Thanks for joining us. Next for Ireland: a trip to Twickenham.
Here’s Michael Aylwin’s report from Dublin:
Ciaran Frawley speaks to ITV after a special day for him:
“It [Ireland’s performance] was a bit clunky in the first half, we were aware of that at half-time. I was delighted to get over in the second half. The boys did all the hard work to grind out in the pack. And the space just opened up for me so it was lovely.
“It was brilliant to get over because it gave us a bit of momentum. Everyone was aware we needed the bonus-point win. The crowd got behind us and we finished off well. The players here are unbelievable. They know how to win. We’ve gone through all the scenarios in training, if we do get yellow cards what do we do, we just stick to our system.”
Updated
I’m quickly off to cover Scotland vs England, why not join me?
FULL TIME! Ireland 31 - 7 Wales
PEEEEP! Ireland win comfortably in Dublin to keep the grand slam on track.
TRY! Ireland 31 - 7 Wales (Tadhg Beirne)
81 mins. On the 15th phase the ball is popped to Beirne who cuts a neat angle through the shattered defence to score.
Two points added
Updated
80 mins. Ireland are in the 22 and up to 10 phases.
78 mins. Wainwright runs the ball back but he and Wales are knackered, which leads to some ragged breakdown work allowing Ireland to win a penalty. They put it in the corner for one last go.
76 mins. Wales decided to tap and go, and are back to inches away before Wainwright drives over to be held up. Great defence from Ireland and they clear via a drop out.
YELLOW CARD! Ryan Baird (Ireland)
75 mins. Ireland are repelling all the short carries so the ball is moved wider, with similar non-results for Wales. Piardi eventually decides there is no point carrying on, blows his whistle and despatches Baird to the bin for repeat team offences. I counted four penalties called in that sequences
74 mins. A scrum platform in the Ireland half has Wales on the attack up the blindside via Hardy running a loop. The ball is moved left to Dyer who moves up to the 5m line under multiple advantages for Ireland infringing all over the shop in their panic to cover.
70 mins. Wales have just won a scrum penalty, would you believe. It’s for Porter not driving straight, which is pretty much what he always does so I’m puzzled why Ref Piardi has only just noticed. Gordon D’Arcy on comms says it’s Oli Jager’s fault on the other side for not pushing hard enough to stop it wheeling when Porter drives squint– which is one theory, I suppose.
69 mins. The benches have been emptied and it’s fair to say Ireland’s is having a greater impact, especially Ryan Baird whose athleticism is a nightmare for Wales at this stage.
TRY! Ireland 24 - 7 Wales (Ciaran Frawley)
67 mins. A lineout platform sucks in Wales before the ball is released for Gibson-Park to find Frawley on a good angle to cut through a ragged and tired defence.
Crowley adds two.
Updated
65 mins. Momentum is gathering for Ireland like a glowering storm over the Welsh defence, the latest attack has Lowe is some space to feed Henshaw on the left side. Reffell does his best to yoink the ball back, but he’s pinged for handling the ball in the ruck.
62 mins. Ireland attack again, but Reffell gets among the breakdown – as is his wont – to snaffle the ball on the Wales 22. Tomos Williams boots the ball miles behind Lowe and Gibson-Park can only boot away from the slowly recycled possession.
NO TRY! Ireland 17 - 7 Wales (Bundee Aki)
59 mins. Ireland spring to life from the lineout, moving the ball quickly to the right with the Wales defence frantic in trying to cover. The ball is fizzed through hands to Nash then worked back to Aki who is over to ground it under the post, but Henshaw’s tip on in the previous phase was forward. No try!
Credit to Daf Jenkins, who was immediately in the ref’s ear as captain to have that reviewed before the conversion was taken.
57 mins. Up to nearly 20 phases the Wales attack is running out of steam in the 22, as they fail to move the ball further that 10 metres from the ruck, mainly due to the speed of the Irish blitz limiting the options. Inevitably the breakdown is lost to give the home side a clearing penalty.
That was the opportunity for Wales to get back into this and they burned a huge amount of energy to get nowt.
54 mins. Wales catch and set up the ball, but that man Beirne makes his first action since coming back on being to rampage through the middle of the maul and steal the ball. Gibson-Park clears to touch, but not very far, so Wales will come right back.
53 mins. A nifty short lineout move from Wales has them moving into Ireland 22 and catching the home defence offside after a big Wainwright carry. The advantage brings no progress so Costelow puts it in the corner once more.
Beirne returns from the bin.
50 mins. Due to the change in tactics by Wales the ball is in play for a long time, with neither side kicking to touch and lots of passes flying about. There’s a welcome breather when the home side are penalised for a neck roll.
Jack Conan is on for Van Der Flier.
