Five takeaways from Ireland v Scotland

Colin Newboult

Following a 19-12 victory for Ireland over Scotland in their Six Nations clash, here’s our five takeaways from the game at the Aviva Stadium.

More of the same from Ireland: If Irish fans thought that a new era and new head coach would herald a different style of play then they will have been disappointed by Saturday’s efforts. Andy Farrell was seen as the continuity appointment following the departure of Joe Schmidt and there was very little change from the pragmatic game plan which was symptomatic under the New Zealander. The try was nicely worked and there were some good individual moments from Jacob Stockdale, Jordan Larmour and Bundee Aki, but it was still very direct without much subtlety. We will see whether their style develops over the coming year.

Profligacy costs Scotland the game: Gregor Townsend’s men played some excellent rugby at times, often getting into good positions inside the opposition 22. However, too often they made errors which let the hosts off the hook. Stubborn Irish defence also played a part and credit must go to the home side for that, but the visitors will regret some of their missed chances. In particular, captain Stuart Hogg had a gilt-edged opportunity to touch down but somehow knocked on when over the line, a mistake which came back to haunt the Scots.

Scottish ill-discipline also a significant factor: It was a physical encounter and Scotland fronted up superbly to Ireland’s powerful pack. They carried hard, were obstinate in defence and put the hosts under significant pressure, but penalties in crucial areas let them down. Needless infringements for offside, not rolling away and holding on gave Ireland crucial field position and allowed Johnny Sexton to kick the points which eventually helped the hosts to the win.

A debut to forget for Caelan Doris: Unfortunately, that is meant quite literally after the number eight was taken off four minutes into the contest following a nasty head collision. It was no one’s fault but it was a shame to see the youngster go off when there was so much excitement about his inclusion. In-form Munster loosehead Dave Kilcoyne also suffered a similar fate, while there was another concern when Tadhg Furlong limped off late on. We sincerely hope that they aren’t too badly hurt and can duly play a significant part over the next few weeks.

Adam Hastings a more than able stand-in for Finn Russell: The Scottish Rugby Union and Gregor Townsend were criticised by plenty of their supporters for their stance on star playmaker Russell, who was disciplined for breaching team protocol, but Hastings stepped in excellently. The fly-half has been in superb form for Glasgow Warriors over the past few months and he took that into this encounter. He showed plenty of creativity in attack but it was his maturity and decision-making which particularly shone. In his brief Test career so far, the 23-year-old has tended to be a bit too haphazard but this was much better and gives Townsend a selection headache should Russell return from exile.

Features