Sexton puts onus on ref Owens to keep French physicality in check

Jonathan Sexton will be hoping referee Nigel Owens can offer him protection this weekend from French heads and elbows that have previously left him battered and bruised.

Ireland are bracing themselves for another intensely physical contest France when the Six Nations rivals clash in Cardiff on Sunday to decide who wins the World Cup Pool D.

And for fly-half Sexton, that means another potentially bruising encounter with French powerhouse centre Mathieu Bastareaud.