"He's a Handful" - Caelan Doris reveals Ireland's hopes to contain Antoine Dupont threat for Six Nations clash with France

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Dupont returns to the Six Nations following an untimely end to his 2025 campaign, which saw the French maestro sustain a devastating knee injury in the clash with Ireland at the Aviva Stadium. Dupont ruptured several cruciate ligaments in his right knee, and endured an eight month lay off before returning to action with Stade Toulousain in November.

The scrum half touched on the incident at the Guinness Six Nations launch event in Edinburgh, in which he called it "just an accident", with no grudge held against Andy Farrell's side. Dupont returns to the Six Nations in fine form, with Ireland captain Doris very much aware of the threat that the halfback will bring to next Thursday's tournament opener.

"I think he's come back with a bit of a bang with Toulouse, he's playing very good stuff like he never left really, in terms of what he adds. France played quite an unpredictable, attacking style of rugby, they try to keep the ball alive quite a bit, and he's been central to that in the past.

"I've described him before as one of those little fish you try and touch and they dart away. So defending him in twos and threes is going to be important. But, he's a handful, and he's going to be one of the big challenges we need to overcome."

France enter the 2026 Men's Six Nations as defending champions, with Fabien Galthie's men firmly amongst the favourites alongside a resurgent England side. Doris did not shy away from how strong France have been throughout the last 12 months, and also how Ireland must maintain a steady upward trajectory if they want to compete with the front-runners. There is no shortage of expectation upon an Irish improvement following an albeit underwhelming Autumn Series, which Doris dutifully recognised.

"If you look at their depth in the [France] squad, and the way the Top 14 has gone, how much depth they have in general, the sheer number of players they've got, you would probably think so [favourites]. But, I'm not overly concerned with labels or the outside perception. It's always getting the balance right between awareness what the opposition will bring, but we're largely focused on ourselves.

"I think the biggest expectations come internally." Doris added." There's an awareness that we haven't been where we're capable of being, and it's about chasing down that potential and trying to get the most out of ourselves. We believe, if we can play to our potential, then results will follow. But, it's about chasing that down."

After completing their day of media duties in Edinburgh, Doris and his Ireland head coach Andy Farrell swapped the Scottish capital for the South of the Iberian Peninsula, as they joined up with the pre-tournament training squad in Portugal. The group has assembled at their training base in Quinta do Lago, in what is quite the hectic schedule of quick-fire preparations ahead of the upcoming trip to Paris.

"Yeah, getting everyone up to speed as fast as possible [is important]. We've got a few new faces, a few uncapped players, which is exciting and brings a little bit of exuberance to the squad as well. So, that's a pleasing thing.

"But, on the other side of that is making sure they get up to speed and know how we do things. Get familiar with all of our language, all of our systems, it's 10 days, not a whole lot of time, so each day matters, each training session, each meeting is important. And we're trying to maximise that."

Whilst Farrell has named quite the settled Ireland squad of established internationals for his Six Nations camp, there is also a group of uncapped hopefuls in the mix out in Portugal. One immediate stand-out from the initially named squad was Munster lock Edwin Edogbo, who has once again been in blistering form for the province. Edogbo was named as a travelling reserve for the Autumn Series trip to Chicago to take on the All Blacks, but a last minute injury in an inter-pro derby against Leinster curtailed his hopes

Doris is excited to have Edogbo join up with the Ireland squad, after the pair have endured their fair share of on-field battles. Munster and Leinster clashed as recently as late December in Limerick, with Edogbo's impact still fresh in the mind of his new Ireland squad teammate.

"It's great to have him in as well. I think he's probably been one of the shining lights for Munster. I'm sure they'll be disappointed with how their European campaign is gone, but I think he has shined through it, and has had some very strong performances.

"We faced him over Christmas, his sheer physicality, he's obviously a very big man, but he's also got good footballing knowledge and ability. He's a smart player as well. So, it's good to have him on our side."

Another star that is hoping to have a break-out Six Nations campaign, is highly rated Ulster lock Cormac Izuchukwu. The 26-year-old made his Ireland debut in the Summer with the Lions out of camp, as Paul O'Connell led the side for a successful tour of Georgia and Portugal.

After initially missing out on the Six Nations squad, Izuchuckwu was called up following the injury to Munster's Tom Ahern. Doris is excited to see how the Ulster star impacts the full-strength Ireland squad, and revealed how he will help guide the newcomers through the ranks over the coming days.

"Cormac has been around for a bit. He's been into a few camps, so I know him pretty well at this stage. Seeing his ability, he's obviously played a bit of sevens in the past, played a bit of centre as well in school. So he's a good footballer.

"He's adapted well and learned the role as a second row in the line out, and is a very good option there too. What stands out is probably his athleticism, like I remember over in South Africa, just seeing his sheer pace over there, and being surprised by that. He's grown as player. He's become more and more professional and excited to see what he adds to the group."

"Getting an arm around them [new players], getting to know them personally, getting to know what makes them tick and how they operate [is important]. But, also showing the standard at which we operate, and where things are, and where you're expected to be from a professionalism point of view, how you go about your work during the week, and getting them up to speed as fast as possible. So yeah, be exciting to have a few new guys in."

On a personal note, Doris revealed how he is chomping at the bit to guide Ireland to a hot start in the 2026 Six Nations. The number eight endured a devastating shoulder injury towards the end of the 2024/25 URC season, which ruled him out of a potential captain's role for that Summer's British & Irish Lions tour. This only added further fuel to Doris' fire, as the Leinster man has been steadily clicking through the gears in order to hit full stride for the incoming annual competition.

"I think after lengthy periods out, you appreciate being back in, you appreciate being fit and healthy, and you want to kind of relish and make the most of the opportunity. It's a special job that we're in. It's a privilege to be in the position that I'm in, and it's a great tournament, and we all love playing, so it's about channelling that excitement, that desire, in the right direction, and trying to prepare as best possible, to get the best performance we can next Thursday."

2. World player recognition: He’s been named on the World Rugby Men’s 15s Dream Team of the Year more than once and was shortlisted for World Rugby Player of the Year.