Bernard Jackman reckons that Ireland are set to face one of the sport’s toughest challenges when they take on France in the decisive Six Nations clash next weekend.
Despite the game taking place at the Aviva Stadium, the well-respected pundit insists that Simon Easterby’s men are set for a stern examination.
The Irish may have struggled at times in their victory over Wales in the third match of the tournament, but they have been otherwise imperious.
Ireland sit at the top of the Six Nations standings with three successive wins and are on course for another Grand Slam, but Jackman is wary of the threat France will pose.
‘It’s certainly complicated’
“France overload certain areas with a lot of big powerful men and can often be really narrow in the their attacking alignment,” he wrote in his Irish Independent column.
“Those areas are normally where Antoine Dupont decides to attack and while he is the best player in the world for me it’s also remarkable how France play to his strengths and it’s probably why he looks better when he has a club teammate in Romain Ntamack or Thomas Ramos at outhalf rather than UBB’s Jalibert as they seem to let him do his thing.
“We can beat France but it’s going to be up there with trying to beat the Springboks or All Blacks in terms of difficulty.
“The most common response I got when I asked members of the French public about the match in the Aviva was ‘C’est complique’. It’s certainly complicated.”
Ireland and France have been at the top of the European game for the past few years, while they have also mixed it with southern hemisphere giants New Zealand and South Africa.
The French struggled at Test level in the 2010s but their resurgence is of no surprise to Jackman, who has seen their development as a nation.
“When I landed in Grenoble in 2011, the level of professionalism across the board was mixed. Breakfast for some of our players involved the three Cs, café, croissant and a cigarette!” he wrote.
“That’s not the case now. Huge work has been done at all levels of French rugby in terms of coaching, talent identification, sports science and the mental side of the game — the results are there to see.
“France are regularly producing exceptional underage sides along with club teams that are some of the best in the world.”
Shaun Edwards’ influence
France great Fabien Galthie may well be the current head honcho but their defence is led by an Englishman, former Wales and Wasps coach Shaun Edwards.
He has played a key role in the team’s improvement and Jackman looked at how Ireland could potentially get through that rearguard and take away the French threat.
“One coach who has stayed on is the brilliant defence coach Shaun Edwards who has given France a level of detail and discipline in defence that they often lacked before his arrival,” he added.
“Edwards is famous for his blitz defence but in France’s three games so far it hasn’t been anywhere near as aggressive as it was in the past which is very interesting given it hasn’t changed much in the 15 years that he has coached it successfully at Wasps, Wales and now France. How Ireland see that defence and where and how they try and exploit it will be fascinating.
“Ireland’s game is also evolving with passes and carries statistically down and kicking up on how we played last year. But it may be easier to get the ball to the wider channels on Saturday and we may look to keep the ball in hand more and try and take away the counter-attacking opportunities that France would love from receiving kicks.”
