Can Ireland make history and leave France singing Les Bleus?

Stephen Kenny and Keith Andrews

Stephen Kenny and Keith Andrews Credit: Eddie Lennon (ETPhotos)

It is fair to say that Ireland do not have the fondest of memories when it comes to France. The same has been true in rugby circles at times, but they have tended to be slightly more competitive.

There was a point when Ireland were equals with the French when an oval ball was swapped for a round one, with a couple of playoff encounters conjuring up all kinds of emotions.

The sight of Thierry Henry juggling before nudging across the face of goal for William Gallas to bundle home will be forever etched into the minds of Irish followers of a certain vintage.

Dreams

Paths with familiar foes have crossed since then, with more dreams being dashed at Euro 2016. Fast forward to the present and France are preparing to head to Irish shores for the first time in close to 14 years. A quest to reach Euro 2024 is about to be opened, with the betting on sportsbook odds that are being priced up more than a year out from that tournament seeing Ireland come in at 200/1 to claim what would be a scarcely believable first continental crown.

Just reaching another major finals - set to be staged in Germany - would be some achievement for Stephen Kenny's side, with the toughest of qualification draws being presented to them. Greece and Gibraltar could be considered potential sources of precious points in Group B, but France and the Netherlands promise to provide the sternest of tests.

The French, who were only denied back-to-back World Cup wins by the brilliance of Lionel Messi and Argentina at Qatar 2022, are due to pay a visit to the Aviva Stadium on March 27. Anybody making the trip to Dublin for that contest will likely set out more in hope than expectation, but anything is possible before a ball is kicked in anger.

Kenny has said of the challenges awaiting his troops: “We just need to pick off big results over the year. We will have to do something extraordinary to finish in the top two and that’s our intention. We want to do that. I think we’re capable of big performances but we haven’t shown that we can do it consistently. That’s what we’re building towards, that’s what we have to show.”

Consistency has proved to be elusive for large parts of Kenny’s tenure, and for plenty of his predecessors, but the enduring appeal of competitive sport is that you never can tell when feats of the David vs Goliath variety will present themselves.



Ireland can dare to dream, with a Rugby World Cup to chase down later in the year, and record books will forever be there for the re-writing. These Boys in Green may never have tasted victory over the French on a football field before, across six previous meetings, but history is there to be made and a star-studded cast of global superstars may yet be left singing Les Bleus in the Irish capital.

 

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