France coach Philippe Saint-Andre has expressed his belief that his side played well for an hour of their Six Nations win over Italy this afternoon, but were below par for the final 20 minutes.
The hosts raced into a lead at the start of the second half, scoring three tries in the space of nine minutes to give themselves the foundation for their eventual 30-10 victory.
The closing stages were marred by red cards to substitute props Michele Rizzo and Rabah Slimano, and Saint-Andre admits that the final 20 minutes were "disappointing" for his side.
"We did some good work for 55-60 minutes. We scored three tries, but nothing happened in the last 20 minutes. There were lots of penalties for both sides and two red cards," Saint-Andre told BBC Sport.
"It was a good 60 minutes, but very disappointing for the last 20. We didn't have any ball."
The result means that France have matched Ireland's unbeaten start to the competition, winning both of their opening two games.
Barney Corkhill
