Ireland seal back-to-back Six Nations titles after victory over Scotland

Ireland made it back-to-back Six Nations title triumphs after securing a hard-fought 17-13 victory over a rugged Scotland at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin on Saturday.

Coming into the game on the back of a shock loss to England, the Irish regrouped and ground out the win thanks to tries from front-row duo Dan Sheehan and Andrew Porter.

Jack Crowley added seven points off the kicking tee against a steely Scotland side who while struggled with ball in hand, put in a formidable defensive showing on the road.

Scotland’s only try of the match came late on through Huw Jones, with Finn Russell kicking a conversion and two penalties as they finish with three defeats and two wins.

Andy Farrell’s hosts were well below their free-flowing best in Dublin but avoided any major ‘Super Saturday’ drama to retain the championship title.

Underdogs Scotland crossed the Irish Sea with a slender chance of snatching the title but realistically seeking to secure a first Triple Crown since 1990 following a chastening round-four loss to Italy.

Their mission to rip up the script began in positive fashion thanks to an early Russell penalty before Sheehan was gifted his fifth try of the tournament by George Turner’s overthrown lineout.

The fortunate 13th-minute score, converted by Crowley, did little to settle Irish nerves and the fired-up Scots kept up the pressure with another three points from Russell’s boot.

Farrell’s men were struggling to gain meaningful territory during a cagey opening period punctuated with errors and frequent kicking exchanges amid a subdued atmosphere.

Crowley squandered a long-range penalty to stretch the slender advantage as resolute Scotland remained relatively untroubled, while offering a threat on the counter attack.

Ireland, who had been forced to replace injured full-back Hugo Keenan with Jordan Larmour just before kick-off, trudged down the tunnel leading by only a single point and with major room for improvement.

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend acknowledged pre-match that his side needed to produce “something special” to spoil the Irish party and bounce back from a dismal display in Rome.

Crowley made their uphill task slightly harder with a straightforward penalty before the visitors received a major reprieve when Tadhg Furlong’s apparent touch down was chalked off following a lengthy review as referee Matthew Carley deemed the ball had been dislodged.

Heroic last-ditch defending was the only thing preventing a rampant home side showing renewed purpose from fully taking control of the contest.

Scotland flanker Andy Christie superbly halted the weaving Calvin Nash with the try-line in touching distance before rusty Ireland replacement Garry Ringrose inexplicably fumbled.

Ringrose, making his first appearance of the tournament following a shoulder injury, atoned with a lung-busting intercept run which led to Ireland’s crucial second try.

Robbie Henshaw was adjudged to have been held up on the line in the immediate aftermath before Porter subsequently powered over from a tap-and-go penalty following a yellow card for Ewan Ashman.

Supporters responded with a rousing rendition of the Fields of Athenry, fully believing the job was done.

However, home fans were forced to endure a nervy final couple of minutes after replacement fly-half Harry Byrne was sin binned for a head-on-head challenge on Russell and Scotland centre Jones broke clear to touch down.

Ireland duly avoided any further issues to jubilantly celebrate a fifth Six Nations title in 11 years ― and sixth overall ― to underline their status as the northern hemisphere’s leading nation.

The teams

Ireland:  15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 Peter O’Mahony (c), 5 Tadhg Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacements:  16 Rónan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Ryan Baird, 20 Jack Conan, 21 Conor Murray, 22 Harry Byrne, 23 Garry Ringrose

Scotland:  15 Blair Kinghorn, 14 Kyle Steyn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Stafford McDowall, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Finn Russell (cc), 9 Ben White, 8 Jack Dempsey, 7 Rory Darge (cc), 6 Andy Christie, 5 Scott Cummings, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 George Turner, 1 Pierre Schoeman
Replacements:  16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Elliot Millar-Mills, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Matt Fagerson, 21 George Horne, 22 Cameron Redpath, 23 Kyle Rowe

Referee:  Matthew Carley (England)
Assistant Referees:  Karl Dickson (England), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO:  Marius Jonker (South Africa)

Ireland one win from Grand Slam after victory over Scotland

Ireland overcame an excellent Scotland performance and a succession of injuries to move to within one victory of winning the Six Nations Grand Slam after emerging 22-7 triumphant at Murrayfield.

Andy Farrell’s men were dealt a difficult hand on Sunday, losing Dan Sheehan, Iain Henderson and Caelan Doris to injury in the opening 25 minutes before seeing replacement hooker Ronan Kelleher go off early in the second period.

It meant they had Cian Healy hooking in the scrum and Josh van der Flier throwing at the lineout, but they overcame those issues to defeat an excellent Scottish side.

The hosts gave as good as they got, going into the break just 8-7 in arrears following Huw Jones’ try, but the Irishmen’s quality and adaptability showed after the break.

Their set-piece, despite the setbacks in the opening 50 minutes, went well and they touched down three times via Mack Hansen, James Lowe and Jack Conan to secure the win.

The Irish will secure the Grand Slam if they defeat England in Dublin on Saturday, while the Scots ― after opening with back-to-back wins ― go into their final match at home to Italy with little to play for other than pride.

Prior to kick-off Stuart Hogg was accompanied onto the pitch by his children ahead of his 100th cap.  The Scotland full-back was visibly emotional during the national anthems, and his son then returned to the field to present the match ball.

Hogg had to quickly get his game face on, however, as Ireland set about making their presence felt in the early stages, threatening the try-line.  The Scots were forced into a change after just six minutes when lock Richie Gray went off injured and was replaced by Scott Cummings.

Ireland almost made the breakthrough in the 11th minute when Hansen was picked out wide on the right but Duhan van der Merwe did just enough to pull him into touch.  The Irish had already earned a penalty advantage and Sexton duly kicked between the sticks from close range to get his side off the mark.

Injury woes

This phase of play came at a cost, however, as Doris went off injured and was replaced by Conan.

After doing well to ride out the early period of pressure by conceding just three points, Scotland forced their way into the game.  They got themselves in front in the 17th minute when Jones bounded over after being set up by his fellow Glasgow centre Sione Tuipulotu following a sustained period of pressure in front of the Irish line.

There was a further blow for the men in green as Sheehan went off immediately after the try to be replaced by Kelleher, and remarkably Henderson became the third Irish player forced off by injury when he went off to be replaced by Ryan Baird in the 24th minute.

☘️ Still having an effective set-piece with your prop hooking in the scrum and your flanker throwing at the lineout feels very Ireland.

Adaptable. Skilful. Composed under pressure. 👏 pic.twitter.com/23wgjUNKX1

— Planet Rugby (@PlanetRugby) March 12, 2023

Having looked temporarily rattled by the Scots, Ireland regained their composure and hit back in the 28th minute when Hansen managed to plant the ball down just inside the line despite the best efforts of Van der Merwe to force him out after a looping pass out to the right from Hugo Keenan.

Johnny Sexton was wide with his conversion attempt, and the visitors went in at the end of a ferociously-contested first half with a one-point lead.

Second half

Ireland got themselves some breathing space for the first time in the match when Lowe evaded the attention of Kyle Steyn to touch down in the 57th minute after his teammates had done well to work the ball from right to left.  Sexton made no mistake with the conversion.

And five minutes later, the Irish went further ahead when substitute Conan bolted over on the right after an offload from Hansen.  Sexton was again successful in adding the extras to take his Six Nations all-time total to 557 ― level with Ronan O’Gara.

Ireland’s injury woes continued when Garry Ringrose went off on the buggy in the closing stages, leaving head coach Andy Farrell with a string of fitness concerns ahead of his rampant side’s shot at glory next weekend.

Ireland do the job against Scotland to win Triple Crown

Ireland ended their Six Nations campaign in fine style to win the Triple Crown after overcoming Scotland 26-5 in Dublin on Saturday, but it wasn’t enough for the title.

Andy Farrell’s men controlled the majority of the match and moved into a 14-0 lead thanks to tries from Dan Sheehan and Cian Healy.

To the visitors’ credit, they remained resilient throughout and hit back via Pierre Schoeman, who reduced the arrears to nine points at the break.

However, after Stuart Hogg butchered a try, Scotland’s chances went as Josh van der Flier and Conor Murray touched down to secure an Irish victory.

Captain Johnny Sexton successfully converted three of the four scores to help Ireland end an 18-year wait to secure silverware on home soil.

Scotland had prevented Ireland winning the Triple Crown at Croke Park back in 2010 ― their last victory in Dublin.

But Gregor Townsend’s visitors never seriously threatened to mastermind an upset and Schoeman’s first-half score was scant consolation as their miserable run in this Six Nations fixture continued on a chastening evening.

Defeat for the Scots ― an 11th from the past 12 meetings between the teams ― was a disappointing end to a largely forgettable campaign which began so positively with the jubilation of retaining the Calcutta Cup.

However, they at least avoid finishing second bottom of the table thanks to Italy’s shock win in Wales.

Scotland’s hopes of springing a surprise were not helped by Finn Russell, Ali Price and captain Stuart Hogg being among six players disciplined for breaching team protocols by visiting a bar following last weekend’s win over Italy.

With influential fly-half Russell dropped the bench, the away side began relatively brightly in a frantic opening quarter before Irish hooker Sheehan burrowed over in the 17th minute to calm home nerves.

Ireland’s misfiring scrum was subject to much scrutiny following victory over 14-man England at Twickenham in round four.

Veteran prop Healy struggled on that occasion but became the second member of the Irish front row to cross, bulldozing through the Scottish defence to claim his 10th Test try as the hosts took control.

Scotland were in danger of being overpowered.  Yet they sufficiently varied their attack to claw a way back into the contest just before the break, aided by a fine break from Darcy Graham.

South Africa-born prop Schoeman was the man to benefit from sustained pressure as he touched down, although Blair Kinghorn ― selected in the number 10 role ahead of talisman Russell ― was well off target with the conversion attempt.

