Daire Walsh

Ireland 48

Wales 33

PLAYER OF THE match Daniel Ryan registered tries in each half as Ireland moved to second place in the U20 Six Nations Championship table with a 15-point triumph over Wales in a compelling battle at Virgin Media Park in Cork this evening.

Having already accounted for England ahead of tonight’s game, Andrew Browne’s side can now secure the Triple Crown if they get the better of Scotland in a final round encounter at Musgrave Park next weekend.

A five-point gap and a vastly inferior score difference means it is highly unlikely Ireland will be able to topple pace-setters France in the Championship standings, but three victories on the bounce represents significant progress since that opening round defeat to the French in Perpignan on February 7.

Ireland had endured a difficult start to the action at the Leeside venue as Richard Whiffin’s visitors broke the deadlock in the fourth-minute when hooker Tom Howe applied the finishing touches to a line-out maul.

There was further joy for Wales when Cardiff winger Thomas Bowen pounced on a loose ball to score an additional try and with Lloyd Lucas adding to the extras to this score, Ireland were 12-0 adrift with only eight minutes on the clock.

This threw down the gauntlet to the hosts, but despite coming under severe pressure during these early exchanges, Ireland soon found their feet.

Following impressive approach work from Christopher Barrett, Rob Carney, Tom Wood and Noah Byrne off an initial line-out move, Connacht’s Daniel Ryan sprinted over on the left-flank in the 15th minute for his third try in as many games.

Ireland celebrate a try. Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO / INPHO

The South African-born flanker Josh Neill had the same strike rate in the opening three rounds of this year’s Championship, and he once again displayed his scoring prowess just past the first-quarter mark. Wales had just lost Osian Darwin-Lewis to the sin-bin for a deliberate knock-on and after Ireland elected for a ‘tap and go’ off a close-range penalty, team captain Sami Bishti released Neill for a clinical drive over the whitewash.

Wood’s successful conversion made amends for his earlier miss from a tricky left-hand angle and now that they had restored parity to the tie, Ireland were primed to push forward in the remaining minutes of the opening period.

Ryan was close to doubling his personal account from a mazy run on 24 minutes, but Leitrim native Diarmaid O’Connell was ideally placed to collect possession and dot down for Ireland’s third try of the game.

Although Wales were eventually restored to their full complement of players, Ireland impressively sealed a bonus point in the 36th minute as scrum-half Christopher Barrett feigned a pass in advance of joining Neill on four tries in the 2026 edition of this tournament. Wood added the extras for a third time in the wake of this effort and this helped to ensure Ireland established a 26-12 interval buffer.

Momentum was very much with the home team moving into the second period and within 60 seconds of the resumption, hooker Lee Fitzpatrick added his name to the scoresheet by rounding off a line-out maul on the right-flank.

This had Ireland in pole position for another morale-boosting win, only for Wales to get themselves back into contention on the stroke of 50 minutes.

Daniel Ryan races clear for Ireland. Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO Tom O’Hanlon / INPHO / INPHO

Moments after Irish loosehead Max Doyle was yellow-carded for being offside, another maul move led to a try courtesy of openside flanker Caio James. Carwyn Leggatt-Jones added the extras in confident style and with another set-piece attack bringing them to within inches of the opposition line in the 55th minute, Wales looked set to head into losing bonus point territory.

Yet following a perfectly-timed interception off a Leggatt-Jones pass, Ryan sprinted the entire length of the pitch to score an outstanding breakaway try – his second of the game and his fourth of the campaign overall.

This – and a successful bonus strike by replacement fly-half Charlie O’Shea – offered Ireland some breathing space and its worth became even greater when James bagged his second try of the contest for Wales just shy of the third-quarter mark.

While this meant the prospect of a comeback victory from the away side couldn’t be ruled out, Ireland maintained a potent attacking threat and their seventh try of the night arrived when back-up hooker Duinn Maguire touched down off another set-piece move 13 minutes from the end.

O’Shea added his second conversion off the bench in clinical fashion and even though the impressive Bowen joined his opposite number Ryan in recording a brace of tries, a well-struck penalty by the aforementioned O’Shea on 73 minutes brought the curtain down on an entertaining clash on the Leeside.

Ireland scorers:

Tries – Daniel Ryan [2], Josh Neill, Diarmaid O’Connell, Christopher Barrett, Lee Fitzpatrick, Duinn Maguire

Conversions – Tom Wood [3 from 5], Charlie O’Shea [2 from 2]

Penalties – Charlie O’Shea [1 from 1]

Wales scorers:

Tries – Caio James [2], Thomas Bowen [2], Tom Howe

Conversions – Lloyd Lucas [1 from 2], Carwyn Leggatt-Jones [3 from 3]

IRELAND: Noah Byrne (James O’Leary ’73); Derry Moloney, Rob Carney, James O’Leary (Johnny O’Sullivan ’62), Daniel Ryan; Tom Wood (Charlie O’Shea ’45), Christopher Barrett; Max Doyle (Christian Foley ‘68), Lee Fitzpatrick (Duinn Maguire ’58), Sami Bishti (Blake McClean ’68); Joe Finn, Dylan McNeice (Donnacha McGuire ’68); Josh Neill, Ben Blaney (Christian Foley ’52-59 (Billy Hayes ’59)), Diarmaid O’Connell.

WALES: Rhys Cummings; Dylan Scott, Osian Darwin-Lewis (Bailey Cutts ’72), Steffan Emanuel, Thomas Bowen; Lloyd Lucas (Carwyn Leggatt-Jones ’49), Sion Davies (Carter Pritchard ’72); George Tuckley (George Leyland ’63), Tom Howe (Oscar Thomas ’72), Jac Pritchard (Yestyn Cook ’57); Luke Evans (Oscar Rees ’69), Osian Williams; Deian Gwynne, Caio James, Evan Minto (Don Kossouth ’25).

Referee: Kevin Bralley (FFR).