We didn't match France's strength - Kerr

Brian Kerr admitted his Republic of Ireland players struggled to match France physically during the 1-0 defeat in Dublin.

Thierry Henry produced a moment of magic to seal the win, leaving the hosts struggling to qualify for the World Cup next year.

“I’m disappointed we lost,” Kerr told Sky Sports. “But we still have that opportunity to qualify with two games left, we need to win those and see where we are in the table.

“We worked hard and showed great commitment. There were very few chances in the game, the little bit of magic won the game.

“We don’t have great physical strength about the team, maybe all the players found it difficult to maintain the pace of the first half.

“We didn’t create enough in the second, they have big strong defenders and they gave their all – but it didn’t quite go for us.”

Henry added: “I think the result is important, the way we won wasn’t nice.

“In a way we were waiting for each other, but it’s difficult to say Ireland deserved to lose.”