Ireland began the second period with renewed purpose as they attempted to enliven a fairly subdued crowd.  However, it took a stunning last-ditch tackle from Hugo Keenan to deny Hogg a certain score in the right corner.

Referee Wayne Barnes subsequently angered home supporters by ruling Schoeman had not committed an act of foul play in the build up having caught Iain Henderson with a raised arm.

Ireland restored their two-try advantage with an hour played when Van der Flier exploited a gap to capitalise on a spell of dominance and break Scottish resistance.

Ireland pushed hard for the bonus point.

They looked set to be denied but, after Scotland replacement scrum-half Ben White was sin-binned for a deliberate knock on, Murray ― who has been a peripheral figure this campaign ― touched down his country’s 24th try of the competition to the delight of the majority inside the Aviva Stadium.

Sexton missed the resultant kick to ruin his perfect record.  Yet he cared little as he lifted silverware for the first time as skipper.

Ireland edge out Scotland in Six Nations thriller

Scotland’s faint hopes of Six Nations glory were snuffed out as they found themselves beaten by Ireland yet again, losing 27-24 on Sunday.

The Dark Blues needed to turn around a woeful run that had included just one win in 10 against the Irish if they were to cling on to hopes of catching frontrunners Wales.

But a brave second-half fightback proved to be for nothing as Johnny Sexton’s late penalty snatched victory at Murrayfield.

Andy Farrell’s visitors were firmly in control following tries from Robbie Henshaw and Tadhg Beirne, plus 17 points from Sexton’s boot.

Scotland had been inactive for more than a month following the postponement of their trip to Paris and their rustiness showed in a wretched set-piece performance.

But they burst back into life as Huw Jones and Hamish Watson followed up Finn Russell’s first-half try to draw level with six minutes left.

But a mistake by Ali Price allowed Ireland to claim the win as Scotland suffered more disappointment at home following defeat to Wales last time out.

Ireland’s Championship plans had also been derailed by early defeats to Wayne Pivac’s Grand Slam-chases and France but there was no shortage of intent as they arrived in Edinburgh.

And it made for an enthralling clash which quickly boiled down to a slug fest with both sides trading hit for hit ― and spill for spill.

Sexton opening the scoring with a penalty and there was worse to come for the Scots as they lost the opening line-out of the half ― a story that would be repeated over and over before the interval.

Sexton hung a high cross-field kick into the air.  With Stuart Hogg and Duhan van der Merwe struggling to track its flight amid a swirling wind, Keith Earls got in between the Scots.

He could not gather as the ball bounced loose in the in-goal area but Henshaw was quickly on the scene to flop over it for the opening score on eight minutes, which went unconverted as Sexton’s kick slammed into the post.

Scotland roared back from the restart, immediately claiming three points back with a Russell penalty.

But Ireland were still busy throwing punches.  Jamison Gibson-Park sniped off the base of a scrum looking to score from close range ― only for Watson to win a huge turn with his feet planted on the whitewash.

That was standard fare for the Edinburgh flanker ― one of the best breakdown burglars in the game.  What was more unusual was the sight of Ireland prop Tadhg Furlong sidestepping two opponents inside his own 22 with his dancing feet.

However, Ireland could not play their way out of trouble and a madcap first half was summed up as Scotland nudged in front in the 28th minute.

Skipper Hogg got lucky when the bounced off his chin after charging down Garry Ringrose’s kick.  He swung a boot at it, sending it towards Russell.  He had another hack at it and got another fortunate bounce as it bounced over James Lowe, allowing the Racing 92 man to run in and dot down.

But when yet another line went stray, so did some decent territory.  Ireland countered and nudge back in front with a Sexton penalty.

#TeamOfUs

👊 Just hook it to our veins 💚#ShoulderToShoulder #IrishRugby #GuinnessSixNations #SCOvIRE pic.twitter.com/Glx7zN9Gqc

— Irish Rugby (@IrishRugby) March 14, 2021

A Russell kick then slipped by as Ireland ended the half four ahead as Sexton split the posts again.

It took just nine minutes for them to add another seven.

James Ryan was having the time of his life, plucking Scotland hooked George Turner’s line-out throws for fun.

And when he collected one from Rob Herring five yards out it released a fresh green wave crashing down on Scotland’s line, with Beirne eventually barging over.

The Scotland penalties were now flowing thick and fast ― with 10 coughed up by the hour mark.  Sexton was merciless, firing over again to make it a two-score game.

Townsend knew he had to roll the dice if Scotland were to get back into it.  The introduction of Jones provided the spark they needed as the Glasgow centre drove through Lowe and Hugo Keenan to score his first Test try in three years.

The loss of Russell to a head knock was not ideal but as Hogg was forced to step up to 10.  But the pack that had struggled so badly at the set-piece came up with a brave surge as Watson did just enough to get the ball over the line as Hogg’s conversion drew the scores level with six to play.

But the celebrations were cut short as Ireland immediately won a penalty as Ryan Baird charged down Ali Price’s kick ― leaving Sexton to coolly nail a tricky kick from out wide to snatch the win.

Check out the video highlights from Ireland's 27-24 victory over Scotland in Edinburgh on Sunday.

Ireland edge past gritty Scotland

Johnny Sexton scored all of Ireland's points as they opened the 2020 Six Nations with a tense 19-12 triumph over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

The Scots were physical throughout and played some excellent rugby at times, but the hosts, led by their inspirational skipper, did just enough to claim the win.

Match-winner Sexton scored and converted the hosts' opening try of the clash in Dublin before adding four penalties.

Saturday's match was far from the one-sided encounter many predicted and the outcome could have been completely different had new Scotland skipper Stuart Hogg not cost his side a second-half score with a bizarre fumble.

Adam Hastings, in at stand-off for the Scots owing to the ill-discipline of star man Finn Russell, kept Gregor Townsend's visitors in contention until the final whistle with four penalties of his own.

But, despite a largely positive display, the unfancied visitors paid for their lack of clinical edge as their abysmal away record in this competition continued.

Meanwhile, Farrell, who stepped up to replace Joe Schmidt after the World Cup, has plenty to ponder following a disjointed performance which was compounded by debutant Caelan Doris leaving the field injured inside five minutes.

Scotland arrived at the Arriva Stadium as rank outsiders, priced at 7/1 for victory with some bookmakers, and on the back of dismal trip to Japan at the back end of last year.

Townsend's men flew out of the traps looking like a team with a point to prove and were rewarded for their fast tempo by an early lead as Hastings kicked a straightforward penalty.

Ireland, meanwhile, were forced into a premature reshuffle as the maiden Test appearance of 21-year-old Doris was agonisingly cut short, with the experienced Peter O'Mahony brought on his place.

The hosts quickly regrouped and conjured up a slick opening try in the 10th minute.

After attempting to bulldoze over the line, quick ball from a resultant ruck culminated in skipper Sexton crossing unchallenged after a neat pass from Murray, and then converting his own score from wide on the left.

TRY! Serious hands from Ireland

Murray to Sexton and that's a try#ITVRugby pic.twitter.com/huCXtxy3Ls

— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) February 1, 2020

It was a special moment for Dubliner Sexton, appointed skipper at the age of 34-year-old following the retirement of Rory Best and cheered on from the stands by his family.

Townsend's preparations for this tournament were severely disrupted by influential stand-off Russell being sent home for breaching team rules following an alleged late-night drinking session.

Russell's notable absence at number 10 had afforded Hastings' opportunity in that role.

The 23-year-old son of Scotland great Gavin Hastings converted a far more difficult penalty from wide on the left to quickly reduce the deficit to a single point, but was later off target moments after Hogg escaped punishment for a late tackle on Jordan Larmour.

Scotland almost went ahead in the closing stages of a breathless first half after Huw Jones intercepted a slack pass from Murray inside his own 22 and raced away.

The ball was eventually worked to Sean Maitland but, with the try line in sight, a superb last-ditch tackle from Iain Henderson brought the breakaway to an end, leaving Murray to breathe a sigh of relief and the home side 10-6 in front at the break following Sexton's first penalty.

Scotland played the better of the rugby in the opening period of the second half and repeatedly came within striking distance of the Irish line before coughing up possession.

They were punished further for their profligacy minutes into the second period when fly-half Sexton added another three points, before a calamitous error from Hogg cost them a 50th-minute try.

Full-back Hogg was left with a simple finish in the left corner but somehow dropped the ball before grounding, a costly error initially missed by the on-field officials but picked up by the TMO.

Trial by television 📺

Scotland captain Hogg drops the ball with the try-line gaping#ITVRugby pic.twitter.com/P3W4D4xGRH

— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) February 1, 2020

Scotland had to settle for just three points as Hastings subsequently kicked another penalty after Ireland were penalised for not rolling away.

Ireland obliterated their opponents during their World Cup opener just over four months ago but this was a far more competitive affair.

Appearances off the bench for in-form John Cooney, who had challenged Murray for the number nine jersey, World Cup absentee Devin Toner and debutant Ronan Kelleher each brought rapturous receptions from the home crowd.

Ireland produced some staunch defending on their own try line in the final few minutes to prevent Scotland potentially snatching a draw, after a couple more Sexton penalties — either side of one from Hastings — moved the scoreboard to 19-12.

The failure to break through from close range left Scotland to rue another fruitless away trip.

