RUGBY COLUMN – FEBRUARY 27
By Daire Walsh
Ireland edged a step closer to another Grand Slam title with a 37-27 win against Wales at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday afternoon.
In a compelling see-saw battle, Ireland trailed by nine points at one stage in the first half, before looking to put Warren Gatland’s side out of sight with a series of fine scores. The visitors gave themselves a fighting chance with four tries over the course of the action, but a last-gasp intercept try by Jacob Stockdale finally sealed a bonus-point triumph for the Irish.
Based on past experience, there was reason for Joe Schmidt’s outfit to be wary of the challenge posed by their Celtic counterparts. There was also the loss of three Lions stars to consider, with Robbie Henshaw, Tadhg Furlong and Iain Henderson all ruled out through injury.
Henshaw was already ruled out for the remainder of the Championship after damaging his shoulder against Italy, and his place was taken by Munster centre Chris Farrell. Andrew Porter played the majority of the Italian game as an early substitute for Furlong, making him an ideal replacement for his Leinster team-mate.
James Ryan was the technical alternative for Henderson in the second-row, though it is more likely that Devin Toner would have been the one to make way for the Ulster lock. Kildare duo Joey Carbery and Fergus McFadden were included on the bench for this game and played their part in an enthralling second half.
After Leigh Halfpenny had opened the scoring with an early penalty, Ireland crossed the whitewash through the in-form Stockdale. However, with Jonathan Sexton off form on the kicking tee, Wales found a way back into the contest.
In addition to an additional five-point haul by Halfpenny, scrum-half Gareth Davies secured a try for the Welsh. Yet, Ireland re-discovered their form at the end of the opening period – as a converted Bundee Aki score gave them a 15-13 interval lead.
They looked set for a comfortable success when Dan Leavy and Cian Healy crossed over after the restart, only for an Aaron Shingler five-pointer for Wales put the celebrations on hold. Conor Murray’s penalty should have been an insurance score, but Steff Evans cut the gap to three points (30-27) with the clock still running.
A look Wales pass allowed Stockdale to break free for his eighth try in seven caps, though, and a simple Carbery conversion brought the curtain down on an enthralling spectacle.
Elsewhere, there were mixed results for the other Irish teams across the weekend. Naas’ Jordan Duggan featured for the Ireland U20s in their narrow 41-38 loss to Wales in Donnybrook on Friday, while his club-mates Johne Murphy (coach) and Paulie Tolofua were involved in Ireland Clubs’ memorable 26-23 victory against Scotland Clubs on the same evening.
An action-packed weekend for the international sides was then completed by a magnificent win by the Ireland women in their Six Nations Championship encounter at home to Wales – 35-12 the final scoreline.