Les Bleus start and finish with a flourish as Farrell's abject Ireland chase shadows in Paris

A second-half comeback sparked by replacements Nick Timoney and Michael Milne gave Ireland brief hope but a 22-point defeat on opening night leaves Farrell rapidly in need of fixes

NIGHTMARE IN PARIS: Ireland players dejected at the final whistle after the Guinness Men's Six Nations match at the Stade de France, Paris. Picture date: Thursday February 5, 2026. PA Photo. Photo credit should read: Adam Davy/PA Wire.

Guinness Six Nations: FRANCE 36 IRELAND 14 

Ireland’s 2026 Guinness Six Nations campaign got off to the worst possible start in Paris on Thursday night as defending champions France outclassed Andy Farrell’s team with a rugby masterclass.

A second-half comeback from 29-0 down after 46 minutes, sparked by tries from Six Nations debutants and replacements Nick Timoney and Michael Milne had given Ireland hope but at times the 2023 and 2024 champions could not compete with some irresistible French rugby.

Led by captain and scrum-half Antoine Dupont on his return to Six Nations action 11 months on from a serious knee injury sustained against the Irish in Dublin, France were simply too clinical for an Ireland side depleted by injury.

First-half tries from Louis Bielle-Biarrey, Mathieu Jalibert and Charles Ollivon exposed defensive frailties in the Parisian rain as Ireland were left chasing shadows and every minor error was punished, with Thomas Ramos adding two conversions and a penalty to make it 22-0 to the home side at half-time. A second from left wing Bielle-Biarrey and a last-minute try from right wing Theo Attisogbe book-ended the second half of a glittering opening to the French title defence.

Ireland will find solace from their rally in the second period, sparked by an impactful bench, but head coach Farrell will have plenty to fix ahead of their round two clash at home to Italy on Saturday week.

Ireland had actually made a confident start, with a solid scrum allaying fears for the set-piece in the absence of three looseheads and senior tighthead Tadhg Furlong.

An efficient lineout also marked an improvement on their November defeat at home to South Africa while a monster 70-metre 50-22 kick from full-back Jamie Osborne gave the visitors an excellent platform, only for Josh van der Flier to spill a short pass from a falling Sam Prendergast five metres from the tryline.

The French had made a similar error after just two minutes when lock Ollivon knocked on with the Irish tryline begging after chasing a Bielle-Biarrey chip ahead down the left wing. They would take full advantage of a loose kick to score their opening try on 11 minutes.

Sam Prendergast had made a covering run in the backfield to prevent a French 50-22 but his kicked clearance found a French shirt and the counter-attack was ruthless, Bielle-Biarrrey streaking through three challenges to score from the Irish 10-metre line, Ramos converting.

Les Bleus’ momentum was gathering, the pressure on Ireland building and they struck again from a five-metre scrum, Dupont moving the ball to fly-half Jalibert who waltzed past Sam Prendergast to score on 21 minutes.

Ramos’s conversion struck a post but the Toulouse star made no mistake with a penalty in front of the posts in the 27th minute to give France a 15-0 lead and things got worse from there. 

Attempting to run the ball out of their own half, Joe McCarthy’s failure to collect a pass had Ireland scrambling and when an under pressure Sam Prendergast sent a grubber kick into touch, a quick French throw caused havoc in the opposition defence. Ireland failed to deal with a Jalibert chip and lock Mickael Guillard collected, charging upfield before passing inside to second-row partner Ollivon, who made no mistake.

Ramos’s conversion stretched the advantage to send France into a 22-0 lead and Ireland went in at the interval needing a turnaround. Instead they went further behind, Bielle-BIarrey grabbing his second and France’s try bonus point as he collected a scrambled Dupont kick to run the ball in from the 22, waving to the capacity crowd of 80,698 as he went on his merry way. The extra two points off the tee pushed the deficit out to 29 points and Ireland were in desperate need of inspiration.

The 49th minute brought four substitutions apiece with French head coach Fabien Galthie adding bulk to his pack with a new front row and lock duo Emmanuel Meafou and Hugo Auradou. It made an immediate impact with France winning a scrum penalty but Ireland’s changes also brought a breakthrough. 

The new faces, including Jack Conan, James Ryan and Jack Crowley, who deployed at full-back, brought much-needed momentum with back-rower Timoney weaving his way through traffic to get the men in green on the scoreboard on 59 minutes. Sam Prendergast converted and Ireland crossed the line once more less than three minutes later, replacement loosehead Milne claiming his first in Test rugby in the Munster front-rower’s third appearance, just a minute after replacing his provincial team-mate Jeremy Loughman. The conversion from number 10 Prendergast closed the gap to 29-14 and suddenly Ireland were galvanised.

Another Irish attack came down on the French as the champions were again forced to dig deep in defence on their five-metre line, a knock-on in contact relieving the pressure on 72 minutes. The clock was against Ireland and that proved to be their final assault. 

Dupont left the field to a standing ovation after his first 74 minutes in Test rugby since last March as France looked to finish on a high with a fifth try, which duly came in the 80th minute as right winger Attisogbe got in on the act to the delight of the home crowd. Ramos’s touchline conversion was a fitting end to a consummate French performance as the party started at a raucous Stade de France.

FRANCE: T Ramos; T Attissogbe, N Depoortère, Y Moefana (K Gourgues, 49), L Bielle-Biarrey; M Jalibert, A Dupont – captain (B Serin, 74); J-B Gros (R Neti, 49), J Marchand (P Mauvaka, 49), D Aldegheri (R Montagne, 49); C Ollivon (H Auradou, 49), M Guillard (E Meafou, 49); F Cros (L Nouchi, 63), O Jegou, A Jelonch.

IRELAND: J Osborne (C Casey, 72); T O’Brien (J Crowley, 49), G Ringrose, S McCloskey, J Stockdale; S Prendergast, J Gibson-Park; J Loughman (M Milne, 60), D Sheehan (R Kelleher, 73), T Clarkson (F Bealham, 60); J McCarthy (J Ryan, 49), T Beirne; C Prendergast (N Timoney, 49), J van der Flier (J Conan, 49), C Doris - captain.

Referee: Karl Dickson (England).