Ireland may be unbeaten in five games against France but Mike McCarthy is under no illusions about how hard tomorrow’s game will be.
Joe Schmidt’s men started the defence of their RBS 6 Nations campaign with a draw against Wales, while France secured a narrow win over Italy.
“We need to improve on the scrum as a unit and having that extra week together is going to help us but it’s a formidable French pack,” the 34-year-old second row told RTÉ Sport.
“Very big, heavy, strong so [we’re] under no illusions how tough that’s going to be.
“They’ve got quality players. It’s a fantastic team they’ve put out.
“It’s an intimidating place to go and their crowd really gets behind them.
“It’s going to be tough and hopefully we can start the game well.”
The Leinster forward has retained his place in the engine room alongside Devin Toner.
In the week that former captain Paul O’Connell was forced to retire, McCarthy paid tribute to the ex-Munster lock.
“Paulie is a massive loss,” he said. "There’s no hiding away from that, he’s an inspirational guy and I’ve certainly learned a great deal from him.”
VIDEO: Bernard Jackman was impressed with Ireland's hustle.https://t.co/7qqLemECvz
— RTÉ Sport (@RTEsport) February 8, 2016
Follow France v Ireland live from 1.30pm on RTÉ2 and RTÉ Radio 1 and via the live blog on RTÉ News Now and RTÉ.ie.
