Six Nations: What channel is France v Ireland on? When does it start?

The weekend begins once again in Paris where this time Ireland are the visitors, and hoping to record back-to-back victories in the French capital for the first time in almost 90 years, whilst Les Bleus and Guy Noves will be anxious to preserve their winning start.

Where is the match being played? Stade De France, Paris.

What day is the match? Saturday, February 13

What time is kick off? 2.25pm (UK time)

What channel is it on? ITV

Who is the referee? Jaco Peyper (SARU)

Who are the assistants? Nigel Owens (WRU) and Stuart Berry (SARU)

France and Ireland statistics

• France began the Guy Noves era with a 23-21 victory over Italy on Saturday and have now won their last three encounters played at the Stade de France, but have not won four tests in a row at the venue since 2010.

• France’s last eight test matches at the Stade de France have all been close with a winning margin of seven points or less – five coming down on the side of the home team and three in favour of the visitors.

• Ireland drew their round 1 fixture against Wales – the first time since 1979 that they have begun a Championship campaign with a tie.

• Ireland’s only defeat in their last eight RBS 6 Nations matches came on a trip to Cardiff in round 4 last season.

• Ireland beat France 24-9 in Cardiff during RWC2015 whilst France have not beaten the men in green for their last five encounters since a world cup warm up game in Dublin in 2011.

• Ireland won 22-20 on their most recent visit to Paris two years ago and have not beaten their hosts in Paris in successive games since the 1920s.

On the pitch

• CJ Stander had a storming test debut against Wales, his Man of the Match performance seeing him make 23 ball carries – the second best by an Irishman in any RBS 6 Nations match.

• France’s Virimi Vakatawa was another to receive a Man of the Match award on his test debut, scoring a try after only 13 minutes, beating 5 defenders and making two clean breaks from 11 carries.

• Jack McGrath was the hardest working prop after round 1, making 18 tackles and carrying the ball 11 times.

Previous meetings

The two sides are no strangers when it comes to Six Nations meetings, and the Irish will fondly remember the last encounter between the two sides in the 2015 test. The two nations played out a 20-22 thriller in the final clash which saw the men in green lift aloft the Calcutta cup following a frenetic finish. 

Watch the best of the highlights from the iconic 2015 clash below: