the end of Irish scoring.
As has happened all too often before, this reignited the infringing team’s endeavours. The French pack was holding the Irish eight comfortably, and the backs had far too much pace and trickery for their young opponents.
More wonderful handling included an astonishing back-hand flick, and Pauline Bourdon was mistress of all she surveyed. As she waved to her backs to move across, the captain picked the ball up instead, crashed through the first line of defence and fed Bourdon who went over.
In the 14 minutes to half-time les Bleues crossed for two more tries. The writing was truly on the wall. They would have the wind in their favour after the break, and — who could tell? – Jessy Trémoulière might be allowed on to exploit it.
Half-time: Ireland 3 France 27 (bonus point already wrapped up)
One opinion at the break was that the Irish were playing better than they had against Wales. Let’s call that a compliment to the French. Molly Scuffil-McCabe, now the first-choice No 9, was far too laboured at the base of the rucks; she speeded up later, but the link to the backs remained a weakness throughout.
Certainly O’Brien impressed with the quality of her kicking, but outside her it was a different tale.
There was encouragement for the hosts when they heaved the French pack rearwards for the first time, to win a penalty. But that proved an isolated moment of superiority.
Both teams made changes unusually early, on 50 minutes. They brought Trémoulière into action, and she took full advantage of the breeze. There was an unexpected debut for Emma Swords, who was a late replacement for Nicole Cronin.
Agathe Sochat was on the end of a long drive to stretch the lead to 3-34. Trémoulière aimed two long kicks: one bounced away over the dead-ball line (she smiled a wry smile); the second pulled up a metre short of the try-line to put her team in the driving seat again.
More French efficiency as Forlani caught a line-out; the drive rumbled forwards, then a long pass found Banet completely unmarked on the edge.
Irish desperation was shown when Meabh Deely failed to stop Banet first time, then hung on to her hair in a second attempt. Result: Yellow, so now at last it was 14 v 14.
In the final ten minutes France added two more tries to total nine. Gabrielle Vernier, who had another outstanding day – her tackles must be the most powerful, pound for pound, in world rugby – ran another clever line, then Charlotte Escudero showed her No 8 skills in controlling the ball at a fast moving scrum fo register the last try.
Teams
Ireland
15 Meabh Deely (Blackrock College), 14. Aoife Doyle (Railway Union), 13. Aoife Dalton (Old Belvedere), 12. Vicky Irwin (Sale Sharks), 11. Natasja Behan (Blackrock College), 10. Dannah O’Brien (Old Belvedere), 9. Molly Scuffil-McCabe (Railway Union), 1. Linda Djougang (Old Belvedere), 2. Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury), 3. Christy Haney (Blackrock College), 4. Nichola Fryday (captain, Exeter Chiefs), 5. Sam Monaghan (Gloucester-Hartpury), 6. Dorothy Wall (Blackrock College), 7. Grace Moore (Saracens), 8. Deirbhile Nic a Bháird (Old Belvedere)
Bench:
16. *Clara Nielson (Exeter Chiefs), 17. Sadhbh McGrath (City of Derry/Cooke), 18. *Kathryn Buggy (Gloucester-Hartpury), 19. Hannah O’Connor (Blackrock College), 20. Brittany Hogan (Old Belvedere), 21. Emma Swords (Harlequins), 22. Anna McGann (Railway Union), 23. Lauren Delany (Sale Sharks)
*uncappeed
Just caps 215 all told, less than 10 per player! High time the IRFU offered the squad some more tours.
France
1 Annaëlle Deshayes 2 Agathe Sochat 3 Clara Joyeux 4 Manaé Feleu 5 Audrey Forlani (captain) 6 Axelle Berthoumieu 7 Emeline Gros 8 Charlotte Escudero 9 Pauline Bourdon 10 Carla Arbez 11 Cyrielle Banet 12 Gabrielle Vernier 13 Marine Ménager 14 Caroline Boujard 15 Morgane Bourgeois
Bench:
16 *Élisa Riffoneau 17 Coco Lindelauf 18 Assia Khalfaoui 19 Maëlle Picut 20 Gaëlle Hermet 21 Alexandra Chambon 22 Jessy Trémoulière 23 Marie Dupouy
*uncapped
Officials:
Referee: Hollie Davidson (SRU) AR 1: Sara Cox (RFU)
AR 2: Maria Heitor (PORT) TMO: Ben Whitehouse (WRU)
Attendance: 5,214
Afterthoughts
This was Dannah O’Brien’s first 6N start after she made such an impression last year, and she’s still a teenager.
Enya Breen was another player to suffer a tournament-ending injury in Round One. Commiserations to her.
Post-match the Irish management emphasised the slow rebuild that was underway. The question remains: why are they starting from so far back? What would the score have been if all the 7s players had been in Cork rather than Hong Kong, trying to secure an Olympic place? I won’t attempt an answer.
A note for left-handers / left-footers:
For the second week running we had the delight of seeing two left-footed No 10s. Last time it was Italy-France.
