Reaction: Like several things in life, it is a matter of perspective, writes John O'Sullivan at Stade de France.

Ireland's 35-17 defeat at the Stade de France induced a varied reaction from the players and management; a case of the glass being half full or half empty.

What the Irish camp did agree on was that it was a frustrating and disappointing afternoon and they articulated a general annoyance at the largesse they had extended their hosts in terms of the four tries conceded. That probably rankled more than anything else and was acknowledged as being down to individual errors.

Shane Byrne admitted: "They players are very downhearted because we let ourselves down: 35-17 doesn't reflect that game. Management have to take a different approach in taking the plus points out of it but for the players it'll take a bit of having a chat with ourselves to get over this one."

He felt the French were vulnerable: "There is no doubt about it that they were. All you have to do to be in with a chance of beating a French side is to stay with them. They don't like it and are used to running away with games. They spent so little time in our 22, it was unbelievable.

"We made stupid mistakes and you just can't do that in international rugby. You have to make a team, if they score, work bloody hard for it. It was from direct errors that they scored their tries. That's the problem. We didn't make the French work for their scores.

"The defence was working fine," he said in reference to a slight change in defensive patterns. "Unfortunately it was individual errors. Gaps materialised that just shouldn't be there in the defensive pattern. It is not any flaw in the game plan, more mistakes that cost us dearly."

Byrne's views were shared by one of Ireland's try scorers and number eight Anthony Foley. "It was frustrating at times because we had a lot of possession, started the first half and second half very well but we didn't maintain that. We gave away too many soft tries through lapses in concentration.

"We'd to work very hard for everything whereas they seemed to be scoring tries from 30 or 40 yards. They were never really camped in our half, so it's very disappointing.

"We had to work a hell of a lot harder for our scores in comparison to what they had to do for theirs and that's a bit annoying.

"They are a very clinical side. When the opportunities arose they took them and that's something we have to button up on for next week. We just need to need to move on. We did a lot of things right and it just a case of tying up the loose ends and moving on."

Ireland coach Eddie O'Sullivan offered this overview: "We started pretty well, had good field position and kicked smartly to pin them back. It was the tempo we wanted to create. We had a very good chance to score a try but they broke out from that and took charge of the second quarter, probably deserved to go in at 11-3.

"We were happy enough at half-time that we had played pretty well up until that point. We knew the start of the second half would be pretty crucial. We got a fine try and back in the game at 11-10. The killer was the two tries that came next in a four-minute period. The annoying thing was that we contributed to those more than they did.

"They were tries that we didn't deserve to give up because we had battled hard to defend our line but we made a couple of mistakes to let them in for soft scores. That's a real kick in the guts for guys putting in the grunt work. Now mistakes come from pressure, to give France their credit. Maybe the mistakes we made were a bit disappointing.

"We weren't as far away as the scoreline suggested. It'll go down as an 18-point defeat in Paris which is a little harsh. I thought we were unlucky not to put another try in, particularly at the end, that four tries to two was a reasonable reflection on the game although I thought four tries to three probably fairer."

Paul O'Connell, Ireland's debutant captain, played down his new role, suggesting: "It's not that hard a job when you have so many guys putting their hands up to help you. It's a collective responsibility. It drew out a lot of the senior players because they knew they had to give me a hand. I really enjoyed it. I'm just a bit disappointed that we didn't get the scores we should have had."

The French were moderately pleased with the afternoon, coach Bernard Laporte admitting: "We were inaccurate enough in the first half. We were too hesitant, inefficient. Luckily our defence was good. We put some of those errors right in the second and I am pleased to win by that margin."

The measure of this Ireland team will come at Lansdowne Road next Saturday in the performance they produce as a response to this defeat. Viewpoints are naturally subjective but what is irrefutable is good teams absorb lessons and tend not to repeat them, and that is what Ireland will be charged with when Wales come to Dublin.