Venue: Aviva Stadium, Dublin Date: Sunday, 13 February Kick-off: 1500 GMT
Coverage: Live on BBC Two, Red Button and online from 1430-1700; Commentary on Radio 5 live and live text commentary on BBC Sport website

Mermoz was selected to wear the number 12 shirt against Scotland

Centre Maxime Mermoz has been ruled out of Sunday's Six Nations clash against Ireland with a shoulder injury.

Damien Traille moves from full-back to inside centre while Clement Poitrenaud is promoted from the bench to start at full-back at the Aviva Stadium.

Veteran Toulouse centre Yannick Jauzion returns among the replacements after being omitted against Scotland.

There is a further change on the bench, where veteran prop Sylvain Marconnet replaces Luc Ducalcon.

Mermoz seriously dislocated his left shoulder during France's 34-21 win over Scotland and could miss the rest of the season after being advised to undergo surgery.

I like Traille's versatility - he's a reliable player who can play in many positions Marc Lievremont

But France coach Marc Lievremont has reassured Mermoz he can count on a place in his World Cup squad if he recovers fitness by the end of the season.

"Maxime Mermoz is part of the group of players who count, like [hooker] Dmitri Szarzewski, who has been with us for three years and who has earned the right to go to the World Cup if his physical state allows it," Lievremont said. "It's the same for Maxime."

Lievremont said he opted for stability in choosing the backline that finished the win over Scotland.

Traille will start in his third different position in as many games, having played fly-half in the heavy 59-16 defeat to Australia in November and full-back against Scotland.

"Even though the players who came on against Scotland really pleased me, we've gone for stability, like we said we would at the start of the tournament," Lievremont added.

"I think Damien (Traille) is better physically and mentally than he was in November. I liked his performance at the back, and I like his versatility - he's a reliable player who can play in many positions."

Meanwhile, Toulouse centre Florian Fritz would be available for the rest of France's Six Nations campaign if required.

Fritz was sent off for a dangerous tackle on Wasps wing Tom Varndell in the sides' Heineken Cup clash in late January and also faced a misconduct complaint for an offensive hand gesture towards spectators as he departed the field.

A European Rugby Cup disciplinary hearing upheld the red card but decided Fritz's tackle was reckless rather than intentional.

He received a retrospective three-week ban which means he is free to play again from Monday, 14 February, and was fined 15,000 euros plus costs for the offensive hand gesture.

France: Clement Poitrenaud (Toulouse); Yoann Huget (Bayonne), Aurelien Rougerie (Clermont), Damien Traille (Biarritz), Maxime Medard (Toulouse); Francois Trinh-Duc (Montpellier), Morgan Parra (Clermont); Thomas Domingo (Clermont), William Servat (Toulouse), Nicolas Mas (Perpignan), Julien Pierre (Clermont), Lionel Nallet (Racing Metro), Thierry Dusautoir (captain, Toulouse), Julien Bonnaire (Clermont), Imanol Harinordoquy (Biarritz).

Replacements: Guilhem Guirado (Perpignan), Sylvain Marconnet (Biarritz), Jerome Thion (Biarritz), Sebastien Chabal (Racing Metro), Dimitri Yachvili (Biarritz), Yannick Jauzion (Toulouse), Vincent Clerc (Toulouse).

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