Has an ageing squad been exposed by Les Bleus, or was Saturday's French thrashing merely a blip for the venerated green machine?
A duel between the two best nines on planet rugby is a mouth-watering aspect of the likely Six Nations title decider between Ireland and France.
Ireland are losing over 350 caps of Test experience at the end of the Six Nations and fans owe the feted trio immeasurable debt
Ireland player ratings: Unbackable favourites Ireland were well and truly humbled, even if they ultimately did scrape and scrap to an incredibly hard-fought 24-18 win at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff.
For Simon Easterby, a raft of changes is deemed to be manageable to overcome a Welsh side shorn of confidence and belief
The 21-year-old will again start ahead of Jack Crowley in Edinburgh on Sunday.
Ireland player ratings: Simon Easterby's Ireland were the second-best side in the first forty, but a strong final 30 minutes for the home side eventually saw them find their way to a 27-22 win.
Jack Crowley has lost out to 21-year-old Sam Prendergast to face England this weekend.