Aside from a handful of victories against perennial wooden spoon winners Italy in Rome, the Scots remain without an away success in this competition since a 23-20 win at Croke Park a decade ago.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Try:  Sexton
Con:  Sexton
Penalties:  Sexton 4

For Scotland:
Penalties:  Hastings 4

The teams:

Ireland:  15 Jordan Larmour, 14 Andrew Conway, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Jonathan Sexton (c), 9 Conor Murray, 8 Caelan Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier, 6 CJ Stander, 5 James Ryan, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rob Herring, 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Peter O’Mahony, 21 John Cooney, 22 Ross Byrne, 23 Robbie Henshaw

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg (c), 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Blair Kinghorn, 10 Adam Hastings, 9 Ali Price, 8 Nick Haining, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Scott Cummings, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Rory Sutherland
Replacements:  16 Stuart McInally, 17 Allan Dell, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Ben Toolis, 20 Cornell du Preez, 21 George Horne, 22 Rory Hutchinson, 23 Chris Harris

Referee:  Mathieu Raynal (France)
Assistant referees:  Pascal Gaüzère (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  Glenn Newman (New Zealand)

Check out the highlights from Ireland's 19-12 victory over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.

Ireland see off Scotland to return to winning ways

Ireland were made to graft but eventually got the job done as they beat Scotland 22-13 in their Six Nations Test at Murrayfield on Saturday.

In a fast-paced encounter, Ireland were deserved winners as they committed less unforced errors and eventually outscored their hosts by three tries to one.

The victory is an important one for the defending champions as it is their first of this year’s competition, although they will be kicking themselves as they failed to secure a try-scoring bonus point which could prove costly later on.

Scotland made the brighter start and opened the scoring in the seventh minute courtesy of a Greig Laidlaw penalty after Bundee Aki infringed at a breakdown.

Things went pear-shaped in the 10th minute for the home side, however, when Ireland replied via a Conor Murray try which came against the run of play.  This, when Tommy Seymour fielded a kick inside his 22 before throwing a wild pass to Sean Maitland, who failed to gather.  Murray pounced on the loose ball and had an easy run-in over the try-line.

Scotland suffered another setback in the 17th minute when Stuart Hogg was forced off the field with an arm injury.

Blair Kinghorn had barely come on as Hogg’s replacement when Ireland struck again via a try from Jacob Stockdale.  Peter O’Mahony and Johnny Sexton combined superbly in the build-up to create space for Stockdale, who gathered a pass from Sexton just inside Scotland’s half, and he did well to outsprint the cover defence before crossing the whitewash.

Despite trailing 12-3 on the scoreboard, the Scots did not panic and they reduced the deficit in the 29th minute when Sam Johnson crossed for their opening try.

Ireland were initially on the attack close to the halfway line but Finn Russell intercepted a pass from Joey Carbery, who had replaced the injured Sexton, and the home side’s fly-half did well to set off on a 45 metre run before his progress was halted by a fine tackle from Keith Earls.  Russell managed to free his arms, however, and offloaded to the on-rushing Johnson, who crossed for his first Test try.

Laidlaw slotted the conversion which narrowed the gap to two points but, although the home side had the better of the half’s closing stages and spent long periods camped inside Ireland’s 22, they could not score further points before the interval.

Half-time came at the right time for Ireland as they regrouped during the break and regained the initiative after the restart.

In the 56th minute, Carbery, who struggled up to that point, left his stamp on the match with a telling break before throwing a long pass to Keith Earls, who scored his side’s third try.

Carbery added the extras but Scotland struck back when Laidlaw slotted a penalty shortly afterwards which meant Ireland held a 19-13 lead as the game entered its final quarter.

Despite that kick, the visitors held the upper-hand and went further ahead in the 68th minute when Carbery slotted a penalty which gave his side a 22-13 lead.

Scotland needed a response but they committed several errors in a bid to haul in their opponents, who held on for the win with a solid defensive effort during the game’s closing stages.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Try:  Johnson
Con:  Laidlaw
Pens:  Laidlaw 2

For Ireland:
Tries:  Murray, Stockdale, Earls
Cons:  Sexton, Carbery
Pen:  Carbery

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Sam Johnson, 11 Sean Maitland, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Josh Strauss, 7 Jamie Ritchie, 6 Ryan Wilson, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Simon Berghan, 2 Stuart McInally, 1 Allan Dell
Replacements:  16 Fraser Brown, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 D’arcy Rae, 19 Ben Toolis, 20 Rob Harley, 21 Ali Price, 22 Pete Horne, 23 Blair Kinghorn

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Chris Farrell, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jack Conan, 7 Sean O’Brien, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Quinn Roux, 4 James Ryan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Josh van der Flier, 21 John Cooney, 22 Joey Carbery, 23 Jordan Larmour

Referee:  Romain Poite (France)
Assistant referees:  Pascal Gaüzère (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  Rowan Kitt (England)

Ireland too strong for Scotland

Ireland moved closer to the Six Nations title following a comfortable 28-8 triumph over Scotland at the Aviva Stadium.

In a thrilling first half, Greig Laidlaw opened the game’s account by kicking a penalty but two Jacob Stockdale tries gave the Emerald Isle an 11-point buffer at the interval.

Conor Murray extended the lead early in the second period before Blair Kinghorn gave the visitors hope going into the final half-hour.

Joe Schmidt’s men continued to control matters, though, and Sean Cronin made the game safe by barging across the whitewash from close range for the crucial bonus-point.

They will head to Twickenham with an opportunity of claiming a Grand Slam for just the third time in their history, while Scotland are now out of the title race.

The hosts began the game in the ascendency, keeping the ball impressively through the phases, but mistakes at costly times prevented them from opening the scoring.

Scottish defence in the early stages was ferocious and uncharacteristic errors crept into the Irish game.  There were knock-ons aplenty and the visitors benefited by earning a penalty on the opposition 22, which Laidlaw converted.

That effort gave Gregor Townsend’s men confidence and Stuart Hogg, Kinghorn and Finn Russell all displayed some neat touches, but they proceeded to undo their good work.

The away side had created space out wide but Peter Horne threw a needless pass to give Stockdale an easy intercept try.  Jonathan Sexton converted and Ireland held a 7-3 advantage after 25 minutes.

It was proving to be a pulsating contest with both teams showing creativity and physicality in abundance.  However, the respective rearguards remained on top until late in the half when Schmidt’s team found a clinical edge.

Following Rob Kearney’s break, which almost ended in Murray crossing the whitewash, the hosts were awarded a scrum five metres out and Garry Ringrose combined with Bundee Aki to send Stockdale over.

Ireland duly went into the break 14-3 ahead and took that momentum into the second period, dominating the opening exchanges and pressurising the opposition 22.

A sixth Scotland infringement at the breakdown allowed the Emerald Isle to build another attack and Murray displayed his sniping instincts to touch down from close range.

Similar to their Wales performance, Townsend’s team could have folded but they showed commendable spirit to come back into the encounter via a well-worked score for Kinghorn.

However, the Scots were not quite at Ireland’s level, failing to take the chances that came their way and also conceding far too many penalties.

Once such error gave Sexton a chance to extend their advantage but, although the fly-half missed for the only time off the tee, it did not matter as Cronin secured the five points in the final quarter.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Stockdale 2, Murray, Cronin
Cons:  Sexton 4

For Scotland:
Try:  Kinghorn
Pen:  Laidlaw

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Bundee Aki, 11 Jacob Stockdale, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 CJ Stander, 7 Dan Leavy, 6 Peter O’Mahony, 5 Devin Toner, 4 James Ryan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Cian Healy
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 Andrew Porter, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Joey Carbery, 23 Jordan Larmour

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Blair Kinghorn, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Pete Horne, 11 Sean Maitland, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 John Barclay (c), 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 3 Simon Berghan, 2 Stuart McInally, 1 Gordon Reid
Replacements:  16 Fraser Brown, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 Willem Nel, 19 Tim Swinson, 20 David Denton, 21 Ali Price, 22 Nick Grigg, 23 Lee Jones

Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)
Assistant referees:  Ben O’Keeffe (New Zealand), Luke Pearce (England)
TMO:  George Ayoub (Australia)

Scotland weather Ireland fightback

Scotland claimed a well-deserved 27-22 win over Ireland in a spectacular display of running rugby at Murrayfield.

Greig Laidlaw secured his side the win after a spirited Irish fightback, with two penalties in the last ten minutes of the match.

Ireland were down 21-8 at half-time but, after they regathered, orchestrated a stunning comeback and scored some well-worked tries through Paddy Jackson and Iain Henderson.  Scotland looked spooked by their opposition's rejuvenation but were able to steel themselves and retake the lead.

The win sees Scotland top the Six Nations points table with four points with two other games still to play, while Ireland walk away with one point for being within less than seven points from the winners after the new law changes.

Set-pieces were a problem for both sides throughout the game with Scotland conceding three penalties at scrum time in just the first 20 minutes, while Ireland were never confident that they would get their own ball back at the lineout.

It was a nail-biter from start to finish as both sides played free-flowing, positive rugby that saw some electric tries being scored.

Scotland started off the game in a spirited fashion as they made it clear that they had left their conservative approach to the game behind them as they spread the ball to winger Sean Maitland twice in the first seven minutes.

The Scottish scrum was not up to scratch in the early stages but their loose play was fantastic and rumbled down field through some piercing runs until they landed just before the Ireland tryline, unable to cross due to some sturdy Irish defence.  Vern Cotter's men then spread the ball wide to Stuart Hogg who dodged a tackle before scoring the first points of the game and Greig Laidlaw secured the conversion.

Ireland then hit back quickly, after a barnstorming run from Sean O'Brien which took them right to the Scotland five-metre line.  The visitors were awarded a penalty and went for the line and used their position to launch a maul but couldn't quite get over for the try-line and Scotland were awarded a scrum.

Hogg then scored his second try of the match when the home side made a break from the halfway line which saw the full-back get possession in space with Sean Maitland outside him who looked like the eventual receiver.  Hogg then faked a pass to Maitland and Rob Kearney took the bait and Hogg went through to score a fantastic try.  After the conversion Scotland led 14-0, 24 minutes in.

