3 talking points as Scotland fall to France defeat despite late comeback in Paris

Scotland’s Grand Slam dreams hit the rocks on a chaotic afternoon against France in Paris – but they deserve some credit from fighting their way back into the contest from 19-0 down after 20 minutes.

It was an action-packed encounter with two red cards in the first 11 minutes and seven tries scored overall. Finn Russell’s try on 67 minutes made it a four-point game – but France managed to regain their composure with Gael Fickou barging over the line to claim the bonus point for the hosts in the final play of the contest.

Scotland will draw some confidence from their spirited display but know that they will have to be a lot more accurate when Grand Slam chasing Ireland pitch up at Murrayfield in a fortnight’s time. It took France just four minutes to open the scoring, by squeezing a penalty out of Duhan van der Merwe for holding onto the ball on the deck then working through several powerful phases before space opened up on the left for Roman Ntamack to bustle over.

It went from bad to disaster for Scotland just two minutes later when Grant Gilchrist challenged Anthony Jelonch high with his shoulder making contact with the French flanker’s jaw. Georgian referee Nika Amashukeli asked for a replay on the big screen and after viewing it from several angles decided it was a red-card offence.

Gilchrist – a true gentleman of the game – was inconsolable as he made his way from the pitch. France took immediate advantage of the extra man, marching downfield and engineering an overlap on the left for Ntamack to send Ethan Dumortier over for try number two. It looked like the writing was already on the wall for the visitors, but they dug deep and battled their way into a promising position five yards from the French line.

And when