Twenty of the 22-man squad named for last weekend's 39-3 rout of Italy have been retained, with only injured duo Dimitri Szarzewski (shoulder) and Florian Fritz (leg) missing out.

Sale hooker Sebastien Bruno and Perpignan centre David Marty have been drafted in as replacements.

Laporte was expected to chop and change his squad, having said before the tournament that he would be giving as many players as possible a chance to impress with the World Cup in mind.

But his outlook appears to have changed having seen his team get off to a great start to the competition, scoring five tries in a demolition of the Azzurri at Rome's Stadio Flaminio on Saturday.

'We have chosen to reward the winning squad from Rome, and give them more time to play,' said team manager Jo Maso.

'We will make more changes for the third match, against Wales.'

Marty has been given the nod over the less-experienced Geoffrey Messina, the only other fit centre in contention.

The Perpignan star has acted as an able understudy whenever either of the first-choice midfield pairing of Fritz and Yannick Jauzion has been injured or unavailable.

Indeed in last year's competition, Marty - in the absence of Jauzion - started and scored two tries in France's 43-31 win over the Irish at the Stade de France.

'He knows this level,' Maso said of Marty.

'He played with Florian Fritz against the Ireland centre pairing of (Gordon) D'Arcy and (Brian) O'Driscoll last year and scored two tries.

'But there will not be any presents handed out to our players in Ireland, in what will be a difficult atmosphere for us.'

Croke Park will host the game, with Ireland's regular home, Lansdowne Road, currently being renovated.

And the sense of occasion will not be lost on Les Bleus hooker Raphael Ibanez, who is set to captain his country again with Fabien Pelous still out injured.

'We are fully aware of the history of Croke Park,' said the Wasps front-row forward.

'It's going to be one of the toughest-ever games for France. It is a fantastic chance for the team, and will be another step forward for the French side.'