Andy Farrell once again proved himself as a wily and intelligent selector as his decision to start Joey Carbery, despite the loss, proved to be a good choice.
The Munster outhalf put in an assured performance in an incredibly pressurised situation, and had a 100% kicking record off the tee.
We wrote earlier in week about the absence of Johnny Sexton from the starting lineup, a talking point which dominated the discourse leading up to this Six Nations encounter.
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The scrutiny that Carbery would be under was be magnified because of this, and because of the ongoing discussion in Irish rugby about Ireland’s lack of a replacement for Sexton.
Add to this the fact that it is your Six Nations debut, and you are playing one of the top three if not the best side in the world in the most daunting stadium in the Six Nations, the Stade de France.
Carbery has endured a difficult time with injury recently and he was not expected to be named in the Six Nations squad. He has also endured a difficult time with finding form and has arguably been the third best outhalf at Munster this season, behind Ben Healy and Jack Crowley.
Andy Farrell proven correct with Joey Carbery decision
The man battling with him for the role of Sexton’s understudy, Connacht’s Jack Carty, has been in superb form this season and was the choice of many, including this writer, to start today’s game.
The fact that Joey Carbery was able to rise through all of this combined pressure, is a massive positive for the Irish rugby team.
The match itself began in ferocious fashion with France taking an early lead, and dominating the breakdown and scrum.
Tough, tough, conditions for any outhalf, and extremely difficult to get into a rhythm. The one thing that is completely in your control is the quality of your kicking, and in that regard Joey Carbery was excellent.
While Mack Hansen’s try was a sensational solo score with some French confusion mixed in, it was Carbery’s pinpoint kick-off that set it up. Out near the touchline, he slotted the conversion.
There was not much Ireland and the 26-year old could do in the first half except weather the storm. While there were a few marginal decisions he could have perhaps made better, it was a solid first half from the Munster man.
Once Ireland’s pack roared back in the second half, and Carbery was bedded into the flow and rhythm of the game, he began to shine.
He slotted into Ireland’s attacking platform beautifully and his passing was crisp and decision making on point. Add to that an excellent crossfield kick to Conway, another tough conversion following van der Flier’s try, and some neat half breaks.
Ireland’s loss today was ultimately down to unforced errors and poor decision making, made by players other than Joey Carbery. For the no. 10 it was a rather error free game.
OH MY WORD! WHAT A CATCH FROM MACK HANSEN!#FRAvIRE #GuinnessSixNations pic.twitter.com/mRc6KOkDgZ
— Guinness Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) February 12, 2022
He was replaced with just minutes to go, which seemed a strange call by Farrell and it is unclear whether it was injury enforced or not.
Carty had a forgettable short cameo that will be remembered for an awful forward pass in Ireland’s final foray into French territory. However, the game was lost for other reasons and it would be harsh to place any blame on the Athlone native.
Although it will be hard to break in without injuries, the Connacht man does deserve a shot of his own. While the battle for Sexton’s backup of Joey Carbery vs Jack Carty may lack the enormity of a Campbell vs Ward or O’Gara vs Humphries, it will be an interesting contest in the lead up to the World Cup.
Ireland coach Andy Farrell will once again be pleased with his controversial call to start the former Leinster man on this occasion and can add it to his list of clever selection decisions. Showing faith in Gibson-Park and James Lowe, while bringing in Mack Hansen were all tough calls which came under plenty of scrutiny, but they were all proved to be correct.
The exciting prospect now is that Carbery will only improve in an Irish jersey and build on this performance.
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