After some serious pressure from Ireland they found themselves on the Scotland five-metre line.  They tried to barge over but the Scotland defence remained impregnable which forced them to send the ball wide which saw Keith Earls go over in the corner.  Jackson missed the conversion.

Scotland then hit back immediately when they had a line out on the Irish five-metre line and pulled off a devilishly cheeky move which saw Alex Dunbar stand in the lineout.  Ross Ford then threw short to Dunbar who accelerated quickly to score his side's third try over the game.

With half-time looming, the bewildered Irish seemed desperate for some points, and when awarded a penalty they opted to go for poles, which Jackson knocked over.

At half-time, Scotland looked very much in control of the game as they led 21-8 after playing some electrifying running rugby, leaving the Irish completely stunned.

Ireland were clearly given a stern talking to in the dressing room as they started the second half with a new found sense of zeal.  They scored the first points of the half when they pushed upfield through their forwards and after variety of different advantages given by referee Romain Poite, Henderson pushed over the line to score his side's second try.

The scoreboard might have stopped ticking for the period after Henderson's try but the spectacle on the field was nothing less than jaw-dropping as both teams expertly used the width of the pitch to their advantage as they spread the ball wide, each attempting to scatter their opposition's defensive structures.

Ireland almost scored again through Earls after O'Brien made a devastating break before offloading which would eventually end with Kearney being tackled out just before making the pass to Earls.

An Irish revival was on the cards when the visitors used the ball brilliantly to confuse the Scottish defence before Jackson scored his side's third try of the match, putting them ahead by one point after the conversion.

With ten minutes left to play Ireland looked as though they might retain their lead until a high tackle on Dunbar in the Irish 22 which lead to Scotland kicking for the line and starting a lineout maul which led to them being given a penalty which Laidlaw expertly knocked over to secure the win.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Tries:  Hogg 2, Dunbar
Cons:  Laidlaw 3
Pens:  Laidlaw 2

For Ireland:
Tries:  Earls, Henderson, Jackson
Cons:  Jackson 2
Pen:  Jackson

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Huw Jones, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Tommy Seymour, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Josh Strauss, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Ryan Wilson, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Fraser Brown, 1 Allan Dell
Replacements:  16 Ross Ford, 17 Gordon Reid, 18 Simon Berghan, 19 Tim Swinson, 20 John Barclay, 21 Ali Price, 22 Duncan Weir, 23 Mark Bennett

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Keith Earls, 13 Garry Ringrose, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Simon Zebo, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 CJ Stander, 5 Devin Toner, 4 Iain Henderson, 3 Tadgh Furlong, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Jack McGrath
Replacements:  16 Niall Scannell, 17 Cian Healy, 18 John Ryan, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Josh van der Flier, 21 Kieran Marmion, 22 Ian Keatley, 23 Tommy Bowe

Referee:  Romain Poite (France)
Assistant Referees:  Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Nick Briant (New Zealand)
TMO:  Glenn Newman (New Zealand)

Ireland end Six Nations on a high

Ireland ended the 2016 Six Nations with a second win after overcoming Scotland in Dublin with a 35-25 victory.

Four tries from last year's champions built upon 15 points from the boot of Jonathan Sexton as Ireland ensured a tough tournament would end on a high.

A battle for mid-table dominance had an extra edge with Scotland eyeing up three straight Six Nations wins, but aside from a brief period after Stuart Hogg's special try they were always chasing the scoreboard.

Their frustrations too with the officating by the end began to boil over in a spiky finish.

Following on from their thrashing of Italy the week before Ireland were full of running and Sexton, off the back of a fine tournament, shone with the ball in hand or on his boot, but drew heavy criticism for appealing for a card after he was flipped on his back by Alex Dunbar, and also finished his Six Nations in the sin-bin.

Scotland were full of energy and have certainly made strides in this Six Nations, but yellow cards for John Barclay and Dunbar in each half proved incredibly costly on each occasion as their game management left something to be desired.

Having 81 percent possession in the first half only produced an eight-point advantage for Ireland by the break, with Scotland having been penalised incessantly at the breakdown by referee Pascal Gauzère.

It was Sexton's boot after Scotland strayed offside which opened the scoring, although he oddly missed a straightforward effort minutes later.

That first penalty however moved him into second in Ireland's all-time points scoring rankings ahead of David Humphreys, with only Ronan O'Gara ahead of him.

Sexton made no mistake with his third kick after Scotland were penalised for a high tackle, all within the first 12 minutes, before Laidlaw finally put Scotland on the board at 6-3.  Sexton struck once more to restore the six-point gap before Ireland were stunned by a magical solo score from Hogg.

Arguably the premier full-back in this Six Nations, Hogg spotted a gap between Rory Best and Mike Ross before cantering through it into space and hitting the accelerator to score a magnificent solo try.

Laidlaw's conversion put Scotland ahead for the first time at 10-9 but Scotland paid for their earlier indiscipline with the loss of Barclay, on his 50th cap, to the sin-bin for coming in at the side.

In Barclay's absence Ireland pummelled the Scottish defensive line, eventually breaking it, through CJ Stander for his second Test try in a week, and Ireland were over again almost instantly.

Sexton's clever kick, off his left foot, found a gap in the defence and a calamitous mix-up from the Scottish defence allowed Keith Earls, also celebrating his half century, to gratefully scoop up and score.

Sexton couldn't convert and Scotland captain Laidlaw had the final say of the half with a penalty to make it 21-13.

Turning to their maul after the break Ireland notched up try number four, Conor Murray with a trademark snipe from close range catching out the tired Scottish defence as Ireland built an imposing 28-13 lead.

A response from the visitors was needed fast and it came through Richie Gray, the towering lock hitting the right line as he found a sizeable gap in Ireland's defence after Scotland had sucked in the tacklers to one corner, Laidlaw converting to close the gap to eight.

Scotland noticeably tried to lift the tempo but they were hamstrung by Dunbar's daft moment of indiscipline flipping Sexton over the horizontal, for which he saw yellow.

Ireland went to the corner from the resulting penalty and eventually Devin Toner crashed over for try number four before a scrap off the ball afterwards.

Scotland's frustrating afternoon was starting to spill over but a persistent stint in Ireland's 22, with Sexton yellow carded for coming in at the side, ended eventually with a try for Dunbar.

It was too late though for a fightback, Ireland rounding out a chippy contest with another victory as each side looks forward for better fortunes on their overseas tours later this year.

Man of the Match:  Jamie Heaslip again impressed but his back-row colleague CJ Stander will be waking up pretty sore on Sunday after a remarkable number of carries.  What a find he has been for Joe Schmidt.

Moment of the Match:  One of the tournament's top tries from Stuart Hogg, who once again showed his class with a special break to put his side ahead in the first half.

Villain of the Match:  Really poor from Alex Dunbar flipping Jonathan Sexton onto his back at the ruck at a pivotal moment, for which he was yellow carded, although the reaction from Sexton was also poor.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Stander, Earls, Murray, Toner
Cons:  Sexton 3
Pens:  Sexton 3
Yellow Card:  Sexton

For Scotland:
Tries:  Hogg, Gray, Dunbar
Cons:  Laidlaw 2
Pens:  Laidlaw 2
Yellow Card:  Barclay

Ireland:  15 Simon Zebo, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Jared Payne, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Tommy O'Donnell, 6 CJ Stander, 5 Devin Toner, 4 Donnacha Ryan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Jack McGrath
Replacements:  16 Richardt Strauss, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Nathan White, 19 Ultan Dillane, 20 Rhys Ruddock, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Fergus McFadden

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Duncan Taylor, 12 Alex Dunbar, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 Ryan Wilson, 7 John Hardie, 6 John Barclay, 5 Tim Swinson, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Willem Nel, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Alasdair Dickinson
Replacements:  16 Stuart McInally, 17 Rory Sutherland, 18 Moray Low, 19 Rob Harley, 20 Josh Strauss, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Pete Horne, 23 Sean Lamont

Referee:  Pascal Gauzère (France)
Assistant referees:  Craig Joubert (South Africa), Alexandre Ruiz (France)

TMO:  Shaun Veldsman (South Africa)

Ireland edge towards title

Ireland rose to the challenge set by Wales earlier on Saturday, thumping Scotland 40-10 to claim top spot in the Six Nations table.

An incredible second-half blitz from the Welsh in Rome left Joe Schmidt's side chasing a points difference deficit of 20, with England hosting France in the final match of the tournament shortly after full-time at Murrayfield.

Paul O'Connell and Jared Payne touched down in addition to a brace from the monstrous Sean O'Brien as the men in green flourished in the Edinburgh sunshine.

Scotland mustered a solitary score through Finn Russell, and an early penalty from captain Greig Laidlaw.

In need of points, Schmidt's troops enjoyed the perfect start.

From a seemingly innocuous position, a slip in the Scottish midfield suddenly presented Ireland with a huge overlap, Rob Kearney's arcing run and pass to Robbie Henshaw taking the visitors to within five metres of the line.

Scotland defended the subsequent onslaught ably, but the pressure always looked likely to tell, O'Connell crashing over round the fringes of the breakdown.

Jonny Sexton converted, and took Ireland's lead to ten after as many minutes with a penalty, Scotland pulling down a maul on their own 22.

The hosts responded well to the furious Irish opening with a spell of possession in their opponents' half that culminated in Laidlaw's penalty.

The livened atmosphere at Murrayfield soon grew dark again, however, as from a lineout on the Scots' 22, the home forwards parted as though Moses, not O'Brien was carrying the pill, the flanker evading Dougie Fife and powering over for a try converted by Sexton.

