Six Nations: Ireland 32 - 14 Scotland: Scots overcome by clinical Irish

SCOTLAND started well yesterday afternoon in Dublin but they went downhill faster than a runaway locomotive and, as the old saying has it, were lucky to finish in second place by the close of play.

The Scots played heaps of rugby, especially in the opening half hour, and again they dominated possession but only rarely did they threaten to cross the Irish line. Their sixth consecutive loss is now the worst run since the Matt Williams era and that one didn’t end happily.

Once again the forwards won lots of ball, David Denton, Richie Gray and Ross Rennie to the fore, but once again the backs looked like they had little idea of what to do with much of it. The Scots were lateral in attack while Ireland were refreshingly direct and the difference was evident in the final scoreline of four tries to one. Ireland made three, maybe four, visits to the Scottish red zone in the first half and three times they walked away with tries, two of which owed more to Scottish generosity than to any Irish expertise.

The Scots have already been hurt by individual failures in defence in this tournament and they duly pointed both barrels at their feet and blasted away yesterday in the Aviva Stadium. The Scots gave away scores like a drunken uncle at Christmas handing out twenties hand over fist, while the Irish were far more Scrooge-like despite one incident when Richie Gray stormed past two green defenders for his well-deserved try.

For the second time in two games Lee Jones failed to make a crucial tackle which resulted in a try, an important one since it came with the game clock already showing 40 minutes and it put Ireland two scores ahead of the visitors for the first time. He wasn’t the only one at fault.

The Scots dominated the opening exchanges and Greig Laidlaw kicked two early penalties but three times in the opening 30 minutes the Scots were pinged for forward passes and that was least of it. Throughout this match they were unable to match the accuracy of the Irish with the ball in hand and their set piece picked a bad time to collapse. The Scots had not lost a lineout coming into this match but they lost at least two yesterday and the set scrum started well enough but finished under the Irish cosh too.

Ireland were very much slicker and it showed where it mattered most with skipper Rory Best touching down after his side’s very first venture into the Scots’ red zone. Johnny Sexton nudged a penalty into the corner rather than go for goal and a worryingly simple front row peel resulted in Mike Blair standing between Best and the try line, with only one result.

Thanks to Sexton’s superb conversion, the Scots were behind on the scoreboard and though the visitors were playing the game with pace it dropped off alarmingly as the match progressed. Lamont and Blair took quick tap penalties and the forwards worked their socks off but the loss of their first lineout of the championship was to prove costly because the Scots were penalised at the resulting scrum and Sexton stretched the Irish lead to four points.

If Andy Robinson’s troops had one opportunity to make a match of it yesterday it arrived after a superb clearance kick from Ross Rennie, of all people, which allowed Jones to bundle Best into touch five metres out. Twice the Scots took the attacking lineout rather than the points and twice the Irish defenders infringed. The referee issued a warning to the defenders and Laidlaw took the three points on offer at the third time of asking. With the benefit of hindsight, the Scots needed more.

The difference between these two teams was starkly highlighted just minutes later. Jamie Heaslip took a quick tap penalty instead of three easy points and a few phases later Eoin Reddan wriggled his way past three Scots to score an absurdly easy try. The little scrum-half’s next contribution to the game was not quite as heroic.

Big Richie Gray has been hugely influential in this tournament to date, he was a constant thorn in Ireland’s side yesterday and he scored a cracking good try from 25 yards out. First the big fella walked through the attempted tackles of Reddan and Bowe before setting off for the Irish line and he still had time to sell Rob Kearney an outrageous dummy before diving over.

Gray scored on 38 minutes and a good side would have shut up shop and run the clock down but no one could pin that charge on Scotland yesterday. The visitors clowned around with the ball inside their own 22 and gave Ireland one last attacking opportunity that they took with some aplomb. The ball went to Andrew Trimble on the right and the big Ulster winger stepped inside the tackle of Jones that simply had to be made.

Sexton missed his first kick of the afternoon with his third conversion but still Ireland had a handy 22-14 advantage on 40 minutes.

After a flurry of tries in the first 40, four in all, the second half scoreboard was oddly subdued with no points at all until 71 minutes when Sexton claimed his second penalty after a Scottish scrum folded.

