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.
👊 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.
Les Blues led 20-16 until the 76th minute when Maro Itoje bulldozed over the whitewash from short range and with Owen Farrell rifling over the conversion, they had edged the tournament favourites.
The unbeaten tournament leaders reeled off a third successive bonus-point victory to increase pressure on their rivals for silverware.
While Wales wrapped up the first major silverware of head coach Wayne Pivac’s reign in bonus-point fashion, his opposite number Eddie Jones saw England’s title hopes reduced to ruins.
Scores from Garry Ringrose, Hugo Keenan, CJ Stander and Keith Earls, plus a brace for Will Connors, helped the Irish bounce back from defeats to Wales and France in emphatic fashion.
The Irish suffered successive losses at the start of a Six Nations campaign for the first time following scores from Charles Ollivon and Damian Penaud, plus five points from the boot of Matthieu Jalibert.
Gregor Townsend’s team were looking to build on last week’s historic Twickenham victory over England and got off to the perfect start with tries from Darcy Graham and Stuart Hogg.
Willis’ left knee was damaged when he was cleared out at a ruck, just moments after the replacement flanker had scored the fifth of England’s six tries.
The 20-year-old Gloucester wing pounced midway through the second half, destroying Irish hopes of a famous triumph over adversity after flanker Peter O’Mahony’s 14th-minute red card.
The 38-year wait for success at the home of the reigning Six Nations champions finally came to an end as Finn Russell inspired the underdogs to a magnificent win.
As the scoreline suggests, this was a one-sided affair with Les Bleus holding the upper hand for long periods and they eventually outscored their hosts by seven tries to none with Teddy Thomas (2), Dylan Cretin, Gael Fickou, Arthur Vincent, Brice Dulin, Antoine Dupont crossing the whitewash, while Matthieu Jalibert finished with a 15-point haul after slotting six conversions and a penalty.
Faletau and back-row colleague Justin Tipuric were excellent, but there was still little evidence to suggest that Wales will be a Six Nations force later this season.
A pair of tries from Keith Earls, plus one from Cian Healy, helped Andy Farrell’s hosts overcome a slow start and end an inconsistent year in positive fashion.
The Pacific Islanders’ three previous games in the tournament were cancelled after they reported 29 coronavirus cases in their squad and they were highly motivated to deliver a good performance.
The previous Test between these sides ended in a 15-15 draw and it was a similar story in this Test which was played in horrendous weather conditions, with heavy rain prominent throughout.
Fly-half Billy Burns staked his claim as the first-choice understudy to sidelined skipper Johnny Sexton by contributing 15 points to help the Irish return to winning ways following last weekend’s disappointing defeat to England.
On the night that they remembered Christophe Dominici, who died at the age of 48 this week, France looked to a new generation as a side featuring 13 changes made light work of the Italians.
Eddie Jones’ men secured a seventh successive win thanks to tries by centre Henry Slade and prop Mako Vunipola, while Owen Farrell kicked four penalties and a conversion for a 14-point haul.
In a fast-paced and entertaining encounter, New Zealand had the bulk of the territory and possession and although they had to work hard to break down Argentina’s defence, they showed great patience and eventually outscored their opponents five tries to nil.
Gregor Townsend’s men were looking to match a feat achieved only twice in the Dark Blues’ modern rugby history, the last by David Sole’s 1990 Grand Slam winners.