There followed a frenetic few minutes, where O'Brien lacerated the Scottish midfield, and Tommy Bowe was denied a try by a superb Russell cover tackle, while the unlikely duo of Jim Hamilton and substitute Geoff Cross made impressive inroads of their own.

With the match fast developing into as expansive and high-octane fare as anything involving either side this tournament, it was Scotland who struck next.

From a Tommy Seymour grubber down the left touchline, a smart, and not entirely subtle, nudge from the chasing Stuart Hogg saw Jared Payne collide with Kearney, the Scotland full-back claiming the ball, and a few phases later, Adam Ashe feeding Russell to canter round under the posts for a first Test try.

Laidlaw converted, but Sexton added his second penalty to restore a two-score, ten-point gap on 34 minutes.

Matt Scott almost sent Russell in again after the centre gathered his teammate's sumptuous chip-kick, but his attempted offload was knocked astray in contact.

Sexton scored first after the interval with a penalty from point-blank range as Ireland began to seize control of the match, and the fly-half delivered a sweet inside ball in the shadow of the Scottish uprights to send Payne diving over the whitewash.

It was far too simple a score from Vern Cotter's perspective, given the number of defenders on hand, and the ease with which Blair Cowan was bumped aside by the centre.

With Sexton's conversion, and the score at 30-10, Ireland had equalled Wales' points difference, and should have bettered it when he slammed a routine penalty off the post 53 minutes.

Repeat infringements and maddening indiscipline have long blighted this Scotland squad, and as referee Jérôme Garcès lost patience, Cross was shown yellow – the Scots' fifth of this championship.

Again, however, Sexton was off-target from the tee.

Bowe next came closest to posting crucial points on the board, his tip-toe down the touchline was stalled by Sam Hidalgo-Clyne's tap-tackle, the stumbling winger's momentum was sufficiently halted for him to fall short of the line.

Sexton finally rediscovered his range on 62 minutes, taking the margin on the scoreboard to 23 points with 19 minutes left.

With the requisite points scored, both half-backs, Sexton and his partner Conor Murray, reverted to the disciplined, controlled kicking game that has dominated Ireland's championship and characterised their recent performances under Schmidt.

Pinning Scotland deep in their own 22 with an array of dinks, hoists and probes, they had their reward, and made safe their elevation – as things stand – to first place when O'Brien ignored a massive overlap to battle his way over from five metres.

Ian Madigan, on for Sexton a minute earlier, converted, but as the Fields of Athenry began to ring out, Scotland threatened to throw a huge spanner in the works.

Hogg looked to have collected Rob Harley's looping pass and scored in the corner, but Jamie Heaslip's tackle had forced the ball from his grasp at the last possible instant.  In such moments are championships won and lost.

Ireland preserved their lead, passing up another chance to extend it when Madigan hooked a penalty with the last kick of the game.

All eyes now point towards Twickenham – England tasked with overturning a 26-point deficit – and a phenomenal climax to this, the ever-engrossing Six Nations.

Man of the match:  The Irish back-row were outstanding around the contact area and in the loose – none more so than two-try, all-action Sean O'Brien.

Moment of the match:  Heaslip's tackle.  It could prove title-deciding.

Villain of the match:  Nothing nasty to report.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Try:  Russell
Con:  Laidlaw
Pen:  Laidlaw
Yellow Card:  Cross

For Ireland:
Tries:  O'Connell, O'Brien 2, Payne
Cons:  Sexton 3
Pens:  Sexton 4

The teams:

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Tommy Seymour, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Dougie Fife, 10 Finn Russell, 9 Greig Laidlaw (c), 8 David Denton, 7 Blair Cowan, 6 Adam Ashe, 5 Jonny Gray, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Ryan Grant.  Replacements:  16 Fraser Brown, 17 Alasdair Dickinson, 18 Geoff Cross, 19 Tim Swinson, 20 Rob Harley, 21 Sam Hidalgo-Clyne, 22 Greig Tonks, 23 Tim Visser

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Jared Payne, 12 Robbie Henshaw, 11 Luke Fitzgerald, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Paul O'Connell (c), 4 Devin Toner, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 Martin Moore, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Jordi Murphy, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ian Madigan, 23 Felix Jones

Venue:  Murrayfield, Edinburgh
Referee:  Jérôme Garcès (France)
Assistant Referees:  Pascal Gauzère (France), Federico Anselmi (Argentina)
TMO:  Graham Hughes (England)

Ireland power past Scots in Dublin

Ireland finished off Round One of the Six Nations with an untroubled 28-6 win over Scotland at Dublin's Aviva Stadium on Sunday.

It The influence of new boss Joe Schmidt was evident in Ireland's play, as straightforward but well-taken tries from Andrew Trimble and stand-in captain Jamie Heaslip saw the hosts build a comfortable lead early in the second-half, before Rob Kearney rounded off proceedings in the final ten minutes.

Two penalties from scrum-half Greig Laidlaw were all Scotland had to show for their efforts, as a solid first-half performance gave way to sloppy defence and a recurrent impotency with ball in hand after the break.

The pre-match build-up was dominated by the news that skipper Paul O'Connell was to miss out thanks to a chest infection, but though Ireland's line-out faltered at times, the Munsterman was scarcely missed.

It was another veteran — Brian O'Driscoll — whose longevity at the forefront of elite rugby was rewarded, as the centre marked his record-breaking Six Nations appearance with a win.

Scotland head coach Scott Johnson had claimed his side would adopt a more expansive game-plan in Dublin, and though they did try and move the ball well, the lack of ruthlessness was clear.  All too often overlaps were created but ignored as the visitors' big ball-carriers looked for contact or offered Duncan Weir a tempting but ineffectual inside ball.  Losing Kiwi convert Sean Maitland to a nasty ankle injury early on did not help, Max Evans replacing him on the wing.

The set-piece was to prove a painfully messy affair.  Ireland dominated the scrummage, with Ross Ford's non-hooking crippling the Scots' attempts to retain possession on their own feed.  Neither side's line-out functioned to the best of its capabilities, with Scotland in particular coughing up ball.  It wasn't a good afternoon for Ford.

The opening exchanges were full of endeavour and physicality, with the breakdown immediately emerging as a terrific contest.  Both sides sought to throw the ball around and attack early on;  Laidlaw hitting the post with a long-range penalty attempt, before the Irish pack mauled their way to within inches of the visitors' line.

The Scottish defence barely held firm, but they found themselves behind minutes later after skipper Kelly Brown was penalised for failing to roll away, Jonny Sexton slotting where Laidlaw had erred.

The scrum-half was soon on target, levelling the scores after a good period of pressure from the Scots;  but Sexton cancelled this out with his second three-pointer.

Scotland continued to dominate both possession and territory, but in typically frustrating style, struggled in vain to breach the whitewash.  Their best opportunity presented itself after a fine piece of spoiling play from the pack handed them a scrum five metres from the Irish line.  It was under heavy pressure, but Dave Denton did well to pick and go before being bundled into touch at the corner by the scrambling Irish back-row and scrum-half Conor Murray.  That was to be the closest the Scots got to a five-pointer all game.

The gritty affair was lit up by a moment of magic from Sexton as half-time approached.  A dummied kick and step inside his own half saw him sear downfield, before releasing Heaslip for a charge to the corner flag with a huge, looping pass.  Evans saved the day with brilliant last-gasp cover tackle to haul Heaslip's feet over the touchline, but the danger was far from over.

Not for the first time, Scotland's line-out faltered under pressure, and from the resultant penalty, the Irish opted for the corner rather than the posts.  This is the sort of decision that has to bear fruit in elite rugby, and though visitors repelled the initial drive well, the ball was spread wide, and Trimble had a simple run-in down the right-hand-side.  Sexton was wide with the conversion, but Ireland held an eight-point lead going into the break.

Scotland enjoyed a similarly energetic start to the second-half, with a Laidlaw penalty cutting the gap to five points.

But the hosts responded in emphatic fashion after making mincemeat of the Scottish scrum once again.  For the second time, Heaslip turned down points in favour of a line-out five metres out, and it was the skipper himself who profited as the Irish pack swiftly rumbled its way over the line.  It was an embarrassingly easy score, and this time, Sexton made no mistake from the tee.

With a 12-point lead now amassed, Ireland looked to choke the final breaths from the Scots.  A further penalty from Sexton took the gap to 15, and Cian Healy backed up his powerful display in the scrum with a bullocking midfield break.

Scotland did their best to build more phases in attack, but failed to produce any sort of danger or penetration.  In contrast, Ireland swept their way forward with eight minutes to play, and full-back Kearney brushed aside a trio of flimsy tackles from away forwards to stretch and score on his 50th cap.  Sexton's final act was to add the extras — Paddy Jackson replacing him — and record-breaker O'Driscoll received a standing ovation as he traipsed off satisfied.

The final moments were unremarkable, dominated by errors and penalties, before Dave Kearney was denied five points with the clock red;  his spectacular dive to ground Jackson's chip ruled out by the TMO.

That late disappointment will swiftly be forgotten in the wake of a comprehensive Irish win, however.  A fine start to Schmidt's Six Nations reign with his side topping the table after Round One;  but a maddeningly familiar story for a Scotland side who never threatened to spring an upset.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Trimble, Heaslip, Kearney
Con:  Sexton 2
Pens:  Sexton 3

For Scotland:
Pens:  Laidlaw 2

The teams:

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Andrew Trimble, 13 Brian O'Driscoll, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Dave Kearney, 10 Johnny Sexton, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip (c), 7 Chris Henry, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Dan Tuohy, 4 Devin Toner, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Jack McGrath, 18 Martin Moore, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Tommy O'Donnell, 21 Isaac Boss, 22 Paddy Jackson, 23 Fergus McFadden.

