Farrell takes positives from loss

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France Ireland 24

IRELAND head coach Andy Farrell insists the “competition is only just getting going” after France put themselves in pole position for Guinness Six Nations glory with a pulsating victory in Paris.

The Irish played their part in an enthralling evening of free-flowing rugby at a raucous Stade de France but ultimately fell short following a sloppy start as their winning run ended at nine games.

France captain Antoine Dupont scored the opening try after just 67 seconds and Farrell’s men trailed 22- 7 early in the second period.

Quick- fire second- half scores from Josh van der Flier and Jamison Gibson-Park, following Mack Hansen’s maiden Test try early on, brought the Irish back into contention.

Yet indiscipline ultimately proved costly as six Melvyn Jaminet penalties, plus a second- half try from Cyril Baille, helped Les Bleus take a giant step towards a first title since 2010.

While the contest was billed as a potential early championship decider, Farrell was proud of the efforts of his players and refused to be downhearted.

“It’s hard to take when you’ve put in such a tough shift like that, especially with the fight and character that we had to come back,” he said.

“In the end, t wo good sides going at it; [ at] 22- 7 down people might have thought it was a step too far but these lads didn’t. Their character shone through and certainly their fitness shone through.

“The competition obviously is slightly in France’s favour, t wo home games that they’ve played and t wo victories for them. But the competition is only just getting going, so we’ll lick our wounds and learn from what was a fighting, spirited performance.

“At the same time, we’ll be honest with each other and make sure that we learn the lessons on a few decisions that we made along the way.

“The result doesn’t lie, congratulations to France – they deserved the win because that’s what the scoreline tells us.”