WALES' pack stood up to the powerful French eight in Paris but lock Luke Charteris says they will need to go up another level against their Irish counterparts.

It was feared that Les Bleus would have the better of Warren Gatland's men at the set piece, putting the squeeze on at the scrum, marching their way forward with their driving lineout and picking off Welsh throws.

But Wales' forwards put in a sterling display to not only have parity but have the better of their hosts.

It was a welcome turnaround from the opening night disappointment against England but Charteris says they must remain on an upward curve given that Paul O'Connell & Co are heading to Cardiff.

"When you come together for the first game of the championship it's always hard because people are coming from different clubs and have different ways of doing things," said the former Newport Gwent Dragons captain, now with Racing Metro.

"It does take a bit of time to adapt and get used to how we do things here. As the tournament has gone on we have got better but Ireland will be the biggest challenge as an eight and especially at the lineout. We will have to raise our game again."

"We put a lot of work in before going up against the French pack and it is something that we have identified again because Ireland have been going well as a team, but particularly up front," he continued.

"They look to get a stranglehold on the game so if we can combat them up front then it will put us in a good position."

Charteris, whose only win against the Irish so far is the 2011 World Cup success, had to be content with a place on the bench against England and Scotland but forced his way into the XV for France thanks to an energetic cameo at Murrayfield.

He retains his spot next to talisman Alun Wyn Jones with Jake Ball this time preferred to Bradley Davies on the bench.

With Andrew Coombs in fine form for the Dragons and Bristol's Ian Evans retaining hope of an international future, Charteris says there is no danger of the locks resting on their laurels.

"We've always had really good strength in depth in the second row in Wales. It keeps you on your toes and you have to be training hard and doing extras," said the 32-year-old, who will win cap number 55 on Saturday.

"That also means you have confidence in the boys around you; if Al was to go down in the first minute I'd have confidence in Jake coming on, it was the same with Brad and other boys outside the squad who are pushing hard.

"For us to be successful as a team we need that and have strength in all the positions."