Preview: France v Ireland

Ireland will seek their first win in Paris in ten years in round two of their Six Nations title defence at the Stade de France on Saturday.

Ireland will seek their first win in Paris in ten years in round two of their Six Nations title defence at the Stade de France on Saturday.

It's the clash we've all been talking up for weeks. It's BOD v Bastareaud, Heaslip v Harinordoquy, the champs against their biggest challengers…and it could well be the championships decider.

It's early days yet, I know, and England will probably head the standings on Monday morning, but in most punters' opinions France and Ireland are the favourites for the title.

So where do we start? The teams' last meeting might be a good place to begin. Ireland won 30-21 at Croke Park in probably the most entertaining game of last year's tournament (assuming you can put emotional arguments about the final-day encounter at the Millennium aside).

Brian O'Driscoll and Gordon D'Arcy each ran in a try as the Irish registered their first triumph against Les Bleus in seven Tests. Much of the Irish hopes will again rest on the shoulders of Leinster's midfield as they test an opposition duo with far less experienced as a combination but who are potentially as, or even more, dangerous.

The big question is will France use the rush defence they did against Scotland? Yannick Jauzion and Mathieu Bastareaud came charging up last week, shutting down the Scottish midfield before it had time to think twice. It's a tactic that looks great when it works, but can leave you cleaning egg off your face when it doesn't.

The sight of Bastareaud hurtling headlong in O'Driscoll's direction will have armchair technicians on the edge of their seats.

Yet, France could be playing with fire if they decide to come racing up again. While it will certainly put Ronan O'Gara under pressure, the Irish fly-half is very good at the little chips and dinks that could expose a defensive line that jumps the gun.

Of course we've fallen into that old trap of waxing on about the French backs when the real story lies up front.

There were fears that the Irish scrum would buckle against the Azzurri last week, but Cian Healy and co. didn't get the pasting some were expecting. Saturday could be an even tougher challenge though because this is one serious French pack.

The Springboks were bullied in November and Scotland's scrum was hammered last week. The All Blacks seemed to have the best answer to the Bleus heavies – they simply run around them.

While Ireland's side shows just two changes to the XV that ran out last year, France have no less than four changes to their backs and another four in the pack.

It would be fair to say Ireland haven't made massive strides forward in a year – which is fair enough considering they won a Grand Slam and beat the world champs in 2009 – but France have taken a step up since that loss in Dublin – which is equally understandable considering their room for improvement.

Connect the dots and it's not hard to see that we're in a for a close contest at the Stade de France.

Just don't mention the soccer. No, seriously, don't even think about mentioning it. We don't care. In fact we hope the French use their hands as much as possible.

Players to watch:

For France: One of the big criticisms of France's performances in recent times has been their lack of variety, especially from fly-half François Trinh-Duc. But in wing/full-back Alexis Palisson they have a true wild card. Not only does the 22-year-old provide an extra goal-kicking option but he'll bring the 'French unpredictability' that certain scribes claim to be longing for. If you're looking for backline firepower, Palisson is a loose cannon.

For Ireland: Stephen Ferris has been in wars of late. Ireland were given a huge boost on Thursday when he was cleared as fit to play after being in doubt with a knee injury all week. He's also been on the wrong end of plenty of foul play in the last few months. Keep an eye out to make sure he doesn't get gouged/stomped/raked/bitten/punched/asked on a date…

Head-to-head: Jamie Heaslip's battle with Imanol Harinordoquy – both of whom scored in last year's clash – is set to be monumental as Europe's best number eights go head to head. Harinordoquy was immense against Scotland, earning himself the man-of-the-match award, while Heaslip's try was the high point of a dour game against Italy. Set to spearhead their respective sides' attacks, their tussle could be decisive.

Prediction: Ireland have beaten the les Bleus on French soil just once (in March 2000) since 1972. History has a way of repeating itself, so we'll back the hosts. France to win by a whisker.

Previous results:

2009: Ireland won 30-21 at Croke Park, Dublin
2008: France won 26-21 at Stade de France, Paris
2007: France won 25-3 at Stade de France, Paris (RWC)
2007: France won 20-17 at Croke Park, Dublin
2006: France won 43-31 at Stade de France, Paris
2005: France won 26-19 at Lansdowne Rd, Dublin
2004: France won 35-17 at Stade de France, Paris
2003: France won 43-21 at Colonial Stadium, Melbourne (RWC)
2003: Ireland won 15-12 at Lansdowne Rd, Dublin
2002:France won 44-5 at Stade de France, Paris
2001:Ireland won 22-15 at Lansdowne Rd, Dublin
2000: Ireland won 27-25 at Stade de France, Paris
1999: France won 10-9 at Lansdowne Rd, Dublin
1998: France won 18-16 at Stade de France, Paris

The teams:

France:15 Clement Poitrenaud, 14 Vincent Clerc, 13 Mathieu Bastareaud, 12 Yannick Jauzion, 11 Alexis Palisson, 10 François Trinh-Duc, 9 Morgan Parra, 8 Imanol Harinordoquy, 7 Fulgence Ouedraogo, 6 Thierry Dusautoir (c), 5 Pascal Pape, 4 Lionel Nallet, 3 Nicolas Mas, 2 William Servat, 1 Thomas Domingo.
Replacements:16 Dimitri Szarzewski, 17 Sylvain Marconnet, 18 Julien Pierre, 19 Julien Bonnaire, 20 Frederic Michalak, 21 David Marty, 22 Julien Malzieu.

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Stephen Ferris , 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Leo Cullen, 3 John Hayes, 2 Jerry Flannery, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements: 16 Rory Best, 17 Tom Court, 18 Donnacha Ryan, 19 Sean O'Brien, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Jonathan Sexton, 22 Paddy Wallace

Date:Saturday, February 13
Venue: Stade de France, St. Denis (Paris)
Kick-off: 17.30 (16:30 GMT)
Weather: 2°C: Cloudy and cold but dry.
Referee:Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees: Nigel Owens (Wales), Stuart Terheege (England)
Television match officials:Giulio De Santis (Italy)
Assessor:Michel Lamoulie (France)

By Ross Hastie