SOMETIMES THE VISITING team do something which stuns the home support into silence. A stroke of genius, a strike out of nowhere, a moment that stirs a sense of unease in the stands.
Tonight Rhys Carre did just that. His try just before half time was a truly brilliant Six Nations moment. Wales centre Joe Hawkins punched a hole with a good carry, allowing Tomos Williams spin the ball wide. This is usually where a winger takes possession and darts for the line. Instead, Carre stepped up, eyed the gap between Robert Baloucoune and Tadhg Furlong and licked his lips, showing a fine turn of pace to race past a handful of Irish backs who won’t enjoy watching the moment back.
Dan Edwards kicked the conversion and Wales trailed by just two points at the break. Not for this the first time in this wild, unpredictable Six Nations, an Ireland game was not falling along expected lines.
It was nothing less than Wales deserved following 40 minutes of rugby where Steve Tandy’s men were tough, determined and physical. Ireland held the advantage but had the bruises to show for it. By the end of the half Wales had made eight dominant tackles to Ireland’s one.
This was not the accurate, clinical Irish play from Twickenham, nor was it the laboured, messy showing from Paris in round one. Tonight sat more closely with the nervy second round home win over Italy.
When Ireland were good, they looked very good. Jacob Stockdale put the cherry on early Ireland pressure by crossing in the sixth minute, handing Andy Farrell’s men the ideal start. The Ulster winger soaked up his first Six Nations try in six long years and the home crowd settled into the feeling that the evening might just follow the pattern so many had predicted.
Not quite. In a pattern which has become frustratingly familiar over the last year or so, Ireland failed to build on a good moment by maintaining that surge. Instead too many passes went loose, sloppy penalties were conceded and promising passages of play broke down.
Some of Ireland’s best performers in this championship were among the guilty. Jamison Gibson-Park threw an intercept pass within touching distance of the Wales tryline. Stuart McCloskey sent a loose one high and behind Baloucoune. Caelan Doris had a rush of blood to the head under his own posts. The Irish scrum creaked and lost a couple of penalties.
Wales, who have looked increasingly dangerous week-on-week in this championship, dug in and played their part in disrupting Ireland’s flow. If England were too welcoming in leaving the door open for Ireland last time out, here, the team who had lost their last 14 Six Nations games on the bounce were stacking up the living room furniture and putting their shoulders to it.
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Jamie Osborne and Wales' Louis Rees-Zammit contest a high ball. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
An Edwards penalty kept Wales in touch, before a well-worked Jack Crowley try gave Ireland some breathing space. But even that moment of relief was followed by a sharp intake of breath, Crowley connecting poorly with his conversion effort and dragging the kick wide – Ireland’s kicking off the tee is too often an issue.
And so, when Carre crossed five minutes later Wales were right in it, Ireland punished for poor game management in the passages before that score.
Jack Conan’s try early in the second half gave Ireland another ideal start, but again, the home side struggled to build on it. A niggly 20 minutes rumbled by, Wales butchering a couple of half-chances, Furlong losing patience and flinging Nicky Smith to the ground after a messy scrum.
With an hour on the clock the game was very much still live, Ireland up by nine but spending a lot of time defending in their own 22, Wales winning a scrum penalty which again left Furlong frustrated.
Minutes later Wales were bashing a way through for James Botham to score their second try, Edwards’ conversion cutting it to two points again.
Ireland's Stuart McCloskey is tackled by Wales' Eddie James. Nick Elliott / INPHO
Nick Elliott / INPHO / INPHO
Oddly, that felt like the jolt Ireland needed. Ireland’s bonus point score was a thing of beauty, Van der Flier, Conan, Gibson-Park, Ringrose, Crowley and Stockdale all making smart contributions to send Osborne over. A crucial score, but another Crowley miss-hit off the tee ensured Wales were still clinging on.
When Ireland won a penalty in the closing minutes, Crowley took his points to make it a two-score game. A brilliant Welsh effort was finally running out of gas.
Farrell will be pleased with elements of this performance. Another win, with a bonus point, should build confidence. Ireland were in a tough spot but had the grit to see it out. Conan stood out on his return to the back row, Tom O’Toole did a fine job at loosehead and some of Ireland’s play, if too often disjoined, was excellent when it clicked.
The feeling in the stands at full time was more relief than satisfaction, but if Ireland can finish the job by securing a Triple Crown against Scotland here next week, the cracks in this performance will fade away.
On a night where it could have slipped away from them, Ireland found a way to win. It wasn’t brilliant, it wasn’t awful, and it might just be the most accurate reflection we’ve had in this Six Nations of where this team currently stand.