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Alex Dunbar, 12 Duncan Taylor, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Duncan Weir, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Dave Denton, 7 Kelly Brown (c), 6 Ryan Wilson, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Tim Swinson, 3 Moray Low, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Ryan Grant.
Replacements:  16 Pat MacArthur, 17 Al Dickinson, 18 Geoff Cross, 19 Richie Gray, 20 Johnnie Beattie, 21 Chris Cusiter, 22 Matt Scott, 23 Max Evans.

Referee:  Craig Joubert (SA)
Assistant referees:  Jaco Peyper (SA), Mike Fraser (NZ)
TMO:  Carlo Damasco (Ita)

Scotland stay in the hunt

Scotland kept their Six Nations title hopes alive thanks to a hard fought 12-8 victory over Ireland at Murrayfield on Sunday.

It's the first time since 2001 that the Scots have won back-to-back Six Nations matches.

After trailing 8-0 early in the second half, the hosts put 12 unanswered points past their Celtic rivals thanks to the boot of scrum-half Greig Laidlaw that helped his team to an unlikely win and that effectively ends Ireland's Six Nations challenge.

It certainly wasn't the most memorable Championship clash ever witnessed, as the two teams served up a borefest in the first half with Ireland — who dominated possession throughout — heading into the break with a slender three-point lead.

However, Scotland's fightback in the second half breathed some life into a tight contest.

Ireland started the game with a roar and a hiss, with centre Luke Marshall breaking the Scots' defence with ease in his Test debut.  But Ireland failed to convert pressure into points — even against 14 men after Scotland prop Ryan Grant was sin-binned — and only had a 35th-minute Paddy Jackson penalty to show for their dominance.

Ireland finally found the breakthrough they deserved when wing Craig Gilroy crossed early in the second half out wide.  The tricky conversion from Jackson, who missed three times from the tee, was unsuccessful.

That try only seemed to give Scotland the wake-up needed to mount a comeback and it didn't take long for Laidlaw to put his team on the scoreboard with his first penalty kick of the match on 53 minutes.

Jackson pulled another penalty wide two minutes later, but Laidlaw showed the Irish rookie how it was done with his second three-pointer of the afternoon that cut the deficit to just two points and suddenly the crowd came alive.

Laidlaw continued to find his target and made no mistake with two more accurate kicks to give the Scots a four-point cushion entering the final five minutes of what was turning into a gripping finale.

But Ireland weren't prepared to roll over yet, and threatened to steal the match from their hosts when they awarded two attacking scrums 10m out from Scotland's tryline.

However, Scotland dug deep in defence and there was no way through for the Irish whose knock-on sent Murrayfield into raptures.

Man of the match:  Scotland lock Jim Hamilton won the official gong, and his hard work at the set-piece was a real standout for the hosts.  But we've opted for hero of the day Greig Laidlaw, who's four perfect kicks at goal handed Scotland victory.

Moment of the match:  There weren't many.  But those last few minutes that so nearly ended in heartbreak for the hosts was a real nail-biter.

Villain of the match:  Ryan Grant's sin-binning didn't prove as costly as Paddy Jackson's three missed kicks at goal which ultimately cost his side dearly.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Pens:  Laidlaw 4
Yellow card:Grant (15th min)

For Ireland:
Try:  Gilroy
Pen:  Jackson

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Sean Maitland, 13 Sean Lamont, 12 Matt Scott, 11 Tim Visser, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Greig Laidlaw, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 Kelly Brown (c), 6 Rob Harley, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Ryan Grant.
Replacements:  16 Dougie Hall, 17 Moray Low, 18 Jon Welsh, 19 Alastair Kellock, 20 David Denton, 21 Henry Pyrgos, 22 Duncan Weir, 23 Max Evans.
Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Craig Gilroy, 13 Brian O'Driscoll, 12 Luke Marshall, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Paddy Jackson, 9 Conor Murray, 8 Jamie Heaslip (c), 7 Sean O'Brien, 6 Peter O'Mahony, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Tom Court.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Dave Kilcoyne, 18 Declan Fitzpatrick, 19 Devin Toner, 20 Iain Henderson, 21 Eoin Reddan, 22 Ronan O'Gara, 23 Luke Fitzgerald.
Referee:  Wayne Barnes (England)

Four-try Ireland a cut above Scotland

Ireland scored four tries at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday in a convincing 32-14 Six Nations victory over Scotland.

Having lost narrowly (and somewhat controversially) to Wales before being held to a draw in Paris, Ireland will head to Twickenham in confident mood next weekend.

Scotland meanwhile are faced with a Wooden Spoon showdown in Rome.

An entertaining first-half saw four tries being scored as Rory Best, Eoin Reddan and Andrew Trimble touched down for the hosts while Richie Gray showed great power, pace and skill to cross for Scotland to leave the hosts leading 22-14 at the break.

Unfortunately the same cannot be said for a gritty, error-strewn second half as the hosts struggled to come up with the knockout blow.

In fact, the only knockout of the second period involved Scotland wing Lee Jones's lights going out after a vicious (though entirely unintentional) clash of heads with Trimble.

Replacement centre Fergus McFadden did eventually secure a deserved win for Ireland with a try under the sticks in the dying minutes.

A hamstring injury in the warm-up meant that Nick De Luca was replaced by Max Evans in the Scottish midfield, with uncapped Edinburgh back Matt Scott named on the bench.

Fly-half Greig Laidlaw kicked the visitors into an early 6-0 lead as Scotland held onto all the possession in the opening 10 minutes with the expansive style which has been the hallmark of their approach throughout the championship.

Ireland's positive mindset was evident when they opted to kick for the corner rather than take three points on the quarter-hour mark.

After a simple line-out, the ball was sent down the blindside and Best went straight over Mike Blair to score the first try in the corner.

Jonathan Sexton and Laidlaw exchanged penalties before Ireland struck again as Reddan escaped the clutches of opposite number Blair, Sean Lamont and David Denton to wriggle his way clear and score following a ruck five metres out.  Sexton converted to put the hosts 15-9 ahead.

Scotland's reply wasn't long in coming though as giant second row Gray broke through attempted tackles from Reddan and Tommy Bowe before selling Rob Kearney a dummy and sprinting 25m for his first Test try.  Laidlaw missed the conversion.

Ireland would take the momentum into the dressing rooms however, scoring their third try when Trimble made a mockery of the Scottish defence out wide — and Lee Jones in particular — to dashed over in the corner.

Sexton's conversion was wide but the hosts would have felt confident of victory with an eight-point lead at the break.

Bowe came desperately close to claiming Ireland's fourth try early in the second period but was wrestled onto his back by Graeme Morrison and the TMO ruled that he had made an illegal second movement in grounding the ball.

But overall the second forty minutes failed to live up to the standard set in the opening period.  Scotland fought bravely but never realistically looked like having enough to claim victory.

Max Evans was sent to the sin bin for impeding Keith Earls without the ball on 72 minutes and Ireland made the most of their numerical advantage as McFadden burrowed over the line with three minutes left on the clock.

Man of the match:  A few candidates here and a mention must go to Rory Best for leading Ireland to victory.  Stephen Ferris and Donnacha Ryan were also outstanding for the men in green but we'll break with convention and go with someone from the losing side because Richie Gray was phenomenal.  For a lock, his try was simply brilliant.  It's a sign of his class that he often seemed like the Scots' most dangerous runner.

Moment of the match:  Scotland were right in the game in the first half but Andrew Trimble's try just before half time took the wind out of their sails.  While a lot of credit must go to the Ulster wing, Trimble should never have been allowed to score.  It was the kind of defensive glitch that has ruined Scotland's campaign and it put Ireland in a position from which they could control the game.

Villain of the match:  We'll change this one to "Ballerina of the Match".  The dive from Keith Earls after being 'interfered with' on his way to the line by Max Evans would have made Christiano Ronaldo proud.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Best, Reddan, Trimble, McFadden
Cons:  Sexton 3
Pens:  Sexton 2

For Scotland:
Try:  Gray
Pens:  Laidlaw 3

Yellow card:  Evans (Scotland — 73rd min — playing man without the ball)

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Keith Earls, 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Andrew Trimble, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 Peter O'Mahony, 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Donnacha Ryan, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best (c), 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Tom Court, 18 Mike McCarthy, 19 Shane Jennings, 20 Tomas O'Leary, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Fergus McFadden.

Scotland:  15 Stuart Hogg, 14 Lee Jones, 13 Max Evans, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Sean Lamont, 10 Greig Laidlaw, 9 Mike Blair, 8 David Denton, 7 Ross Rennie, 6 John Barclay, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Richie Gray, 3 Geoff Cross , 2 Ross Ford (c) 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Euan Murray, 18 Alastair Kellock, 19 Richie Vernon, 20 Chris Cusiter, 21 Ruaridh Jackson, 22 Matthew Scott

Venue:  Aviva Stadium, Dublin
Referee:  Chris Pollock (New Zealand)
Assistant referees:  Romain Poite, Greg Garner (England)
Television match official:  Giulio De Santis (Italy)

Three-try Ireland win at Murrayfield

Ireland scored three unanswered tries to beat Scotland 21-18 in a closely contested Six Nations game in Edinburgh on Sunday.

Jamie Heaslip, Eoin Reddan and Ronan O'Gara touched down for the visitors as Ireland kept their Six Nations title hopes alive -- although based on this performance it's difficult to see them lift the championship trophy next month.

Neither side can be blamed for not trying to play attractive rugby as there was plenty of positive intent from the protagonists.  Unfortunately, the harsh truth is that the skills levels failed to match their ambitions as a plethora of errors made the encounter a stop-start affair.

If anything, Scotland were once again victims of their own attacking mindset as their expansive style left them empty handed when a more pragmatic approach -- especially in the closing minutes when they were desperate for territory -- could have put Ireland under pressure.