Dillon Lewis replaces Kieron Assiratti
47 mins. The good half for Wales continues, and much of what is improved is coming via Cam Winnett who drops a shoulder to move around Lowe chasing his own kick. The ball is being kept alive by the visitors and it is forcing Ireland to rethink their defensive shape, which they do by fanning across the field and this is containing the attack.
45 mins. The sin-bin period starts with Ireland having some prosaic possession just in Wales’s half, but the ball leaks to Winnett who tidies up for his side to clear it.
YELLOW CARD! Tadhg Beirne (Ireland)
And for that action, the lock is off for 10 minutes.
Updated
PENALTY TRY WALES! Ireland 17 - 7 Wawles
42 mins. Costelow puts the ball in the corner and it’s Wales’s turn to drive to the line from the lineout via a maul. It’s a mess of bodies that goes over the line and the on-field call is no try, which the TMO will review.
There is no grounding, but part of the reason is Beirne changed his bind to grip the carrier Alex Mann and pull him down. Piardi decides that warrants a pen try!
41 mins. Mush better start from Wales as they have more zip in possession and better chasing on the kicks which puts the Ireland defence under the pump. Winnett has a couple of good runs and this pressure has the home defence infringing at the breakdown.
For all Ireland’s competence, it has been a common issue in this tournament so far that they are quick to fall foul of the laws when attacking pressure comes to bear. So it is here.
Updated
SECOND HALF!
Sam Costelow restarts the game
There is a general vibe to this match that Ireland are expending exactly the precise amount of energy required - and all it’s taking is the equivalent wattage of a small appliance – to defeat a limited Wales performance.
Wales have to stop dropping the ball and giving away penalties. They will lose this match either way, but without at least that adjustment their dignity will be in ribbons come the final whistle.
HALF TIME!
40 mins. Ireland have some half-hearted runs from the scrum before Crowley decides it’s time for a rest and boots the ball off the field.
Updated
39 mins. Rio Dyer pops in the play away from his wing and has a decent carry into the 22, yet once more Wales are imprecise, this time knocking on when in a promising position on the 22.
37 mins. The ball is just about won by Wales, but as the ball moves into midfield Jenkins is penalised for latching onto runner before contact. The ball is cleared, but Ireland have some lineout issues of their own which hands the ball back to the visitors.
Updated
35 mins. Some actual phases from Wales in the Ireland half and it doesn’t take much for the home side to give a breakdown penalty away. From the lineout the visitors are in the 22 would you believe and they will have another lineout after Aki in penalised.
TRY! Ireland 17 - 0 Wales (James Lowe)
31 mins. Ireland are battering the Wales line and the red defence does an incredible job of keeping them out for 10 phases. The ball is moved right then all the way left to Lowe – inevitably they can hold out no more.
Crowley slots two from wide left, a great kick.
Updated
29 mins. The ball is in and out of the scrum in flash, which is the best tactic certainly, and Wales have a few settling carries before Williams boots it away.
The visitors are doing absolutely nothing but defending and giving away penalties, the latest of which has brought a warning from Ref Piardi to the Welsh captain Jenkins that a card is imminent.
27 mins. A messy scrum breaks for Ireland to fly up the left, working to Lowe who is enveloped by Welsh tacklers and the ball goes forward.
The worrysome Welsh scrum now has to work away from near their own line.
22 mins. Not long after the restart Wales give away their SEVENTH penalty. This is dreadful.
Although, some of the breakdown calls against them are very marginal, it has to be said.
Updated
TRY! Ireland 10 - 0 Wales (Dan Sheehan)
21 mins. That scrum battering gave Ireland a penalty that was kicked to touch for a catch and drive that Sheehan finishes from the back of the maul.
Crowley converts it.
Updated
19 mins. For the second scrum in succession the Wales scrum goes backwards like a wheelie-bin full of regret as the Irish shove comes on. The firghtening thing this time was that it was on Wales’s put-in,
17 mins. Ireland are working what can best be described as mechanical moves and patterns with their possession. It’s pretty regimented and regulated, but neither quick nor incisive enough to get through or around an inspired Welsh scramble defence.
The results is a bit of a dull game and near silent crowd at present.
15 mins. More stoppages due to trading penalties and then Reffell is pinged for rejoining the lineout early. Ireland have a scrum just in their own half which absolutely powders the Wales pack and the home side are attacking on halfway with an advantage.
12 mins. The Wales scrum creaks a bit, but Tomos Williams manages to whip the ball away. Touch is missed again – which suggests it’s a deliberate tactic – and this invites Ireland back and Mann is penalised for sealing off at the ruck.
Wales will be happy to be only three points down at this stage, but there is much to worry about with discipline.
10 mins. An ominous catch and drive from Ireland gathers momentum in the Wales 22, but the visiting pack compose themselves and drive like a crimson wedge to halt it, hold it up and win a turnover scrum.