As Farrell put it post-game, “a proper Test match.”
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Ireland asked difficult questions by stubborn Welsh effort
SOMETIMES THE VISITING team do something which stuns the home support into silence. A stroke of genius, a strike out of nowhere, a moment that stirs a sense of unease in the stands.
Tonight Rhys Carre did just that. His try just before half time was a truly brilliant Six Nations moment. Wales centre Joe Hawkins punched a hole with a good carry, allowing Tomos Williams spin the ball wide. This is usually where a winger takes possession and darts for the line. Instead, Carre stepped up, eyed the gap between Robert Baloucoune and Tadhg Furlong and licked his lips, showing a fine turn of pace to race past a handful of Irish backs who won’t enjoy watching the moment back.
Dan Edwards kicked the conversion and Wales trailed by just two points at the break. Not for this the first time in this wild, unpredictable Six Nations, an Ireland game was not falling along expected lines.
It was nothing less than Wales deserved following 40 minutes of rugby where Steve Tandy’s men were tough, determined and physical. Ireland held the advantage but had the bruises to show for it. By the end of the half Wales had made eight dominant tackles to Ireland’s one.
This was not the accurate, clinical Irish play from Twickenham, nor was it the laboured, messy showing from Paris in round one. Tonight sat more closely with the nervy second round home win over Italy.
When Ireland were good, they looked very good. Jacob Stockdale put the cherry on early Ireland pressure by crossing in the sixth minute, handing Andy Farrell’s men the ideal start. The Ulster winger soaked up his first Six Nations try in six long years and the home crowd settled into the feeling that the evening might just follow the pattern so many had predicted.
Not quite. In a pattern which has become frustratingly familiar over the last year or so, Ireland failed to build on a good moment by maintaining that surge. Instead too many passes went loose, sloppy penalties were conceded and promising passages of play broke down.
Some of Ireland’s best performers in this championship were among the guilty. Jamison Gibson-Park threw an intercept pass within touching distance of the Wales tryline. Stuart McCloskey sent a loose one high and behind Baloucoune. Caelan Doris had a rush of blood to the head under his own posts. The Irish scrum creaked and lost a couple of penalties.
Wales, who have looked increasingly dangerous week-on-week in this championship, dug in and played their part in disrupting Ireland’s flow. If England were too welcoming in leaving the door open for Ireland last time out, here, the team who had lost their last 14 Six Nations games on the bounce were stacking up the living room furniture and putting their shoulders to it.
An Edwards penalty kept Wales in touch, before a well-worked Jack Crowley try gave Ireland some breathing space. But even that moment of relief was followed by a sharp intake of breath, Crowley connecting poorly with his conversion effort and dragging the kick wide – Ireland’s kicking off the tee is too often an issue.
And so, when Carre crossed five minutes later Wales were right in it, Ireland punished for poor game management in the passages before that score.
Jack Conan’s try early in the second half gave Ireland another ideal start, but again, the home side struggled to build on it. A niggly 20 minutes rumbled by, Wales butchering a couple of half-chances, Furlong losing patience and flinging Nicky Smith to the ground after a messy scrum.
With an hour on the clock the game was very much still live, Ireland up by nine but spending a lot of time defending in their own 22, Wales winning a scrum penalty which again left Furlong frustrated.
Minutes later Wales were bashing a way through for James Botham to score their second try, Edwards’ conversion cutting it to two points again.
Oddly, that felt like the jolt Ireland needed. Ireland’s bonus point score was a thing of beauty, Van der Flier, Conan, Gibson-Park, Ringrose, Crowley and Stockdale all making smart contributions to send Osborne over. A crucial score, but another Crowley miss-hit off the tee ensured Wales were still clinging on.
When Ireland won a penalty in the closing minutes, Crowley took his points to make it a two-score game. A brilliant Welsh effort was finally running out of gas.
Farrell will be pleased with elements of this performance. Another win, with a bonus point, should build confidence. Ireland were in a tough spot but had the grit to see it out. Conan stood out on his return to the back row, Tom O’Toole did a fine job at loosehead and some of Ireland’s play, if too often disjoined, was excellent when it clicked.
The feeling in the stands at full time was more relief than satisfaction, but if Ireland can finish the job by securing a Triple Crown against Scotland here next week, the cracks in this performance will fade away.
On a night where it could have slipped away from them, Ireland found a way to win. It wasn’t brilliant, it wasn’t awful, and it might just be the most accurate reflection we’ve had in this Six Nations of where this team currently stand.
As Farrell put it post-game, “a proper Test match.”
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