Ireland fall to Six Nations defeat to Scotland

Ireland have lost their Six Nations opener with a 27-22 defeat to Scotland at Murrayfield.

The Scots raced to a 21-8 half-time lead with a brace of tries from Stuart Hogg and a third from Alex Dunbar with Greig Laidlaw slotting their kicked points. Ireland kept in touch with a Keith Earls try and Paddy Jackson penalty but looked vastly the inferior side.

The second half saw the Irish roar back into the game with scores from Iain Henderson and Jackson, both of which were converted by Jackson, as Ireland edged in front.

However, the usual precision of Ireland defensively was sorely lacking as they conceded two penalties in the final ten minutes, which Laidlaw converted to secure the points for Scotland.

The victory was a signicant one for Scotland: not only was it their first over Ireland since 2013, it was also their first win on the opening day of the championship since 2006. They march on to a meeting with France in Paris in round two, while Ireland must regroup ahead of their battle with Italy in Rome, with just a losing bonus point chalked up beside their name.

The talk all week had been of Scotland as a coming force looking to take the scalp of southern hemisphere giant killers Ireland, and Vern Cotter’s side came out of the starting blocks with fire in their bellies as they attacked Joe Schmidt’s team with ferocity and precision.

First blood went to the Scots inside the opening ten minutes. The Irish defence had been pulled to and fro by the Scottish attack line, who eventually found themselves with a man overlap on the right wing. Finn Russell spotted the man advantage and spun the ball that direction where Hogg found himself in possession, where he burnt a limp Garry Ringrose to dot down for the opener. Laidlaw added the extras from the touchline.

At the very end of the first quarter, Scotland doubled their advantage, with Hogg crossing for his second try of the afternoon. The fullback received in the line on the left of the field, before embarassing Rob Kearney with a hook, line and sinker dummy, and then turning on the gas to burn his way home from the 10m line.

Having given one of their slowest and weakest opening quarter performances of Schmid’t tenure Ireland finally beginning to crank up the gears thereafter, an upgrade in pace which saw them record their opening score. From a penalty advantage, Simo Zebo spied space on the left flank where he whipped a cross from the centre out towards Earls. Tommy Seymour, the last of defenders for the Scots, sniffed the intercept, but could only mange to deflect the ball into the arms of Earls to collect and dart over in the corner. Jackson, in for the injured Johnny Sexton at outhalf, was wayward with the boot from the tee; however, as he directed his effort on goal wide right of the sticks.

Having clawed their way back into contention, the Irish then proceded to fall asleep once more as they allowed the Scots to claim a third try with a playbook move. Centre Dunbar was stealthily placed in the centre of a lineout on the Irish line. As the Ireland pack focused on controling the Gray brothers at the front of the set-piece, they neglected to notice the back in the mix and when Ross Ford picked out the centre he was able to collect and meander over the whitewash for try number three for the Scots, a try which Laidlaw converted to make it three from three for the goalkicker.

A somewhat reeling Ireland needed to score next and they did with Jackson bisecting the posts from all of 35 yards to make it 21-8, a scoreline which stood until the interval in Edinburgh.

It was Ireland that dominated early doors after the break, with repeated phases battering the Scotland 22. That pressure was rewarded with a scrum outside the 5m line, which Ireland won, before proceeding to batter the Scottish line. First Conor Murray went within inches of the line, before Iain Henderson took up the mantle and the baby-faced assassin forced his way over the line. His Ulster team-mate Jackson slotted the extra two in order to make it a six-point game with a half hour left on the clock.

What was to ensue for the following ten minutes was a battle for the middle of the park as both sides ebbed and flowed with ball in hand, looking to punch holes in the opposition defence, but both finding little in the way of reward.

A gilt-edged chance to strike again came for Ireland at the close of that period as Conor Murray blocked and then collected a flykick by Russell, before proceeding to burst past three Scotsman to feed Jamie Heaslip in the 22. The No 8 had Robbie Henshaw on his shoulder but only managed to offload a fraction too late with the pass landing in the arms of Sean Maitland.

A moment of magic from Kearney then almost produced a breakthrough. The fullback took the ball at full pelt down the right flank, before taking the tackle and feeding back inside to the supporting Earls to cross for the five-pointer. However, after consultation with the TMO, Kearney was correctly adjudged to have been drawn into touch in the final moments before his offload and the try was not to stand.

The pressure had been building and the Irish deserved the breakthrough which was to come. Off the side of a ruck on the 5, Murray popped a direct ball to Jackson as first receiver, who took a line of sublime beauty, to scythe between Russell and Mark Bennett, before stretching out of a tackle by No 8 Josh Strauss to dot down for the score, which he was to convert himself to put Ireland into the lead for the first time in the tie.

But Scotland were not done yet. Engraged, they pummelled their way up the field before winning a penalty at the 22, with Jackson pinged for holding on, and Laidlaw slotting the spot kick over to edge the home team ahead once more with seven on the clock.

With four remaining the Scots had the chance to edge further ahead with a penalty from a Tommy Bowe high tackle, but with time for a response from Ireland on the clock, they opted to kick for the corner and wind down the clock from the lineout. The tactic worked a treat as they ground out seven phases before forcing Ireland into a further penalty at the breakdown. With less than 90 seconds to go, and the same amount of time permitted to take a shot goal, Laidlaw took his time at the tee, before slotting to send the Murrayfield, buoyed by victory, into an evening of celebration in the Scottish capital.

Photo: Getty/Ian MacNicol

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