Big test of the Wales pack now as they negotiate a tricky defensive scrim on their own 5m line.
8 mins. Wales have s decent opportunity to attack in the Ireland half after James Lowe misses touch with a clearing kick. However, once again a runner is isolated and this time it’s Andrew Porter’s turn to win a turnover penalty. The really worrying thing if your Welsh was the inability of anyone to clear Porter out as at least a couple of players tried and failed.
PENALTY! Ireland 3 - 0 Wales (Jack Crowley)
6 mins. Tomkins is a little high in the tackle and that presents Crowley with a opportunity to put his side in the lead from forty metres out, in front of the posts.
Updated
5 mins. The first penalty of the match goes the way of Wales after Reffell does his usual magic at the breakdown. From the lineout the visitors work three phase to the right before Winnett is a little isolated, which means Aki can clamp on to win Ireland a penalty of their own.
Updated
2 mins. Neat and tidy from Wales from the kick-off which allows Tomos Williams to clear the ball. Touch is missed and Ireland’s first attack has them running the usual organised patterns before the ball is kicked behind the defence for Henshaw to chase. It rolls in-goal and Wales defuse by tapping it down.
Kick Off!
The ball is sent skyward from Jack Crowley’s boot after Red Piardi whistles the game underway
It’s a beautiful day in Dublin as the teams emerge from the tunnel, captains Jenkins and O’Mahony representing opposite bookends of the long shelf of experience.
Updated
Officials
For those interested, these are the officials for the match, including the first ever Italian to referee a men’s Six Nations tie
Referee: Andrea Piardi (FIR)
Assistant Referee 1: Karl Dickson (RFU)
Assistant Referee 2: Gianluca Gnecchi (FIR)
TMO: Eric Gauzins (FFR)
Updated
Pre match reading
Are there any Wales fans out there who believe there’s a chance of victory? Put down your mind-altering substances and tell me about it via email or on the X
Updated
Teams
Hugo Keenan, an ever-present during Ireland’s recent imperial phase, is injured and Andy Farrell has opted for Leinster’s Ciaran Frawley to replace him. All the other changes from the home side are the big guns returning after the dismantling of Italy – Bundee Aki, Jamison Gibson-Park, Tadhgs Beirne & Furlong, Josh Van Der Flier, and Peter O’Mahony who is also restored as captain.
Wales make one change to the starting line-up, with fly-half Sam Costelow replacing Ioan Lloyd at 10.
The bench has two swaps. Cardiff’s Mackenzie Martin is in to win his first cap, while the experience of Harlequins prop Dillon Lewis returns.
IRELAND Ciaran Frawley; Calvin Nash, Robbie Henshaw, Bundee Aki, James Lowe; Jack Crowley, Jamison Gibson-Park; Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan, Tadhg Furlong, Joe McCarthy, Tadhg Beirne, Peter O’Mahony (capt), Josh van der Flier, Caelan Doris.
Replacements 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Oli Jager, 19 James Ryan, 20 Ryan Baird, 21 Jack Conan, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Stuart McCloskey.
WALES Cameron Winnett; Josh Adams, George North, Nick Tompkins, Rio Dyer; Sam Costelow, Tomos Williams; Gareth Thomas, Elliot Dee, Keiron Assiratti, Dafydd Jenkins (capt), Adam Beard, Alex Mann, Tommy Reffell, Aaron Wainwright.
Replacements 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Corey Domachowski, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Will Rowlands, 20 Mackenzie Martin, 21 Keiran Hardy, 22 Ioan Lloyd, 23 Mason Grady.
Updated
Preamble
There is a spurious idea, mostly peddled by people not from said countries, that a celtic fraternity exists between the nations of these islands that are not England. Never has this notion been more wrong than when it comes to Wales and Ireland in rugby. Entire sections of what used to be called Twitter are dedicated to the wind-up during #IrelandWeek, as the scorn is chucked about with what mostly feels like something falling short of disdain, but it’s hard to be sure.
There is some history to this: Warren Gatland’s time in Ireland, Ronan O’Gara’s drop goal, Mike Phillips in the corner, and Ronan O’Gara’s drop goal: the return to pick a few. Add to this the regular contact of players and fans in the Pro12/14, now United Rugby Championship – a domestic league situation akin to asymmetric warfare in Ireland’s favour for a decade.
The international scene has been similar, with Wales winning only two of the previous eight encounters, the last coming in the 2021 Covid Six Nations and Ireland won handily in the two matches since.
It’s not an exaggeration to state that absolutely no one believes Wales will win today. Their team is denuded by retirements, injuries and the NFL and what is left low on experience even at club level. Facing then a green threshing machine with all its major parts restored, has approximately 1.27m caps, and has lost only one match since July 2022.
This could be about as asymmetric as a result gets.
Updated
