Jamison Gibson-Park pinpoints key change that helped ‘patchy’ Ireland beat ‘classy’ England
Jamison Gibson-Park scoring for Ireland in their Six Nations opener against England
Ireland scrum-half Jamison Gibson-Park has lauded the improved accuracy his side played with in the second-half to overcome England at the Aviva.
Simon Easterby’s side trailed 10-5 at half-time, however a run of 22 unanswered points in the second-half steered them to a solid 27-22 win, getting their Six Nations title defence off to the perfect start.
Jamison Gibson-Park opens up on Ireland’s comeback win v England
The first-half was dominated by England, with Cadan Murley opening the scoring for the evening alongside a Marcus Smith penalty and conversion, however, it was all one-way traffic in the second 40 as Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan crossed to complete a fine comeback.
Reflecting on the win, Gibson-Park told the Irish Rugby website the team were ‘stoked’ to win after a ‘patchy’ start.
“We’re pretty stoked,” he said. “It was little bit patchy to begin with, but we saw some nice stuff there by the end.
Gibson-Park also detailed how their improved accuracy was the main factor in their second-half improvement.
“I don’t think there were many adjustments, we just had a bit more accuracy that we lacked in the first half, a few more passes stuck. We saw some good stuff that we’ll sit down and review, and a few things we can work on.”
He added: “I have to hand a lot of credit it to England, they stuck it to us for the most part. They’re a classy side and I’m sure they’ll go well for the rest of the competition.”
Ireland now prepare to take on Scotland in a crucial match for both team’s Six Nations title hopes, meanwhile England take on title favourites France at the Allianz.
Gibson-Park opens up on personal form
Whilst Ireland were, as Gibson-Park admits, ‘patchy’ in the first-half, the scrum-half was a bright spark throughout the game. His opening try gave them a crucial lifeline back into the game, and he eventually went onto to win Man of the Match as well.
This also comes off the back of some sensational performances for Leinster this season, with the province currently unbeaten in all competitions and sitting 11 points clear at the top of the URC table.
Commenting on his brilliant form of late, Gibson-Park said: “I think I’m just a bit lucky to have a pack that’s going forward. I’m super lucky to be part of this squad and I’m really enjoying my footie in this camp.
He added: “The coaching team, the staff, it’s an incredible environment to be part of.”
The scrum-half, who made his Ireland debut in 2020, is also a front-runner to start for the British and Irish Lions in the upcoming Test series against the Wallabies.