Ireland were clearly the stronger side on the day but will head back to Dublin with plenty to think about as their knack for giving possession away through silly mistakes could well have cost them victory if Scotland were more clinical.

It took just six minutes for Ireland to find their way over the try-line as some slack Scottish defending around the fringes saw Heaslip cruise in for the opening score.

Scotland turned up the intensity and are were able to narrow to gap to a single point as Ireland were pressured into transgressions at the breakdown and Paterson could land two penalties.

Ireland would cross the whitewash again just before the half-hour mark after scrum five metres from the Scottish line.  A huge scrum provided the platform for Heaslip to break off.  Two defenders were unable to pull him down before he could off-loaded to Eoin Reddan, who burst over the line untouched.

O'Gara slotted his second conversion but Scotland continued to hang on as Paterson added his third penalty to leave the sides separated by just five points going into the break at 14-9.

The home side's hopes of victory took a major blow when loosehead prop Allan Jacobsen was sent to the bin for scrummaging in.

A minute before Jacobsen returned from the field Ireland broke through again as O'Gara found himself at the end of a massive overlap.  The visiting fly-half duly added the extra points and the game looked settled at 21-9.

The Scots kept coming however as Ireland seemed content to try defend their lead.  Another penalty for Paterson and then one for replacement fly-half Parks put Scotland back in contention.

It was all Scotland in the final ten minutes but the hosts couldn't find the gap that would have brought a famous comeback victory.

A date with England at Twickenham now looks a daunting task for Andy Robinson's men.

Man of the match:  Jamies Heaslip deserves a mention for scoring one try and creating another.  Max Evans was Scotland's most dangerous runner.  But the gong goes to the man who, on his return to the starting XV reminded everyone why he has been Ireland's go-to man for years.  Ronan O'Gara's try was just reward for a top performance.

Moment of the match:  Ireland led from start to finish thanks to Heaslip's try.  That early score had Scotland playing catch-up for 74 minutes.

Villain of the match:  No nasty stuff to report.

The scorers:

For Scotland:
Pens:  Paterson 4, Parks
Drop:  Parks

For Ireland:
Tries:  Heaslip, Reddan, O'Gara
Cons:  O'Gara 3

Yellow cards:  Jacobsen (Scotland -- 44th min -- illegal scrummaging)

The teams:

Scotland:  15 Chris Paterson, 14 Nikki Walker, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Sean Lamont, 11 Max Evans, 10 Ruaridh Jackson, 9 Mike Blair, 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 John Barclay, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alastair Kellock (capt), 4 Richie Gray, 3 Moray Low, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Geoff Cross, 18 Nathan Hines, 19 Richie Vernon, 20 Rory Lawson, 21 Dan Parks, 22 Simon Danielli.

Ireland:  15 Luke Fitzgerald, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Sean O'Brien, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 Mike Ross, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Tom Court, 18 Leo Cullen, 19 Denis Leamy, 20 Peter Stringer, 21 Jonathan Sexton , 22 Paddy Wallace.

Venue:  Murrayfield
Referee:  Nigel Owens (Wales)
Assistant referees:  Andrew Small (England), Pascal Gauzere (France)
Television match official:  Graham Hughes (England)

Scotland hand crown to France

France were handed the Six Nations crown an hour before even running out in Paris as Scotland upset Ireland 23-20 at Croke Park on Saturday.

It was an efficient performance from the visitors, who threw the Wooden Spoon over to Italy, thanks to a structured 80 minutes that caged the Irish.

The holders were in contrast very off colour for their stadium farewell before moving back to the old Lansdowne Road, with their lineout one major reason for defeat.  In all, Rory Best threw one not straight while six were stolen or overthrown.

And those errors ultimately led to a lack of ball and momentum for Ireland, who hauled off Jonathan Sexton for Ronan O'Gara on 51 minutes.  It was a tough call on the youngster but the experienced Munsterman almost won it.

That word again is almost as it was to be another day in the sunshine for Dan Parks, who landed two hammer blows to Ireland at the end of each half.  His one in the first was a smartly taken drop-goal, which saw Scotland go in 14-7 to the good, while a last-minute touchline penalty denied the Triple Crown and Championship-chasing Ireland even a share of the spoils.

Glasgow fly-half Parks finished the contest with an 18-point haul and the man-of-the-match award -- his third in four games since returning.

Ireland had started much the brighter and looked to be following the points-chasing script on eleven minutes when Brian O'Driscoll belatedly celebrated his 100th cap of last week with a beautifully taken score following Sexton's clever loop around his centres.

But Scotland responded in clinical fashion just four minutes later.  Graeme Morrison started the score off down the left wing before handing the ball over to Johnnie Beattie, who showed power and pace to cross with two Irish defenders on his back.

Then came the intelligence of Parks following Sexton's fairly simple penalty miss 40 metres out.  It was Paul O'Connell who infringed at ruck-time and the ten stepped to extend the scores to 7-11 with 120 seconds to go until the break.  He then struck again with a vital drop-goal in the last action of the half to leave Dublin stunned and Paris joyful.

Declan Kidney needed to lift his troops and seemed to have done so going from their effort at the turnaround.  And they were soon rewarded when their go-to man Tommy Bowe struck with on 64 minutes to bring the Irish back level at 17-17 with a big finish on the cards.

It was then a scrap for territory as Parks and O'Gara traded three points before South African referee Jonathan Kaplan awarded Scotland a penalty wide on the left that the former slotted, much to the delight of himself, Andy Robinson and Gregor Townsend.

Man of the match:  Johnnie Beattie was superb once again but the form of Dan Parks since being recalled for Phil Godman has been immense.  He kept his cool to land the match-winning penalty from the touchline but his first-half drop was something out of the top draw.

Moment of the match:  Tough to decide over Dan Parks' hammer blows at the end of each half.  However, I have to go for the 79th minute effort from the touchline.  Well done Scotland, you would not have deserved to be holding the Wooden Spoon.

Villain of the match:  So often you can hear a pin drop at Irish provincial and also home internationals when a visiting kicker lines up a kick.  Not today.  That late sucker punch was greeted with plenty of hisses from the Dublin crowd.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  O'Driscoll, Bowe
Con:  Sexton, O'Gara
Pen:  Sexton, O'Gara

For Scotland:
Tries:  Beattie
Pen:  Parks 5
Drop:  Parks

Ireland:  15 Geordan Murphy, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Keith Earls, 10 Jonathan Sexton, 9 Tomas O'Leary, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace , 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 John Hayes, 2 Rory Best, 1 Cian Healy.
Replacements:  16 Sean Cronin, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Leo Cullen, 19 Shane Jennings, 20 Eoin Reddan, 21 Ronan O'Gara, 22 Robert Kearney.

Scotland:  15 Hugo Southwell, 14 Sean Lamont, 13 Nick De Luca, 12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Max Evans, 10 Dan Parks, 9 Chris Cusiter (capt), 8 Johnnie Beattie, 7 John Barclay, 6 Kelly Brown, 5 Alastair Kellock, 4 Jim Hamilton, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Scott Lawson, 17 Alasdair Dickinson, 18 Richie Gray, 19 Alan MacDonald, 20 Mike Blair, 21 Phil Godman, 22 Simon Danielli.

Referee:  Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Assistant referees:  Craig Joubert (South Africa), Jérôme Garces (France)
Television match official:  Giulio De Santis (Italy)
Assessor:  Steve Hilditch (Ireland)

Dream still on for Ireland

Ireland's dream of ending 61 years of Grand Slam hurt remains on the cards as they eked out a scrappy 22-15 win over Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.

There wasn't much to separate these two in-form nations in the end, but Declan Kidney's men provided sufficient grit and determination to muscle past their opponents with substitute Jamie Heaslip's try proving the difference.

Scotland had started the stronger as they looked to add to their own improving efforts over the past six months.  And with a late switch to the right-hand side just five minutes in, powerful winger Simon Danielli looked set to open the scoring until a stray Irish hand brought him to his knees ten metres from the whitewash.

The early barrage continued for the seemingly nervous away outfit as the hosts started to set up camp downfield with points not too far away as record-breaking referee Jonathan Kaplan spotted a breakdown offence on seven minutes, allowing the metronomic Chris Paterson to master the testing wind at the first time of asking.

Offences continued to dog the Championship-chasing visitors efforts though, which started to bring a sense that Scotland were increasingly on top in several aspects.

But just as captain Mike Blair looked to press home the advantage with a bouncing kick into the Irish corner, it was a case of "nice idea but shame about the execution" as Luke Fitzgerald ushered the attempt out in-goal.

Ireland subsequently clawed themselves back onto level terms two minutes later with a penalty of their own as their soon-to-be record holder, Ronan O'Gara, slotted one through the posts during a shift in territory.

Having under-performed against England a fortnight ago, the Emerald Isle seemed to be stuck in a similar Dublin rut as David Wallace proved the catalyst in gifting Paterson a chance to stretch the gap before the two kickers traded blows.

But one felt that despite their lack of fluency, Ireland would largely be encouraged by their 12-9 deficit after a distinctly average showing up until now.

However, before any long whistle blowing could take place, Ireland were left with hearts in their mouths as the strengthening Thom Evans announced himself on proceedings.  The young winger, who has set the tournament alight on several occasions, spotted some space behind the away defence and re-gathered his own kick before Tommy Bowe saved his side with a vital tackle.

Was that to be something for Declan Kidney to use during his half-time team-talk?  Well, something seemed to inspire the men in green as Peter Stringer shrugged off an earlier knock to dart through an unexpecting Scottish defence before feeding replacement Heaslip to score the game's only try.

