RUGBY:Although outscoring France three tries to two, Ireland require much more from their time with the ball, writes LIAM TOLAND

SIXTY NINE minutes into the match, Jamie Heaslip got on the ball in the tram tracks. Ireland trailed 26-8 and hadn’t scored for some time. It was the first Irish flow of play since the opening 10 minutes. There are few in world rugby who can dance in the space Heaslip had and as the French defence swarmed around him he did exactly what we expect of him; liberated his hands and hunted for an offload. But no Irish arrived.

Contrast that to his opposite man. If Seán O’Brien is a beast then Louise Picamoles is a Wildebeest. Although the French man carried the ball 106 metres versus Heaslip’s 15 (which tells its own story) his objective on the ball was exactly the same as Heaslip’s. But it is what the French did off Picamoles and co that separated us from them.

Ireland can be forgiven a lot, due to the ‘first run outitis’ but where was the creative attack? If Heaslip was in the blue jersey of Leinster what would have unfolded? Eleven minutes earlier there was an intricate play started by Eoin Reddan to Sexton before Brian O’Driscoll switched to afford Heaslip a run at the French – all Leinster men?

In the bright opening ten minutes Ireland had buckets of possession and a very obvious ploy. From both early kick-off receipts they moved the ball quickly into the back line. Very adventurous? Not quite, as the back play in that ten minutes elected for transfer of the ball laterally towards the touchline where it found the wingers, precious little space and lots of French. But the hunger was there and, from an excellent short lineout, Rory Best found the middle and off they went for over two minutes. All and sundry popped up; Mike Ross, Cian Healy, Paul O’Connell, O’Brien, Heaslip and the backline in its entirety.

A few minutes later Best was to find Heaslip at the tail and off the Irish went again through O’Brien and finally with Healy crashing over. The secret to this try was twofold; brilliant line-out management allied with excellent darts from Best and rapid breakdown affording Tomás O’Leary time to whip the ball away, maintaining the attack.

A couple of minutes later Trimble chased an O’Leary box kick forcing Picamoles into touch. The rapidly arriving Best freed the ball and spun it infield for a quick line-out. The intent to speed up the tempo was evident throughout the Irish side but extra pace doesn’t automatically improve ball movement.

And what happens when the rapidity of the breakdown falters as it did for the next 59 minutes? Ireland’s attack and its line-out/breakdown have been inextricably linked for years but that game is dated. The Queensland Reds succeeded in Super Rugby this year even though their line-out (and at times their scrum) was very fragile. The French likewise stutter and stammer periodically but, when the need arises, can unlock even the smartest of defences.

After all Ireland outplayed France in many aspects; 181 passes to 77, 109 runs to 73, 63 tackles to 115, crucially 3 tries to 2 but when it mattered France outran Ireland by 365 to 281. This stat matters most because every one of those 365 metres were creative and afforded the support runners opportunities to strike – such as Cedric Heymans on 30 minutes.

As Aurélien Rougerie carried in midfield from the French penalty line-out the Irish defence was sound. But in the blink of an eye Heymans struck. Simple power play from France but poor defence from Ireland as the numbers were there but Jonathan Sexton quit on D’Arcy’s inside and didn’t anticipate a simple French switch. A poor effort from a man displaying lots of impatience for better and Heymans’ score was very costly.

The French in that moment displayed what Ireland lacked until Luke Fitzgerald arrived. Apart from his poor left-handed pass to deck he mimics the French like no other. O’Brien’s last-gasp try was well deserved but it was Fitzgerald’s power play from the broken lineout that created the space.

I wonder do Ireland fully understand their tactics especially as the stiff French pressure rendered them ineffective. After the opening salvo, Ireland’s errors crept in and the defensive line speed dropped. The half backs looked out of sorts and unsure of the game plan. Why for instance did O’Leary throw that speculative pass to Sexton? Putting pace on the ball is one thing but sloppiness is another. It wasn’t until the 53rd minute that Sexton said enough and kicked to the French corner.

Ireland’s lineout was superb both in attack (variation) and defence where O’Callaghan stole two great line-outs. The scrum will be tested beyond the pool stages only but Ross and co did extremely well particularly in those 56th minute scrums. The breakdown requires major work. Many of the Irish errors can be filed in the positive error category. At least O’Leary was trying to create an Irish flow when he fired that air ball to Sexton.

But what of this Guinness Series? These are serious internationals where our performance has been examined and sorely tested. Kidney chose to play France and England and rightly so, so we must put the performances in perspective where much went well and but for the ‘air ball’ and better defence on Heymans, a victory over France could have happened.

Massive questions still abound on team selection. Shane Jennings has had finer games but his understanding of the openside’s role was very evident last Saturday. As France went off the top from a 22 minute lineout, Francois Trinh-Duc smelt blood and ran hard at the gainline, but Jennings stopped him dead. It takes a true openside to defend that space so well. His presence went further; it freed O’Brien to ‘frag’ Frenchies at will. What of a Sexton-Ronan O’Gara axis; nice idea but a tad late? And finally if Mike McCarthy has a role to play in the Irish second row so too can Ferris thereby not sacrificing the very balanced backrow. Keep O’Brien at six.

There’s very little a side can do without possession. At this level however guys are required to dictate and dominate. In possession Ireland opted for multi-phase lateral play where the French used pace and power. Bar O’Brien, forward momentum is a challenge. Ireland require more from the ball, especially against the very big boys; but there is time and certainly the hunger.