Ireland might have had the “bonus point” try shortly after the restart but Graeme Morrison did wonderfully well to hold Bowe up on the Scottish try line and instead the Irish fans had to wait until 76 minutes when Fergus McFadden found a gap under the posts.

To add injury to the Scots’ insult, Jones suffered an ugly clash of heads with Trimble around the one hour mark with the winger unconscious before he hit the ground and remaining that way while he was helped from the field.

If there was a silver lining it was the appearance of Matt Scott as his replacement. The Edinburgh apprentice knocked on with his first touch at Test level but promised better things to come.

It would be nice to think something similar about this Scottish team but simply not possible on yesterday’s evidence.

Scorers: Ireland: Tries: Best, Reddan, Trimble, McFadden. Cons: Sexton (3) Pens: Sexton (2). Scotland: Try: Gray. Pens: Laidlaw (3).

Ireland: Kearney (McFadden 73 min), Bowe, Earls, D’Arcy (O’Gara 53), Trimble; Sexton, Reddan (O’Leary 53); Healy (Court 50), Best (Cronin 53) (capt), Ross, O’Callaghan, Ryan, Ferris, O’Mahony (Jennings 61).

Scotland: Hogg, Jones (Scott 61), Evans, Morrison, Lamont; Laidlaw (Jackson 55), Blair (Cusiter 49); Jacobsen, Ford (capt), Cross (Murray 45), Gray, Hamilton (Kellock 58), Barclay, Rennie (Vernon 58), Denton.

Referee: C Pollock (NZ). Attendance: 51,700

How Scotland rated

15 STUART HOGG

Given little ball in attack as Ireland’s defence swamped Scotland’s backs. No chance for the Hawick man to sparkle.

14 Lee Jones

Lured in off the wing as Andrew Trimble scored and left on a stretcher after being apparently knocked out.

13 MAX EVANS

Late inclusion after Nick de Luca injured his hamstring in the warm-up, his attacking instincts were nullified. Sin-binned late on for cynical foul on Keith Earls.

12 GRAEME MORRISON

Wrestled Tommy Bowe onto his back to prevent Ireland scoring a fourth try, but quiet in attack.

11 SEAN LAMONT

Shifted to the wing after his brother Rory’s broken leg against France, but given little opportunity to run with the ball.

10 GREIG LAIDLAW

Kicked three of four attempts at goal but was unable to spark Scotland’s backline into action.

9 MIKE BLAIR

Missed crucial tackles on Rory Best and opposite number Eoin Reddan and was below his best. Groggy when replaced after 50 minutes.

1 Allan Jacobsen

Was troubled by Mike Ross at the scrum as Scotland’s pack failed to get forward momentum.

2 Ross Ford (captain)

After colossal performances earlier in the championship, the skipper was part of a forward pack which was over-run by the men in green.

3 GEOFF CROSS

Preferred to Euan Murray after the Sunday games with Wales and France but made way for the Newcastle man on 46 minutes after struggling to impose himself.

4 Richie Gray

If he was not before, now a certain Lion in 2013. Remarkable solo try kept Scotland in hunt.

5 Jim Hamilton

Met his physical match in Donncha O’Callaghan and Donnacha Ryan and was replaced for the final quarter.

6 JOHN BARCLAY

Returning to his best, the Glasgow flanker was handy enough but Ireland’s pack had the forward momentum.

7 Ross Rennie

After three stellar games, the Edinburgh flanker was unable to repeat the trick against a strong Ireland pack.

8 David Denton

Along with Gray, Scotland’s leading forward. The Zimbabwean back-row giant carried the ball strongly.

SUBSTITUTES

Chris Cusiter (for Blair, 50 mins): Captain in 2010 win, but unable to inspire another famous result

Ruaridh Jackson (for Laidlaw, 56): Returning to Test arena for the first time since the World Cup.

Euan Murray (for Cross, 46,): Failed to steady the scrum.

Richie Vernon (for Rennie, 59): Forced to defend.

Alastair Kellock (for Hamilton, 59): Little opportunity.

Matt Scott (for Jones, 62): Debut for centre.