But the Welsh found it particularly hard going against the French in Laon, giving away a series of penalties at the lineout and scrum.

To make matters worse, Sioned Harries, captain Gemma Hallet and Laura Prosser all spent time in the sin bin while flanker Harries is now out of the tournament with an ankle injury.

"The final scoreline sounds bad but we gave away a silly penalty inside the first two minutes from where they scored and then they went back downfield and scored again,” said Wales coach Edwards.

“We then made another couple of basic mistakes and they scored again so within 20 minutes we had gifted them 20 points.

"But thereafter, especially in the early stages of the second half, they couldn't live with us. They were a massive side and we held our own but when we lost two players to yellow cards, they scored again to give them a flattering scoreline.”

However, Edwards knows results are now as important as performances with the trip to Benevento on February 24 taking on added significance.

"Against Ireland we went into that match really well prepared and we were really unlucky not to come away with a win,” he added.

“With a couple of weeks now to prepare for the Italy game, I'm pretty hopeful we'll go into the game against Italy in the same frame of mind, but this time come away with a win.

“And then it's on to Scotland who we've got a good record against over the past few years. Ireland's shock result against England also proves they are beatable as well so we haven't lost hope yet."