Paris promises an affair to remember

BACKS coach Alan Gaffney is hoping Ireland can claim what would be a rare win in Paris in style after last weekend’s stuttering start to the defence of the Six Nations title.

Declan Kidney’s side engineered a 23-3 lead in the first half against Italy last Saturday but they failed to kick on from there in what was an unimpressive all-round performance.

That was partly down to the Italians, who travelled to Dublin with limited ambition but the same will hardly apply in the Stade de France between two sides who have concocted highly entertaining contests in recent meetings.

“Last year, it was the first-up game where the game did open up and it was a positive, entertaining game,” said Gaffney. “We scored three tries to two, and they were quite good tries, the two the French scored and the three we scored.

“Away from the tries there was individual stuff which gave everyone a buzz, team-wise. The game may open up that way, I hope it does. We don’t want it to develop into a game of sevens but a good entertaining game of rugby.”

The game in general hasn’t been helped by recent rule changes and confusion in the breakdown area which has left teams over-reliant on kicking and the Italy match at Croke Park was no different.

Ireland were as culpable as the visitors for the aerial ping-pong that blighted the second half three days ago, however, and Gaffney is hopeful that a talented Irish back division has more to smile about second time around.

“We just didn’t get our act together to put those plays together (against Italy). We weren’t trying to hold things back. The menu we had for the weekend was the menu we didn’t touch upon too much as the game went on.

“That was for a variety of circumstantial reasons. It wasn’t because we were holding back. We would have liked to have played the plays. That was one of the disappointing aspects but it wasn’t a lack of intent, we just didn’t quite get control of the game.”

France, too, bear the look of a side that has much more in their locker despite winning away in Edinburgh, although Ireland will surely present a greater threat than the committed but toothless Scots.

Figuring out just how to go about it is another thing. The French’s reputation for being unpredictable all too often spills over into the realm of cliché but it extends beyond their penchant for flair.

Gaffney recalled yesterday how he had studied France’s defence during the 2008 autumn internationals only to find that the structures and patterns used during come the Six Nations were completely different.

“We’ve got a pretty good handle on what we think they’ll do but, with the French, expect the unexpected. We should have the ability of adapting if we need to against whatever defensive system they throw up against us.

“There are areas we can have a go, irrespective of which defensive pattern they use. We will go out there and attack France, without doubt.”

The uncertainty over the opposition extends to their personnel as well. By Gaffney’s reckoning, Marc Lievremont has utilised five different centre and back-three combinations in their last half a dozen games.

That sort of tinkering goes some way towards explaining why Les Bleus could beat New Zealand by five points in Dunedin last summer and then lose to the same opposition by 27 in Marseille five months later.

“There’s quality there and strength, we know that. The French have always had a lot of depth and quality players. It’s whether they can put it on the paddock on the day.

“It’s going to be up to us to ensure that doesn’t happen. We’ve got a good side ourselves. We know that and we’ve got to play to our full potential to get the result we want.”

One man who must surely be guaranteed to start again next weekend is Mathieu Bastareaud who marked his return to national colours after suspension with two tries against Andy Robinson’s Scotland at Murrayfield.

The French centre’s sheer size and try-scoring abilities are somewhat reminiscent of Jonah Lomu and it will be fascinating to see how he fares against the likes of Brian O’Driscoll and Gordon D’Arcy.

“We’ve got three very experienced guys depending on who we pick with Brian O’Driscoll, Gordon D’Arcy and Paddy Wallace in midfield. He’s a good player, a strong player, there’s no doubt. He hasn’t played a lot of international rugby.

“His last game before Sunday was 13th June in the summer when he played strongly again. He’ll be a tough nut to crack but, alternatively, I can’t deny the quality of the people we’ve got so I’d be thinking they may be thinking the same thing.”