Preview: France v Ireland

Jacques Brunel’s reign as France’s new head coach gets underway when they host Ireland in their Six Nations opener in Paris on Saturday.

France have it all to do and despite playing on their home turf, they will be underdogs for this encounter as they face formidable opponents, who are currently in third place in World Rugby’s official rankings, while les Bleus are in unfamiliar territory in ninth spot.

Brunel took over as coach from Guy Novès in December but although he has had very little time to prepare his charges for the tournament, he has showed that he is not afraid to make bold decisions by picking a relatively inexperienced squad for this crucial encounter.

Much has been said about the former Italy boss’ decision to hand a Test debut to teenage fly-half Matthieu Jalibert whose battle with his direct opponent, veteran pivot Johnny Sexton will be one of the highlights of the match.

And although most of the attention will be on Jalibert, Brunel believes the youngster will give a good account of himself.

“We felt he was ready to play at this level,” he said.

“There is no reason not to start him. We think he is capable of taking this responsibility.

“The Irish will have watched the tapes and said to themselves: ‘who is this guy?’. He will have to adapt a bit, knowing the Irish will go after him a little.”

The visitors will be brimming in confidence after some superb results during the November internationals as well as the impressive form of PRO14 heavyweights Leinster and Munster in the Champions Cup.

Those two Irish provinces provide the majority of the players for Ireland’s squad and they will be hoping to replicate their club form in the international arena.

Under the guidance of their head coach, Joe Schmidt, Ireland have developed into a confident and accomplished side and they will be hoping to hit the ground running this weekend as they aim to win the competition for the first time since 2015.

Players to Watch

For France: Young fly-half Matthieu Jalibert will be under tremendous pressure when he runs out for his Test debut at a packed Stade de France. Despite being only 19, Jalibert caught Brunel’s attention when he coached him at Bordeaux-Bègles and the France U20 stalwart will have to hit the ground running in this clash. Jalibert’s excellent playmaking skills have helped him make waves in the Top 14 and he will be expected to replicate that form in this encounter.

For Ireland: If the visitors want to start their campaign on a winning note, Conor Murray will have to be in fine form. The 28-year-old has proven to be the perfect link between forwards and backs with his excellent decision making and kicking out of hand particularly impressive. Murray was in superb form for his country and the British and Irish Lions at Test level in 2017 and if he can continue where he left off last year, he could prove a handful for les Bleus.

Head-to-head: While there are plenty of exciting showdowns across the park – especially in the back-line – the front row battle between France’s Rabah Slimani and Cian Healy of Ireland will be a crucial one as both players are vital cogs in their respective teams. On reputation, Slimani has the edge at the setpiece as he is the stronger scrummager but Healy is no slouch in that department and will be determined to gain the upper-hand and in doing so, help his side gain a psychological advantage.

Previous results:

2017: Ireland won 19-9 in Dublin
2016: France won 10-9 in Paris
2015: Ireland won 24-9 in Cardiff (RWC)
2015: Ireland won 18-11 in Dublin
2014: Ireland won 22-20 in Paris
2013: The sides drew 13-13 in Dublin
2012: The sides drew 17-17 in Paris
2011: France won 26-22 in Dublin
2011: France won 19-12 in Bordeaux

Prediction: With Brunel in charge of his first game, there will be plenty of optimisim in France’s ranks but Ireland will still get the better of them. Ireland to win by six points.

The teams:

France: 15 Geoffrey Palis, 14 Teddy Thomas, 13 Rémi Lamerat, 12 Henry Chavancy, 11 Virimi Vakatawa, 10 Matthieu Jalibert, Maxime Machenaud, 8 Kevin Gourdon, 7 Yacouba Camara, 6 Wenceslas Lauret, 5 Sébastien Vahaamahina, 4 Arthur Iturria, 3 Rabah Slimani, 2 Guilhem Guirado (c), Jefferson Poirot
Replacements: 16 Adrien Pelissié, 17 Dany Priso, 18 Cedate Gomes Sa, 19 Paul Gabrillagues, 20 Marco Tauleigne, 21 Antoine Dupont, 22 Anthony Belleau, 23 Benjamin Fall

Ireland: 15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 James Ryan, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements: 16 Sean Cronin, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 John Ryan, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Dan Leavy, 21 Luke McGrath, 22 Joey Carbery, 23 Fergus McFadden

Date: Saturday, February 3
Venue: Stade de France, Paris
Kick-off: 17:45 local (16:45 GMT)
Referee: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees: Wayne Barnes (England), Paul Williams (New Zealand)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (England)