Slam Dunkin’

IRELAND DIG DEEP FOR ENGLAND VICTORY

Tommy Bowe grabbed a try at the start and the end of the match to give Ireland a hard-fought 20-16 RBS 6 Nations victory over England at Twickenham.
Ireland made most of the running in the first half and Bowe’s fourth-minute try helped give them an 8-6 halftime advantage.

The visitors’ lead was extended when Keith Earls grabbed a score in the corner but Dan Cole’s converted try and a Jonny Wilkinson drop goal gave England a 16-13 lead.

But Bowe struck nine minutes from time in a well-worked set-piece move to give Ireland the perfect boost after their defeat to France.

Under-pressure Wilkinson made pretty much the worst possible start to the game when he made a hash of his kick-off but his and England’s opening got a whole lot worse on four minutes.

The fly-half found himself isolated in the English midfield and he was instantly set upon by the Irish pack who proceeded to strip the ball from his grasp.

As the ball went wide Irish stand-off Jonathan Sexton, selected over Ronan O’Gara, drew his man before threading a perfectly-weighted grubber kick which Bowe touched down after outpacing Lewis Moody. Sexton’s conversion was off target.

In deteriorating conditions neither team could find any rhythm and although Wilkinson was off-target with one drop goal attempt, he did get on the board with a penalty on 17 minutes.

On the half-hour mark Sexton restored the five-point advantage after Dylan Hartley was penalised for playing the ball on the floor but with three minutes remaining in the half Wilkinson replied to make it 8-6 to the visitors.

Although the rain stopped coming down in the second half, there was little improvement in the rugby on offer with Sexton and Wilkinson both missing penalties.

The match did eventually spark into life on 56 minutes when there was a coming together between scrum-halves Danny Care and Tomas O’Leary at a scrum.

Referee Mark Lawrence chose to penalise Care and after Sexton found touch with his kick, Ireland got their second try.

Declan Kidney’s side retained the ball well and Sexton was again the provider for Earls to finish in the corner although the Leinster fly-half failed to convert the score.

Just four minutes later though England launched an attack with Earls being forced to conceded a 5m scrum from Care’s kick ahead.

England had enjoyed an edge up front all game and used it to drive the Irish pack backwards before the ball was spread wide.

Although Mathew Tait’s burst was halted on the line, prop Cole was able to ground the ball with the blessing of the Television Match Official.

Wilkinson’s conversion brought the scores level and Ireland suffered a further blow when their captain Brian O’Driscoll was accidentally kneed in the head by Paul O’Connell and had to be stretchered off.

O’Connell then further blotted his copybook by giving away a penalty but Wilkinson missed a chance to put England ahead for the first time in the match.

England were now in the ascendancy and nine minutes later Wilkinson found his radar with a textbook drop goal to send Twickenham wild.

But that would not be his last significant involvement in the game. Ireland won good lineout ball and O’Leary fed the speeding Bowe on the burst who left Wilkinson grasping thin air before slinking his way inbetween Ugo Monye and James Haskell to touch down.

Alas, as stated, the victorious Irish review was not from my own hand. I was in an understandably excitable state yester-evening and unable to compose anything approaching an acceptable level of coherence.
But I can see clearly now the pain is gone :wink:

Yet another win for Ireland over England.. and this particular achievement cannot be overestimated, especially when one considers the manner in which the magnificent French demolished us. The team showed character and strength against the relentless English physical bombardment, outscoring them by three tries to one.
Ireland’s recent record over England speaks for itself, beating them six times over the past seven encounters (and three times on the English home turf). England have only managed one win against the Irish since their World Cup win alluded to above. A remarkable statistic when one considers our size and population and that rugby union is at best the fourth sport of Ireland (behind the two GAA codes and soccer).

And what about poor old Scotland?
Christ they must be wondering where it all went wrong. They were superb for the best part of an hour in Cardiff, in complete control, then the craziness set in. The Wales nightmare was a huge shock to the system and in truth the Scots still look rather dazed from it. Italy took advantage of that yesterday, but in fairness I don’t think Scotland were all that bad and certainly didn’t deserve to lose the game. It’s all rather cruel. Their confidence must be shattered.

The fabulous French march on.. despite taking their foot off the pedal for a while on friday night, they are the team to beat. Curiously enough, I just have a sneaky feeling that England could upset them on the last day in Paris, opening up a championship winning opportunity for themselves and Ireland. England’s brand of rugby is almost insulting to the French and this could be a sizeable weapon, as has been proven in the past.

But if there is any redemptive sporting justice, France should win the Grand Slam.
Another Triple Crown is on the cards for Ireland, what with Wales and Scotland to travel here to Dublin. Wales will be tough, considering last year’s titanic tussle, and a bruised and battered Scotland team may want to silence any unjust criticism with one big performance we all know they are capable of.

It’s all to play for!

France, as expected (and thanks be to God) triumphed as the table toppers, having initially swept defending champs Ireland aside, going on to play some awesome stuff up to last weekend. Well done to them. They thoroughly deserve it. Yet the underwhelming nature of their Grand Slam win in Paris on saturday was a tad deflating. The tragic irony in England actually deciding to play for once, yet losing to an insular, at times sluggish, though always determined French side should not be lost. Martin Johnson, for all his pugnacious obstinance, seemed to have stumbled across a good side for this test almost by accident – nonetheless a side that scored a glorious try and at times looked something like the England of old. Complete chance with a dull reversal to type to come? Or finally a sign that he will pick his country’s best players and actually let them play? Watch this space.

A magnificent effort from Scotland produced a fully deserved win against Ireland in the last match to be played at Croke Park. The boot of Dan Parks, a well produced counter-attacking try and a totally out of sorts Ireland team that (worryingly) couldn’t even throw a lineout ball straight, let alone produce anything disciplined from set play gave the Scots a great victory. Scotland played a full 80mins for the first time in a while in this one, and showed exactly what they are capable of.
Ireland weren’t right at all. Perhaps a mixture of complacency, the occasion and basic utter sloppiness denied the Irish a fifth triple crown in seven years. An irritating performance (or lack of) that will certainly lead to a great deal of study and soul searching. This type of thing cannot be tolerated again.

Poor old Italy get the wooden spoon again, despite gallant efforts in the victory against Scotland and running England very close. Yet again it shows the gap is steadily shortening.
Wales were this year’s enigma.. hot and cold against England, never say die against Scotland, hopeless then hardy in the comeback against France, totally brushed aside by Ireland. A peculiar tournament for what seems an unsettled Welsh side.

With next year being World Cup year, the 2011 Six Nations will be more important than ever. It will be very interesting indeed to see some playing and personell changes develop in the coming months.
Anyway, that’s it I guess.

On a personal note, the significance of the Croke Park years will be a lasting memory for me and all Irish rugby fans. As will the 100 caps milestone reached by my own personal hero, Irish captain Brian O’Driscoll. A magnificent ambassador for the country. A truly exceptional player who has single handedly reinvented the number 13 outside centre position.. my own position.. (though he is slightly better than me!).

Once again, well done to the champions France!