Rob Kearney believes it won’t take a coup d’etat to overturn France in Paris on Sunday, claiming Ireland have been trying too hard to down Les Bleus in their own back yard in recent years.
Ireland head to the Stade de France for their rearranged RBS 6 Nations clash with the World Cup finalists safe in the knowledge they have won in Paris just twice in the last 40 years.
Indeed the last time Ireland won in the City of Lights a fresh-faced 20-year-old Brian O’Driscoll ran in a hat-trick in a 27-25 thriller during the inaugural Six Nations, but Declan Kidney will be without the Emerald Isle’s talisman on Sunday.
Ireland will however, according to Kearney, benefit from the postponement of the original fixture, having now put their opening defeat to Wales behind them with a thumping five-try victory over Italy last Saturday – a first win in four at Lansdowne Road.
And full-back Kearney has called on his teammates to avoid going for broke against France, claiming a strong start can build the platform for success.
“I don’t think we need to do something special,” said Kearney. “That’s where we fall down sometimes when we play in France. We look at our record and it doesn’t fill us with confidence, so maybe we feel as though we have to try something different there.
“Where we have always fallen down in France is that we’ve had a very poor start, giving up a big lead 20-30 minutes into the game. When you’re playing a team of the calibre of France you can’t do that and expect to win. We have to start strongly on Sunday.”
Kearney didn’t get on the scoresheet against Italy but Andrew Trimble, Tom Court, Tommy Bowe (2) and Keith Earls all crossed the try-line – and the Leinster flyer believes that will stand Ireland in good stead in Paris.
“We’re in a much better place than maybe we were two or three weeks ago,” added Kearney.
“Tries win games and to score five of them against Italy was really pleasing.
“We’re starting to get more clinical in the green zone area of play, and while we were too guilty of playing too much in our own half, it was pleasing that when we did get into the right areas we took our opportunities.”
