DUBLIN — France replaced Ireland’s hand on the Six Nations rugby trophy after a momentous 42-27 win at Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
France decisively took over the lead of the championship with a bonus-point victory and can clinch its first title since 2022 in the final round at home next Saturday when it hosts Scotland.
Meanwhile, Ireland’s Grand Slam hopes were destroyed in the fourth round for a second straight year, and its hopes of a third successive outright title, unprecedented in the tournament’s 142-year history, were probably sunk.
England was also in the title picture, barring an upset at home against Italy on Sunday, but France’s other big advantage was an extremely healthy points differential of +106, which is 93 points better than Ireland.
The breadth of France’s win by five tries to three, running up its highest score in Ireland, was even more impressive in the absence for the last 50 minutes of talismanic captain Antoine Dupont. He limped off with help because of a right knee injury. When he left, France was leading 5-0 but the momentum was swung.
France was on the ropes for the first 15 minutes, absorbing waves of Irish attacks. But when lock Joe McCarthy was sin-binned for a cynical foul, Dupont set up wing Louis Bielle-Biarrey for the first of his two tries against the run of play.
Ireland, trailing by two at halftime, led 13-8 soon after, but for only four minutes.
Flanker Paul Boudehent crashed over after offloads by prop Jean-Baptiste Gros and Maxime Lucu, Dupont’s replacement.
In a double blow to Ireland, winger Calvin Nash was yellow-carded for a high tackle and France pulled away from there thanks to unleashing the seven reserves forwards off the bench.
Ireland couldn’t withstand the injection of fresh power.
A France counter-ruck in its own half led to Damian Penaud freeing his fellow wing Bielle-Biarrey, who grubbered ahead and beat Lucu to ground the ball. The try was Bielle-Biarrey’s tournament-leading seventh, and 17th in 18 tests.
Replacement lock Oscar Jegou scored his first test try and, while Gros was in the sin-bin, Thomas Ramos intercepted Ireland’s Sam Prendergast 10 meters out from his own try-line and let Penaud finish between the posts for his 38th test try, tying the France record of Serge Blanco.
Ramos, as ever, was unerring by nailing his last seven goalkicks.
With victory long secure at 42-13, France took its foot off the pedal, and Ireland scored the last two tries, one of them to caps record-holder Cian Healy, who was playing his last test at home along with Conor Murray and Peter O’Mahony.
Ireland was dealt a major blow moments before kickoff when wing James Lowe suffered a back spasm in the warmup and had to withdraw.
But the way Ireland started suggested France was in for a long afternoon. The Irish camped in the French 22 but breached an equally fierce defense only once, and captain Caelan Doris was held up over the line by opposite Gregory Alldritt.
After McCarthy’s yellow card, his heft was missed when France mauled a lineout infield, shortened the defense and Bielle-Biarrey scored in a seventh straight test, eclipsing Penaud’s France record.
Dupont then exited, exposing France’s risk of a 7-1 bench with only one back reserve. But the gamble paid off handsomely. Lucu was outstanding and the “bomb squad,” notably Emmanuel Meafou and Julien Marchand, overpowered a tiring Ireland in the third quarter.
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