UK (Commonwealth) _ It was a curiously disappointing game. Though not without its moments, it was a terrible one in many aspects. However, Ireland managed to complete the task by winning the back to back six nations titles. As the form book plainly said they would, and as they were always supposed to.
It is Ireland’s fifth Six Nations crown in 11 years. They won in 2014, 2015, 2019 and 2023. Captain Peter O’Mahony, Conor Murray and Cian Healy have been involved in all five titles
For Andy Farrell’s team, it is already 19 games won at home and 10 games won away from Scotland. Many Ireland supporters grew up in a time when back-to-back victories were unusual, much alone back-to-back Six Nations crowns, as the legendary Brian O’Driscoll said afterwards. It’s necessary to have some perspective.
Ireland is still the northern hemisphere’s top team. Finn Russell, the captain of Scotland that lost, called them “the best in the world.” They might hear from the world defending champions South Africa, with whom they will travel in July, on that. However, a close loss at Twickenham and a lackluster effort against Scotland on the last day do not alter the truth that Ireland is a very talented side.
This year’s significant positives included the rise of youthful talent like “Big Joe” McCarthy and Calvin Nash, as well as Jack Crowley’s response to the age-old issue of Johnny Sexton. To his great credit, Ireland’s veteran captain and talisman has received very little attention throughout the past two months.
But here they were uncommonly bad. Maybe the pressure was to blame. The chance to become the first side in the history of the Six Nations to win back-to-back Grand Slams had already been lost on Farrell’s team. Perhaps they tightened up because they were so anxious to perform for their supporters at home.
Maybe it was because rugby players aren’t built to play five matches in a six-week period. Here, both teams appeared lanky. Whatever it was, the game was rough and tumble. Prior to the game, Farrell expressed his desire for his players to “commit fully and attack,” referring to it as “a final” for Ireland. However, they had trouble initiating their smooth phase-play and missed many opportunities in Scotland’s 22-meter zone.
That was largely due to Scotland’s valiant defensive effort. They put Ireland under a lot of pressure, and it was obvious that Steve Tandy had learned a few tricks from England. In the end, Scotland completed 259 tackles with a 92% success rate, compared against Ireland’s 143. In the last few minutes, Scotland might have won the game with a try, but Andy Christie finished with 27 points on his own and was a lock to win player of the match.
There was a charged atmosphere at Aviva Stadium before the game because there were rumors going around that Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony was going to declare his retirement after the game. He was willing to go so far as to say post-match that he desired to have “a few chats with the family,” but it seems like everyone is pretty sure he will retire and would prefer not to take the spotlight away from the team.
However, Scotland escaped the traps more quickly. Inside the Ireland 22-meter line, the excellent Christie charged down James Lowe’s early clearance, but the ball just about missed the corner flag. And shortly after Lowe was given a harsh penalty for crawling, Russell gave them a 3-0 lead.
Dan Sheehan, a well-known player for Ireland, scored his fifth try of the competition to give the team a response, although one that did not come from a rolling maul. At a 5m line-out, Leinster’s hooker took advantage of an opposition player’s overthrow, George Turner, to neatly grab the ball and sprint over the line.
Scotland pulled within a point thanks to another penalty from Russell, and for the rest of the half, the visitors controlled the most of the play. Stafford McDowall, making his debut, stood out after scoffing at Bundee Aki’s advances and charging down the field.
In the second half, Ireland increased their game and dominated territory and possession. When Tadhg Furlong grounded, Christie knocked the ball out of his hand, giving the impression that he had scored from close range. TMO decided not to attempt.
Subsequently, Robbie Henshaw appeared to have scored, but Cameron Redpath skillfully submerged his arm beneath the ball. When Scotland was down to 14 men, Hooker Ewan Ashman saw yellow, and that was when the breakthrough happened. Porter lunged over from close range to gather Ronan Kelleher’s flick after Ireland was awarded a fast penalty.
The questions still linger for Scotland, who had a chance to win their first Triple Crown in the Six Nations history. They have to be the hardest team in the world to cheer for.
As their fans headed out into the Dublin night to celebrate St Patrick’s Day in style, Ireland was celebrating on the field with the Six Nations trophy, while they were left to think back on another season that had promised so much but had delivered so little.
