Sign up to Miguel Delaney’s Reading the Game newsletter sent straight to your inbox for free Sign up to Miguel’s Delaney’s free weekly newsletter
Ireland fought their way to a memorable 24-9 victory over France to top Pool D of the Rugby World Cup and ensure that they cannot face either New Zealand or South Africa before the final, but the win came at a huge cost as a number of key players suffered potential tournament-ending injuries.
The Ireland fly-half Jonathan Sexton and French full-back Scott Spedding exchanged penalties early in the match to leave the game finely poised at 6-6 when the first incident of note took place. Sexton was hit and hit hard by the No 8 Louis Picamoles, and when he failed to get up the whole of the Emerald isle took a sharp intake of breath.
Sexton’s injury may have gone down to sprinting after a poor kick moments before, but the Picamoles tackle didn’t help and he was forced off the field.
His replacement, Ian Madigan, immediately added a third penalty before Paul O’Connel was carted off on a stretcher on the stroke of half-time – his World Cup looking all but over due to a serious knee injury.
After the break though, it was the Irish full-back Rob Kearney who crossed the line and gave Ireland the try their work-rate deserved. Soon after, flanker Peter O’Mahony was following O’Connell off in exactly the same fashion – his injury unknown.
Replacement scrum-half Morgan Parra added another penalty for Les Blues but that’s as good as it got, and when Conor Murray dotted down at the base of the post, Ireland’s victory was sealed and they progress to the knockout stages with their unbeaten record intact.
So who shone brightest during the fiercely contested encounter? Click on the gallery below to find out.
Show all 30 1 /30Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings <b>France:</b> 15 Scott Spedding – 7 out of 10 Started very impressively as his first penalty attempt hit the upright before to successful long-range efforts. Very solid under the high ball.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 14 Noa Nakaitaci – 5 out of 10 France haven’t worked out a way to bring him into the game yet, and the wing was starved of ball as a result.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 13 Mathieau Bastareaud – 5 out of 10 Didn’t produce any of his barnstorming runs we know he’s capable of and was caught out in defence by Henshaw.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 12 Wesley Fofana – 6 out of 10 Tried to inject pace and physicality in equal measure, but the Irish defence were up to the task. A tad selfish as the ball rarely made it outside him.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 11 Brice Dulin – 6 out of 10 Helped his side out with two well-judged kicks, but limited ball saw him contribute little else.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 10 Frederic Michalak – 5 out of 10 At fault for the Kearney try as he couldn’t stop the full-back when tackled five metres out. Looked to have just picked up an injury while he was also nursing his head, and departed soon after.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 9 Sebastien Tilous-Borde – 6 out of 10 Struggled behind a pack going backwards although his box-kicking was a useful pressure-reliever.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 1 Eddy Ben Arous – 5 out of 10 Forced off for a Head Injury Assessment early in the second half, and lost the very first scrum once he returned which led to Kearney’s try.
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 2 Guilhem Guirado – 6 out of 10 His throwing was actually quite accurate, but those pesky green jerseys kept appearing in front of his jumpers. Nearly broke free in the first-half, and copped a blow to the head from O’Mahony as a result.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 3 Rabah Slimani – 6 out of 10 France’s standout performer so far this tournament but he saw his chances to impress cut down. Coped well in the scrum in a back-and-forth tussle with Healy, and replaced by Nicholas Mas when the game was gone.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 4 Pascal Pepe – 6 out of 10 Did well to get up and continue from an early O’Brien cheap shot. He carried well, but another who struggled in the air.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 5 Yoann Maestri – 5 out of 10 Fairly anonymous throughout and struggled to run the lineout with Ireland’s unit disrupting French ball.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 6 Thierry Dusautoir – 6 out of 10 Excellent in the opening 20 minutes as Ireland struggled to cope with his breakdown work. He fronted up in defence all match, but his uncharacteristic knock-on summed up France’s day.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 7 Damien Chouly – 5 out of 10 Put in a big hit on O’Connell shortly before the Irish skipper departed, but he was played off the park by O’Brien and came off second best in the breakdown battle. Replaced by Bernard le Roux midway through the second half.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 8 Louis Picamoles – 6 out of 10 One of Les Blues most standout performers in the first half and his bone-shuddering tackle brought a premature end to Sexton’s night. But as the French pack lost their platform so did he, and he was anonymous come the end.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings <b>Ireland:</b> 15 Rob Kearney – 8 out of 10 Came up with the crucial try as he exposed Michalak’s weak defending. Solid at the back, and got his hands on the ball regularly as he came into the line.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 14 Tommy Bowe – 7 out of 10 Brilliant break in the first half should have put Earls away for a try and delicate hands nearly released Kearney on the right.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 13 Keith Earls – 6 out of 10 Guilty of dropping the final pass when Bowe had put him in for a try, and was probably Ireland’s most disappointing back, though that wasn’t disastrous given how those around him performed.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 12 Robbie Henshaw – 8 out of 10 His best performance by far since returning from injury. His break came from a beautiful side-step around Bastareaud and led to Kearney’s score, and he was always on the fly-halves shoulder when they needed help.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 11 Dave Kearney – 6 out of 10 Stuck out on his wing for the majority but put together two nice runs with little reward. Defensively he was very impressive, as he kept Nakaitaci extremely quiet for the duration.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 10 Jonathon Sexton – 6 out of 10 Forced off early after a huge tackle from Picamoles with what turned out to be a groin injury despite initial fears for his ribs. Managed two penalties before he departed.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 9 Conor Murray – 8 out of 10 Put under pressure early on but once his forwards gave him the time to work he flourished. Used his brain to touch the ball down at the base of the posts to score Ireland’s second try.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 1 Cian Healy – 7 out of 10 A rock in the scrum and tried to impose with the ball, but an ankle injury forced him off for Jack McGrath in the second half.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 2 Rory Best – 7 out of 10 Reliable in the lineout, which hasn’t always been his case, and he carried well. Gave away a penalty when France were on the attack, but that was his only downfall.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 3 Mike Ross – 6 out of 10 Continues to improve in the scrum but could have done more with the ball as he rarely carried over the gainline.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 4 Devin Toner – 7 out of 10 Another who was singled out by Nigel Owens for his discipline early on, but France could not stop the towering lock in the lineout as he repeatedly disrupted and stole the ball.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 5 Paul O’Connell – 5 out of 10 His World Cup looks over after suffering a bad knee injury, and at 35 years old his future with new club Toulon suddenly comes into question.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 6 Peter O’Mahony – 6 out of 10 Another to sadly depart on a stretcher. Guilty of a high tackle in the first half, but strong work in the lineout made up for it.
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 7 Sean O’Brien – 9 out of 10 Guilty of giving away more penalties than turnovers in the second half, but was a shining star in the first. Brilliant carrying and always the first to the breakdown. However, his completely unnecessary punch on Pape in the first half is likely to see him banned. The question is how long for?
2015 Getty Images
Ireland 24 France 9 player ratings 8 Jamie Heaslip – 7 out of 10 Grew in stature as his high profile teammates disappeared to injury. Started to carry more and Ireland benefitted hugely as a result.
2015 Getty Images
Who was you man of the match? Leave your thoughts in the gallery below.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies