France achieved a real feat by beating Ireland 42-27 in style in a Round 4 match of the 2025 Six Nations Tournament. Ireland were well beaten on the day, and yellow cards for Joe McCarthy and Calvin Nash proved costly.
The highly anticipated clash between Ireland and France, two contenders for the Six Nations Championship, lived up to expectations and after a first quarter of an hour under pressure, France raised their heads thanks to a try by Louis Bielle-Biarrey.
The French defence withstood the Irish attacks and decisive tackles and flawless organization had them leading 08-06 at the halftime break following converted penalties, one by Thomas Ramos (France) and two by the Irish flyhalf Sam Prendergast.
After the break, Ireland's Dan Sheehan found the gap and took the lead for the last time in the game.
With a big impact from their bench, France scored three spectacular tries in twelve minutes, and the Blues' mastery rewarded the French offensive drive when Boudehent, player-of-the-match Bielle-Biarrey and replacement Oscar Jegou added their names to the score-sheet.
Whether it was through actions built from the halfway line or through lightning counter-attacks, the Blues demonstrated remarkable creativity and efficiency.
A late trie by Damian Penaud secured France a 42-13 lead with six minutes still to play.
Ireland tried to make a last stand in the final six minutes. Led by their forwards, they crossed the French goal line twice with tries by Cian Healy and Jack Conan, reducing the gap on the scoreboard.
By winning 27-42 at the Aviva Stadium, France recorded one of its most convincing away victories in recent years.
Scorers:
Ireland: Tries: Dan Sheehan, Cian Healy, Jack Conan. Conversions: Sam Prendergast (3). Penalties: Sam Prendergast (2).
France: Tries: Louis Bielle-Biarrey (2), Paul Boudehent, Oscar Jegou, Damian Penaud. Conversions: Thomas Ramos (3). Penalties: Thomas Ramos (4).
Teams:
Ireland: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Jamie Osborne, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Sam Prendergast, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris (c), 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Finlay Bealham, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter. Replacements: 16 Rob Herring, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Thomas Clarkson, 19 James Ryan, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Ryan Baird, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Jack Crowley.
France: 15 Thomas Ramos, 14 Damian Penaud, 13 Pierre-Louis Barassi, 12 Yoram Moefana, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 10 Romain Ntamack, 9 Antoine Dupont (c), 8 Gregory Alldritt, 7 Paul Boudehent, 6 Francois Cros, 5 Mickael Guillard, 4 Thibaud Flament, 3 Uini Atonio, 2 Peato Mauvaka, 1 Jean-Baptiste Gros. Replacements: 16 Julien Marchand, 17 Cyril Baille, 18 Dorian Aldegheri, 19 Emmanuel Meafou, 20 Hugo Auradou, 21 Oscar Jegou, 22 Anthony Jelonch, 23 Maxime Lucu.
