SECOND WAVE
Impact from bench will be vital as France and Ireland tool up for ‘war of attrition’
THE modern game is littered with technical jargon. And the terms for the bench are no different. Fair dues to this Irish set-up, they have stuck with ‘replacements’ as the official and, frankly, most logical name for the eight players who play back-up to the starting line-up.
That hasn’t stopped other clubs and national outfits polluting inboxes and social media with no shortage of ridiculous terms, mind you. ‘Finishers’, ‘impact players’, ‘specialists’ and ‘Bomb Squad’ are just some of the alternative titles for, essentially, the cast of replacement players in the matchday squad.
The terminology may have reached farcical levels of late, but the influence of the bench has never been so stark.
It’s truly a 23-player game these days. Andy Farrell and Fabien Galthie are going to be moving chess pieces around the Stade Vélodrome turf for the best part of 80 minutes tomorrow evening.
There are fascinating match-ups across both teams.
However, it’s the impact of the respective benches which may swing this first-round fixture in Marseille.
For the first time in his tenure, Farrell has elected to select six forwards on the bench, leaving Conor Murray and Ciarán Frawley to plug any holes across the backline for the duration.
Is it a risk? Of course. If an outside back goes down with an early injury, then it leaves Farrell very short of options later in the contest. Then again, we think Ryan Baird could do a decent shift on the wing, if backs begin to drop like flies under the Friday night lights.
Farrell is hedging his bets. He knows that this heavyweight French pack — ably assisted by six extra hefty forwards among the replacements — will attempt to bulldoze the visitors early on.
The Ireland head coach has backed the usual suspects — led by the old warhorse in Peter O’Mahony — and infused with the muscularity of Joe McCarthy to weather the early French storm and stay in the fight.
When things settle down in the second half and fatigue begins to creep in, Farrell will begin to send the cavalry into action.
It’s quite the roster. It certainly did the Springboks no harm. A huge factor in their back-to-back
World Cup successes was the enormous impact of their monstrous ‘Bomb Squad’ bench. Many would argue that South Africa finished games with a more imposing unit then the one which lined up for first the first kick-off.
Interestingly, Leinster — with Jacques Nienaber now on board — have become fond of the 6/2 spilt on match days as well. No one can argue with the results.
By the time we reach the final quarter of this match, the likes of Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong, McCarthy,
O’Mahony and Josh van der Flier are all likely to be sitting in the stands.
It will be Ronan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, James Ryan, Baird and Jack Conan looking to finish the job against a French pack who will implement the same tactics.
Will is be enough to claim a first Six Nations win on French soil since 2018? Les Bleus have muscled up for this one, too. The hosts have stacked their forward ranks with some gnarly personnel. The front five, in particular, is a serious crew of bruisers, from giant tighthead Uini Atonio to South Africanborn lock Paul Willemse.
Stade Francais second row Paul Gabrillagues has been brought back into the fold for the first time since 2019 — and a maiden appearance on Galthie’s watch — seemingly because he has the extra bulk for this opening assignment.
The backrow unit of Francois Cros, Charles Ollivon and Gregory Alldritt is a well balanced and established unit.
And they are ably assisted by the bench.
France will lose nothing when Julian Marchand replaces Mauvaka, his Toulouse teammate. Marchand is a serious player and would walk into most international teams. Then there’s La Rochelle loosehead Reda Wardi and Toulouse tighthead Dorian Aldegheri, two of the most renowned scrummagers in the Top14.
Can a 36-year-old Healy and Bealham, very much a welterweight when it comes to the frontrow, keep that pair quiet at scrum time? It’s a big ask.
Romain Taofifenua, Cameron
Woki, Paul Boudehent are all waiting in reserve, too. Woki, in particular, could cause havoc at lineout time later in the contest, particularly if Ireland’s set-piece — which creaked throughout the World Cup — begins to fray around the edges again.
Word on the street is this French team will seek to play with a bit more freedom in this tournament.
Galthie’s squad, for all their talents and achievements in recent years, apparently got a bit too obsessed with current trends and data.
They became too concerned with kicking the ball and playing to preconceived tactics.
Even without their mercurial scrum-half Antoine Dupont, who is away on Olympics duty, they are set to play with some of the old verve and throw off the tactical shackles.
Some things never go out of fashion, though. The French have always relished the forward battle, especially in the set-piece.
They have drawn a line in the sand with this squad selection. Still hurting from their World Cup failure on home soil, they are planning to take four months of frustration out on the defending champions. There is also the small matter of last season’s defeat in Dublin.
The French are in vengeful mood and they have picked a crew of hard men who love to dish out punishment.
A French stadium can be a lonely place for the opposition when the home side are on top. The noise is deafening as attacks come in waves. Once the French get in the mood, it’s hard to stem to tide.
Ireland, with a rookie at No10 and on the right wing, shorn of Garry Ringrose and placing their faith in a captain whose future beyond next season looks uncertain, could be vulnerable to an oldfashioned ambush in Marseilles.
Whether they’re still in the game or chasing it, the replacements are going to have a big say on this championship clash.
Farrell predicted a ‘war of attrition’ yesterday. He has loaded up with as much artillery as he can. The worry is that their opponents possess a bit more firepower across the board. IRELAND: H Keenan; C Nash, R Henshaw, B Aki, J Lowe; J Crowley, J Gibson-Park; A Porter, D Sheehan, T Furlong; J McCarthy, T Beirne; P O’Mahony (capt), J van der Flier, C Doris. Reps: R Kelleher, C Healy, F Bealham, J Ryan, R Baird, J Conan, C Murray, C Frawley. FRANCE: T Ramos; D Penaud, G Fickou, J Danty, Y Moefana; M Jalibert, M Lucu; C Baille, P Mauvaka, U Atonio; P Gabrillagues, P Willemse; F Cros, C Ollivon, G Alldritt (capt). Reps: J Marchand, R Wardi, D Aldegheri, R Taofifenua, C Woki, P Boudenhent, N Le Garrec, L Bielle-Biarrey.
Referee: K Dickson (England).