Emily Lane at scrum half for Ireland (Photo by Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)IRELAND lost (15-27) to France in their opening match of the 2025 Six Nations at Belfast's Kingspan Stadium on Saturday. The hosts went into the game optimistic, hoping to achieve their first win against their opponent since 2017. But the optimism was soon crushed.
Just six minutes in, France scored their first converted try as Gabrielle Vernier got over the line from a close distance before being followed up on by Morgane Bourgeois. Ireland’s Aoife Dalton made several breaks over the beginning of the first half and served as a major asset to her team as they tried to get back on their feet.
Despite their best efforts, Ireland’s situation worsened when Bourgeois played the ball to her co-captain, Marine Ménager who drove over the line. Bourgeois then made another successful conversion putting France ahead 0-14 at just twenty minutes into the match.
Niamh O'Dowd (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)The host’s luck started to look up when a high tackle on Neve Jones resulted in a penalty for Ireland. Though it went into the corner, Dorothy Wall was able to free herself from the Maul before sending the ball over to Aoife Wafer, going on to score Ireland’s first try of the match. Despite this, Dannah O’Brien was unable to follow up with a successful conversion.
Unfortunately for Ireland, France would have the chance to get ahead when another penalty went their way. Bourgeois then went on to take it successfully, making it 5-17 to France at halftime.
Ireland made a minor comeback in the second half when Jones got a try off the back of a maul but O’Brien failed to convert. The hosts seemed to close in on their opposition even further when Aoife Wafer was able to take advantage of the back of a maul. However, a conversion was to no avail, making the score a tight 15-17 to France.
Stacey Flood on the attack (Photo By Ramsey Cardy/Sportsfile via Getty Images)Although it was a close race for dominance over the next fifteen minutes, Aoife Dalton was penalised for being in front of the kicker. The resulting penalty saw Bourgeois put her team in front once again.
A final converted try seal France's victory when replacement player Emilie Boulard got over the line. Bourgeois added add two extra points through the conversion.
Ireland will be taking on Italy next at Parma’s Stadio Sergio Lanfranchi on March 30th.
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