SCOTLAND ARRIVED IN Dublin ahead of tomorrow’s Six Nations meeting with Ireland with a miserable record hanging over them.
You have to go back to a Croke Park meeting in 2010 for the last time Scotland won in Dublin, and they’ve lost their last nine in a row against Ireland.
The general sense appears to be that if that is to change tomorrow, two things need to happen. Firstly, Scotland need to be on it and play for the full 80 – too often they have gone long spells in-game against Irish teams where they haven’t troubled the scoreboard.
Secondly, Ireland need to underperform. If Andy Farrell’s men produce a performance similar to last week’s off-colour showing in London, it could be another tricky evening for them. It’s also worth remembering that although Ireland got the job done against England in their Grand Slam decider last year, it was a nervy performance from the home side.
If Ireland summon a proper response to the Twickenham setback, it’s hard to see anything other than a home win but nothing will be taken for granted after last weekend’s results.
The loss in London certainly took some of the wind out of Ireland’s sails, the defeat ending their hopes of becoming the first team in the Six Nations era to win back-to-back Grand Slams.
With that shot at history gone, some have been slow to get excited about the prospect of securing another Six Nations title on home soil. That doesn’t appear to be the case in the Irish camp at least, as Farrell’s players have been quick to talk up the opportunity that lies ahead of them tomorrow. Avoid defeat, and Ireland will be Six Nations champions again.
Surely, Scotland should be sensing opportunity too against an Irish team who must be hurting, but there was no fighting talk from their side today.
The pre-match build up to recent Ireland-Scotland games has brought plenty of bullish talk from the Scottish camp but they’ve been notably more reserved ahead of the latest installment.
Gregor Townsend’s men are coming off the back of a damaging defeat to Italy and a championship which promised so much is threatening to fizzle out again. A win tomorrow would see Scotland land a first Triple Crown since 1990 but after another inconsistent tournament, you’d wonder if they truly believe an upset is possible at Aviva Stadium.
“Obviously it’s going to be a tough challenge,” says Scotland co-captain Rory Darge.
I think Ireland are if not the best team, they’re one of them, in the world right now. Coming here to get a result is going to be a tough ask but we’ve got a lot to play for.
“It’s 30-odd years since a Scottish team won a Triple Crown and after a loss like last weekend, the first thing you want to do is get back out there and try put things as right as you can. That’s what we’re looking forward to.”
The England defeat was Ireland’s first Six Nations loss since February 2022 and raised some interesting questions for Farrell’s team. For much of the game Ireland struggled to deal with England’s physicality and intensity and a defence which has proved so difficult to break down found themselves totally stretched as England ran in three tries.
“They seem to be able to deal with a lot that gets thrown at them and we just need to focus on what we can do better from the Italy game, and also what might put them under a bit of pressure,” Darge says.
“I think England were just very good at in defence, getting in their face and putting pressure on them through that, then they obviously took their opportunities, like the one in the last minute [Marcus Smith's drop goal], really well.
“[It's about] Us being clinical when we do get opportunities because Ireland are a team that don’t give you many.”
It’s a big ask, but far from an impossible one. Start well, keep things tight, and if the nerves kick in Scotland can make things uncomfortable for this Ireland team.
“I think it’s staying in the moment. Every moment is going to be huge against Ireland. They’re one of the best teams in the world, if not the best team in the world, so if you aren’t in the moment or switch off, they’re likely to make you pay for it.”
