The Triple Crown was very quickly forgotten about.
24-12 does not fairly reflect how dominant England were, and how poor Ireland’s performance was.
Unfortunately for Ireland, this was the England side we saw in the World Cup a few months ago. Even more unfortunately for Ireland, this was the same Irish side that left Tokyo without a whimper in October.
Ireland were second best in every department today. England bullied them, broke them and eventually beat them out the gates in a resounding victory that could set England up for a Triple Crown of their own in two weeks time.
Whatever optimism had returned after back-to-back victories over Wales and Scotland has been very much tempered. This is a side that has a long, long way to come under Andy Farrell.
Deep breath, here’s how we rated the Irish 23;
Jordan Larmour – 5
Did well to recover to regain a ball it looked like he had lost in the air early on, but never got the space or opportunities to change the game. Made way for Keith Earls midway through the second half having never made any kind of a dent in England’s defence.
Andrew Conway – 6
Huge early hit on Tuilagi to prevent a try. England carried mainly down his channel throughout the opening half and he never looked in trouble. Struggled, as most of the side did, in the air at times. Made way in the second half for a HIA.
Robbie Henshaw – 7
A rare bright spot in the Irish side today. Great take for the try, powering over from close range and giving Ireland some points, and hope, at the beginning of the second half.
Bundee Aki – 6
Solid in midfield, and handled Tuilagi and Farrell pretty well. Pinged a couple of times at the breakdown, unluckily, and will be hopeful of holding the jersey should Ringrose return before Paris.
Jacob Stockdale – 5
Committed the cardinal sin of letting the ball bounce, leading to Daly’s try and England’s second. Offered little going forward, which was not entirely his fault. Shifted to fullback for the final quarter.
Johnny Sexton (captain) – 3
Nightmare for the opening try, and it only got worse from there. Poor decisions made when Ireland had two advantages in the English 22 when only 7 down, and then skewed the resulting penalty from a very kickable position. Never found form from the boot, and just looked uncomfortable throughout. Hard for him to do much with the forwards smashed the way they were, but what he did do was poor. A really off day, to say the least.
Conor Murray – 4
Early box-kicking very poor, and it never got any better. Couldn’t give Ireland any much-needed relief by finding touch at key moments, passing was poor (which wasn’t helped by the English line speed). Could be under serious pressure to start in Paris if Cooney puts in a performance against Italy. Replaced in 55th minute, which says it all really.
Cian Healy – 5
Made way in the 25th minute with a nasty-looking injury. Hopefully not too serious.
Rob Herring – 5
One big turnover in the first half, but like many just couldn’t make an impact on the game. Replaced by Kelleher midway through the second half, and will likely not start against Italy. Paris the following weekend will be an interesting call for Andy Farrell.
Tadhg Furlong – 5
Rarely heard of throughout. A few carries and always attempted to make yards, and fronted up in defence, but not the usually dominant performance we’ve come to expect from him. Replaced in the 57th minute.
Devin Toner – 5
Solid shift defensively, but wasn’t given the opportunities to make a difference at the lineout. Late call-up with Iain Henderson missing out, and would be happy to be back in the starting 15, but not a game he’ll look back on too fondly.
James Ryan – 5
Fronted up in the collisions and did well to repel some of England’s bigger ball carriers. Ireland’s lineout again struggled and he won’t be happy with that, a couple of key turnovers at big moments.
Peter O’Mahony – 7
Probably Ireland’s standout forward. Seems to have nailed that 6 jersey back down again after coming into the tournament under serious pressure. Popped up on the wing in the closing moments for what would have been a very unlikely crossfield-kick try, but like most of what Ireland did today, it just wasn’t good enough.
Josh van der Flier – 5
Has become one of the most solid Irish players in the past few seasons, but wasn’t his usual impressive self today. Replaced midway through the second half, a rare thing to see of the red-scrumcapped flanker. There will be better days.
CJ Stander – 5
Involved in a bit of pulling and dragging with Maro Itoje, which may have been his most notable influence in the game. Carried gamely but struggled against the high English line and nowhere near his previous two Man of the Match performances.
Subs:
Ronan Kelleher – 6
Will be happy with more game time. Italy gives him a real chance to lay down a marker.
Dave Kilcoyne – 5
Ripped by Itoje early in the second half, which was another key moment where Ireland fell short. Has had better games.
Andrew Porter – 6
Will be hopeful of more game time against Italy, wasn’t too much to be done when he replaced Furlong in the 57th minute. Took his try well, but not how he would have wanted to score his first for his country.
Ultan Dillane – 6
Will be happy to be back in the green of Ireland, but the game was gone by the time he appeared on the pitch.
Caelan Doris – 6
Two caps for Ireland, and neither have been too happy of occurrences. There will be better days for him.
John Cooney – 7
Was a livewire once he came on, getting more minutes here than he did in his previous two outings combined. One dodgy turnover that was saved by Robbie Henshaw’s intervention on the wing. Slotted the conversion to Porter’s late try, which is just another string to his bow. He knows that 9 jersey is there for the taking in the coming weeks.
Ross Byrne – 6
Came on in the great second half reshuffle and took over kicking duties. Should start against Italy and will be happy to try solidify his place going forward.
Keith Earls – 6
Will want to heap pressure on the other wings with a good performance against Italy, and did well here when he came on.
