Ireland’s road to the treble is well underway as the Aviva stadium welcomed England for the final game of the opening weekend of the Six Nations on Saturday the 1st of February.
The last time these two teams met, England came out on top with a Marcus Smith drop goal to seal the game, denying Ireland their 2nd Grand Slam in a row. A lot was to play for in the opening round.
Team selection was a hot topic for both teams in the lead up to the match, especially talks around the Crowley vs Prendergast and the battle for the number 10 jersey. It was Sam Prendergast to start against England, with Crowley on the bench.
Other names mentioned on the lead up to the game was Joe McCarthy who suffered a minor concussion in camp two weeks prior, Tadgh Furlong’s calf injury, and of course the return of Dan Sheehan after his ACL injury suffered in July of 2024.
England looked strong straight off the mark with a dominant chase from the kick off. Ireland crumbled under the pressure and England gained possession. Ireland’s team selection (in terms of versatility) paid off as Mack Hansen limped off the pitch 4 minutes in, Robbie Henshaw came on as a temporary replacement and Gary Ringrose pushed out to the wing.
A debut try for Cadan Murley allowed England to open the scoreboard 8 minutes in. Marcus Smith added the conversion. A score that shocked the sell-out crowd in Lansdowne road.
Ireland were almost in for a try in response but a very jittery handling error by Sam Prendergast led to a missed opportunity. Luckily Ireland had a penalty advantage. They decided to run the ball but were dispossessed by a very strong England defence.
Ireland were denied their opening try, as Number 2 Ronan Kelleher barrelled his way over the English try line. However, the decision was overruled as the TMO noticed foul play as lock Maro Itoje was being held in the ruck, preventing him from making the tackle.
Mack Hansen returned to the field of play and received a round of applause by fans, Gary Ringrose returned to the centre and Henshaw went to the bench.
A yellow card for Marcus Smith after an exceptional break by Mack Hansen led to the England team down a man and with the hard job of keeping out the high-scoring Ireland side.
A lack of discipline and a strong English defence line unfortunately left Ireland without points in the opening 30 minutes. As Ireland’s 8th visit to the England 22 sees the home team scoreless.
Finally, a try for Ireland Number 9 Jamison Gibson Park, assisted by Number 11 James Lowe after a blitzing run down the left wing, but an unfortunate miss kick by Sam Prendergast.
A penalty for England inside the Irish 22 saw the half time score as: Ireland 5-10 England.
Caelen Dorris had a powerful message for the team at half time: “We need to get back to doing things our way.” And they did just that. Ireland opened the second half with a try from Bundee Aki. Again, an unfortunate wide by Prendergast. The game was now level with everything to play for.
The stadium erupted as the fans welcomed Dan Sheehan onto the field of play, for his first game in the Aviva in just under a year.
A well taken penalty kick from Number 10 Sam Prendergast allowed Ireland to take the lead for the first time in this test match. Ireland attacked well under the high ball, allowing them to dictate possession and territory.
Things were going Ireland’s way as James Lowe made another barrelling run down the centre of the pitch, punching through tackles. Tadgh Beirne was quick on his shoulder to allow for the pop ball. Ireland gets their 3rd try of the match.
The man who couldn’t be stopped; James Lowe made yet another mighty run down the wing, managed to get the offload to who else but Dan Sheehan to secure the bonus point win. Jack Crowley added two points to the scoreboard.
England fought with passion and pride in the jersey right till the end, managing to score two more tries, securing the losing bonus point and putting them on a good footing for the remaining games in the championship.
Final score: Ireland 27- England 22
Ireland captain Caelen Dorris summed up Ireland’s win: “Momentum is obviously huge in this competition. You can’t win in the first round, but you can lose it essentially or definitely dampen your chances.”
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