And with the scores 16-12 in favour of the now dominant travelling side, momentum had definitely changed hands from the first period as Ireland's forwards took a stranglehold on the match.  Enter under-fire fly-half O'Gara, who showed all of his experience to sit back and repel Scotland from the one-score margin with a well-taken drop-goal on 57 minutes.

The gutsy hosts were certainly not done on their home patch though, as a fifth Paterson penalty-goal moved them back within touching distance -- a strong finish possibly in the offing at Murrayfield?

But that was to be the Edinburgh full-back's final meaningful act as Ireland showed Six Nations-winning form to grind out their fourth-straight victory as another three points sets up an intriguing clash against reigning champions Wales next weekend.

Man of the match:  These sort of contests are won by individual moments of intelligence and what Peter Stringer showed when setting up Jamie Heaslip's score was just that.  The recalled Munster scrum-half, who had shrugged off an earlier shin injury in the game, broke through to switch with his supporting number eight and the rest is history ... welcome back Peter.

The scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  Heaslip
Con:  O'Gara
Pen:  O'Gara 3
Drop:  O'Gara

For Scotland:
Pen:  Paterson 4

Scotland:  15 Chris Paterson, 14 Simon Danielli, 13 Max Evans,12 Graeme Morrison, 11 Thom Evans, 10 Phil Godman, 9 Mike Blair (capt), 8 Simon Taylor, 7 John Barclay, 6 Alasdair Strokosch, 5 Jim Hamilton, 4 Jason White, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Alasdair Dickinson.
Replacements:  16 Dougie Hall, 17 Moray Low, 18 Nathan Hines, 19 Scott Gray, 20 Chris Cusiter, 21 Nick De Luca, 22 Hugo Southwell.

Ireland:  15 Rob Kearney, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (capt), 12 Gordon D'Arcy, 11 Luke Fitzgerald, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Peter Stringer, 8 Denis Leamy, 7 David Wallace, 6 Stephen Ferris, 5 Paul O'Connell, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 John Hayes, 2 Rory Best, 1 Marcus Horan.
Replacements:  16 Jerry Flannery, 17 Tom Court, 18 Mick O'Driscoll, 19 Jamie Heaslip, 20 Tomas O'Leary, 21 Paddy Wallace, 22 Geordan Murphy.

Referee:  Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Touch judges:  Wayne Barnes (England), Carlo Damasco (Italy)
Television match official:  Hugh Watkins (Wales)

Ireland add to Scotland's misery

Ireland heaped further misery on Scotland as they ran out 34-13 victors in Saturday's Six Nations clash at Croke Park.

Despite scoring their first try in almost three hundred minutes of rugby, Scotland had no answer to an Ireland side threatening, in patches, to return to the form of old.  Simon Webster's try, which gave Scotland faint hope with twenty-five minutes to play, proved little more than scant consolation.

Ireland ran in five tries and in doing so played some devastating rugby to bring Croke Park to life for the first time since they put England to the sword almost a year ago.  It has been a barren spell in Irish rugby -- a dismal World Cup still lingers in the memory after two less than convincing performances in this year's Six Nations.

The sound of the old faithful giving a passionate rendition of "Fields of Athenry" will have been music to Eddie O'Sullivan's ears.  For so long he has had to endure a barrage of criticism but as Ireland slowly but surely unearthed a welcome return to form he will have afforded himself a sly smile.

Granted there is still work to be done, most notably at the line-out, but at times Ireland looked like the side who effortlessly accounted for South Africa and Australia in consecutive weeks in 2006.  For so long the line-out has been a formidable weapon in the Irish armoury, yet as it stands now it is a mere shadow of its former self.

Bernard Jackman, preferred to Rory Best for his throwing-in, had a woeful game -- coughing up two line-outs in the opening five minutes as Scotland asserted early pressure.  Mick O'Driscoll, whilst adding a hardened edge in the tight, leaves a lot to the imagination at the line-out, and up against Scott MacLeod he was exposed in ruthless fashion.

Despite a glut of early possession and territory Scotland could not make their pressure tell, even spurning an eminently kickable three points in a bid to crack the Irish defence.  Any perceived weaknesses of Ireland's defensive abilities were ill-founded, as try as they may Scotland could not find a way through.

If Scotland needed a lesson in efficiency then Ireland were only to glad to offer it up, scoring with their first meaningful attack of the game.  It came from their first foray into Scotland's twenty-two and exposed Scotland's scrum defence with alarming ease.  Jamie Heaslip picked from the base and arced wide with Eoin Reddan on his outside, Kelly Brown brought the dummy and David Wallace was afforded the easiest of tries on the inside shoulder.

Scotland hit back through the only means they know how, Chris Paterson's formidable boot.  A simple penalty effort finally rewarded them for all their territory and possession, but it was of scant consolation as again Ireland struck with devastating accuracy following a poor box kick from Mike Blair.

The outstanding Geordan Murphy rose high to take the kick and from there Scotland had no answer.  Ronan O'Gara saw the space in front of him and surged forward and found Brian O'Driscoll as the defence engulfed him.  Having promised a return to form in the week O'Driscoll scorched forward attracting defenders like bees to honey before floating a sumptuous pass out to Rob Kearney who finished off a fine counter-attack.

Paterson continued his impressive run with the boot, adding his second penalty on the half hour, but Scotland were left to rue ill discipline as an attempted Nathan Hines punch cost them prime field position in the dying moments of the half.  Ireland, despite defending for much of the half had the lead at the break, 14-6.

If defence was the order of the day before the break it was clear Ireland were ready to cut the shackles after the break.  It took them less than fifty seconds to get their third try, a delightful cross-field kick from O'Gara finding the galloping Marcus Horan who crashed over with a huge smile on his face.  Ireland's confidence was on the rise, as were the noise levels around the stadium.

They went up another decibel as Paul O'Connell was introduced into the fray, his very presence bringing a new found calm to the set-piece.  It could do little to prevent Webster scoring though as Ireland had a momentary lapse in concentration, a powerful series of drives creating the space down the blind side for Andrew Henderson to free Webster.

There were those who thought it was the start of a fightback but any such notion was quickly eradicated as the hosts finished the game in style.  With twenty minutes to play Tommy Bowe scored to settle matters, but it was the build-up to his try that caught the eye.  Murphy started it, pouncing on a Paterson knock-on, before finding O'Gara who produced a wander pass under all kinds of pressure.  Trimble took the attack into the twenty-two before finding Bowe who showed great strength to finish the move.

With the game in its dying throes Bowe added his second to give the score a more honest reflection and again it came from turnover ball.  Scotland were trying to force matters from deep but only ended up in gifting the ball to Ireland who wasted no time in scoring.

How refreshing to see Ireland showing adventure and panache and one can't help but feel it owes a lot to the fresh faces in their ranks.  Faces of players with no World Cup ghosts, no wrongs to right but instead reputations to build and with seemingly no fear of the unknown.  Eddie O'Sullivan, whilst his stoic face may suggest otherwise, must be delighted.

Frank Hadden on the other hand is anything but delighted, rather he is facing the prospect of a second straight Wooden Spoon, which will ultimately cost him his job.  Even if he can turn things around -- God knows how he intends to do so -- the Scottish Rugby Union will surely be looking for a new leader.  And with Andy Robinson in Edinburgh they may not have to look too far.

Man of the Match:  Scotland had a select few who stood out, most notable was Alasdair Strokosch who carried with unrelenting enthusiasm, as did Nathan Hines.  But for us it was Geordan Murphy who stole the show, the rock at the back that Ireland built their win from.  As safe as ever under the high ball and devastating in attack he will have given O'Sullivan a selection headache at full-back with Girvan Dempsey on his way back to fitness.

Moment of the Match:  It has to be Tommy Bowe's first try.  For a long time now Ireland have struggled to find rhythm in their rugby, yet in one sweeping move it all came flowing back, from decisive running to deft hands, this move had it all.

Villain of the Match:  On the whole it was a good honest game, but this one goes to Nathan Hines for his attempted punch on John Hayes.  Had he connected he could have been a lot more serious than the penalty it cost Scotland.

The Scorers:

For Ireland:
Tries:  D.Wallace, Kearney, Horan, Bowe 2
Cons:  O'Gara 3
Pen:  O'Gara

For Scotland:
Try:  Webster
Con:  Paterson
Pens:  Paterson 2

Ireland:  15 Girvan Dempsey, 14 Tommy Bowe, 13 Brian O'Driscoll (c), 12 Andrew Trimble, 11 Robert Kearney, 10 Ronan O'Gara, 9 Eoin Reddan, 8 Jamie Heaslip, 7 David Wallace, 6 Denis Leamy, 5 Mick O'Driscoll, 4 Donncha O'Callaghan, 3 John Hayes, 2 Bernard Jackman, 1 Marcus Horan.
Replacements:  16 Rory Best, 17 Tony Buckley, 18 Paul O'Connell, 19 Simon Easterby, 20 Peter Stringer, 21 Paddy Wallace, 22 Shane Horgan.

Scotland:  15 Hugo Southwell, 14 Nikki Walker, 13 Simon Webster, 12 Andrew Henderson, 11 Rory Lamont, 10 Chris Paterson, 9 Mike Blair (c), 8 Kelly Brown, 7 Allister Hogg, 6 Alasdair Strokosch, 5 Scott MacLeod, 4 Nathan Hines, 3 Euan Murray, 2 Ross Ford, 1 Allan Jacobsen.
Replacements:  16 Fergus Thomson, 17 Gavin Kerr, 18 Jim Hamilton, 19 Ross Rennie, 20 Chris Cusiter, 21 Dan Parks, 22 Nick De Luca.

Referee:  Christophe Berdos (France)
Touch judges:  Joël Jutge (France), Hugh Watkins (Wales)
Television match official:  Romain Poite (France)
Assessor:  Steve Hilditch (Ireland)