Ireland…………………………. 32pts
Tries: Keenan 9, Lowe 21, Porter 26, Ringrose 72 Conversions: Sexton 11, 27; Byrne 74 Penalties: Sexton 41, Byrne 60
France…………………………… 19pts
Tries: Penaud 18 Conversions: Ramos 19 Penalties: Ramos 5, 15, 33 Drop-goal: Ramos 62
Matched between top teams often resemble a firework that splutters and dies, an anti-climax after a big build-up.
This encounter between the top two teams in the world rankings was not one of them as both teams went for it from the outset as if intent on showing that the inter national game was not dominated by defences.
Something had to give with Ireland looking for a record 13th successive home victory and France chasing a 13th straight success after an unbeaten 2022. The lead changed hands three times in the opening 26 minutes as both teams showed invention in broken play, finding space through deception and pace rather than charging at the closest opponent.
Players barely had a chance to catch their breath in a game of a mere 26 set-pieces and a lung-busting 241 rucks and mauls. With Ireland prompted by their evergreen captain Johnny Sexton and France by Antoine Dupont, there was no let-up in the first half which produced four tries, three after moves of the highest quality.
They both went at it from the off, no feeling each other out in an opening quarter phoney war. Ireland had not defeated France in the Andy Farrell era, a failing they rectified in style.
That they did so without players who have played a central role in their rise to the top of the rankings, such as Tadhg Furlong, Jamison Gibson-Park and Robbie Henshaw, showed not only the depth they have developed but a system that players are comfortable with.
Furlong was expected to be a big loss but in steps Finlay Bealham. And there he was eight minutes in standing 30 metres in front of the posts of France who had taken the lead with an early Thomas Ramos penalty. It was broken play, not the remains of a set-piece, and the prop fixed his opposite number Uini Atonio as Peter O'Mahony made a run on his outside.
Bealham waited an instant and then passed inside to full-back Hugo Keenan who was accelerating towards a gap in the defensive wall. The pass found him and Keenan did not have to break his stride on his run to the line.
It set the tone for the rest of the half with both teams revelling in unstructured play rather than resorting to their set-piece playbook.
France had to respond and they did in style. After Ramos had kicked his second penalty, Keenan kicked to France's 22. Romain Ntamack's pass to Ramos went to ground but the full-back shipped it on to Damian Penaud who cut inside and set off for halfway.
He found Anthony Jelonch in support and the flanker brushed off Johnny Sexton as he rampaged towards the home 22. He stayed on his feet and slipped the ball back to Penaud who had the strength to ride challenges from Mack Hansen and Conor Murray and give his side the lead.
It did not last long. France made a hash of the restart and when Ireland moved the ball left, they had deep lying runners against a narrow defence. Garry Ringrose, who has matured into an outside-centre of rare quality, threw a long pass to James Lowe.
The wing had a 20-metre run to the line but Penaud to beat. He looked to be running out of space but leapt out of the challenge, touching the ball down close to the ingoal line as his feet hovered above the touchline.
The referee Wayne Bar nes, whose handsoff approach helped the game breathe, awarded the try after a lack of conclusive evidence that Lowe's right foot had brushed the grass just before he applied downward pressure. A camera angle later showed that there had been contact, but it was a try worthy of the occasion.
Sexton's conversion drifted wide but Ireland did not have long to wait before regaining the lead. After Atonio was sent to the sin-bin for a high challenge on Rob Herring which ended the hooker's match as he failed a head injury assessment, Ireland tur ned a penalty into a scrum and prop Andrew Porter, who led the team out with James Ryan to mark their 50th caps, piled over.
Ramos and Sexton exchanged penalties to make it 22-16 at the end of one of the most enterprising halves in the Six Nations era. The second period was more a game of chess but Ireland gradually gained dominance, helped by France kicking long when nothing was on and hoping to make something of the retur n.
The French continued to be narrow and fears when Sexton went off after 48 minutes that Ireland would lose their focus amounted to nothing. Ross Byr ne kept France pegged back, exploiting wing Ethan Dumortier's poor positioning with a series of kicks and Keenan achieved a 50-22.
France became increasingly desperate. Byr ne's penalty after 59 minutes took them out of bonus point territory, but Ramos's drop-goal brought them back to within six points. The benches were always going to be crucial but while Ireland's had players who made a difference, such as Jack Conan, Craig Casey, Byr ne, Tom O'Toole and Iain Henderson, France's replacements offered nothing more than endeavour. Still, with Dupont roaming the field and Penaud waiting for another opportunity, a team that has become renowned for its strong finishes needed to be seen off.
Step up Ringrose. He had earlier been seen catching his breath in a rare lull in the action and Farrell said afterwards that he was dead on his feet. But when he received a pass from Conan on the left with five minutes to go, he found something extra in reserve.
France were desperately trying to get across and Ringrose first left Mathieu Jalibert clutching air before overcoming the more difficult feat of getting through the replacement back rower Sekou Macalou who had earlier made a number of crunching tackles.
Macalou got into position and went low, but this was Ireland's day and Ringrose had the power to ride the challenge and get to the line, finding the energy to get close to the posts for Byr ne to convert and seal victory on a compelling after noon when both sides showed why they are above the rest.
