IT’S A GAME OF TWO HALVES

Scotland know they must curb influence of Sexton and Murray

TWO names have marbled the discussion of Ireland in Scotland this week. Given Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton inspired the Lions in New Zealand last summer and, as a pairing, are as effective as any half-back partnership in the world, that isn’t a surprise.

Scotland understand that if they can limit their influence, then the remorseless Ireland machine will stall.

Knowing it and doing something about it are two drastically different things, as every opponent Ireland has faced in the past 12 months now understands.

It is a year this weekend since this team lost to Wales in Cardiff. They have hardly made a mis-step in any game they have played after that Friday night loss.

Sexton was sent to the sin-bin in that match and also received medical treatment, and Murray injured a shoulder in the first half that eventually necessitated his substitution.

Irish defeats and difficulties for their two main men are not coincidental: Sexton, remember, missed the match against tomorrow’s opposition in last year’s championship, a game that ended in dismal defeat.

‘Both are very good players, very good kickers,’ says Scotland veteran Greig Laidlaw of the two.

‘Conor Murray, it’s a big part of his game. His box kicks are more often than not on the money and he gives his chasers time to compete or regather the ball.

‘Similar to England in that sense, Ireland will run a couple of times and if it shuts up they will look to kick and look to get into our half through their kicking game.’

And on Sexton, his comments indicated that Scotland have been paying attention. ‘He has a lot of tricks up his sleeve and he’s a very skilful player, both of them are. If we want to be in the game at the weekend we’ll need to defend well.’

The breakdown is a theatre of battle that should be keenly anticipated, given its general importance in any game but in particular in this one, given these have been the two outstanding breakdown sides in the championship.

But Ireland’s class and experience promises to be invaluable. The mercurial Finn Russell showed his ability against England, but when Wales ensured he would not receive quick or clean ball, he was in trouble and couldn’t plot a way out of it.

Murray and Sexton have shown over the years that they can. Their form has been good so far this spring, save for the strange case of Sexton’s inaccuracy with the kicking tee in the first half against Wales. Schmidt, though, made a passionate case in defence of his team’s inspiration.

He argued that Sexton’s misses were incidental to his general impact, citing in particular the marvellous pass that put Jacob Stockdale over for Ireland’s first try.

‘How did we get that try?’ asked Schmidt. ‘I don’t think you’d see a better pass in world rugby. It was incredibly flat, it went across two channels and I think Leigh Halfpenny didn’t think he (Sexton) could throw it.’

The coach stressed that he couldn’t guarantee Sexton wouldn’t miss a kick at goal tomorrow. He was sanguine about it, in fact, which illustrated his satisfaction with the enormous impact Sexton has beyond the kicking tee.

That Murray stroked over an important penalty late on against the Welsh provides further comfort, but the coach could only smile when asked if he would like to see Sexton pick some of his battles on the field more judiciously.

Schmidt has joked in the past about Sexton thinking he is a loose forward given the manner in which he hits rucks and makes tackles ‘Do I wish he was more judicious? Sometimes I do,’ he said with a laugh.

‘I remember sitting in coaches box with Jono Gibbes at one stage and Jono saying, “Would you ever get Johnny to stay out of that stuff? Leave it to my boys. We will look after that”.

‘He’s a competitor, and I think the other players love that about him. It gives him licence to lead.

‘When you put your own hand up, it’s pretty easy to lead others.’

The nature of Gregor Townsend’s leadership has commanded much attention this spring. As a player, he was distinguished by a willingness to take risks and invest in a style that was not familiar to most of his team-mates.

That enthusiasm has marked him out as a coach, too, but Schmidt didn’t entertain the idea that everything he does is instinctive.

‘I would be massively against pigeon-holing people,’ he said, before extolling the rigorous approach he says Townsend follows.

‘Gregor is incredibly methodical and very well planned; he knows exactly what he is doing.

‘And so I think it would be naive to think that suddenly he is given this massive license for everyone to do what they like.

‘There is a method to any madness that happens, there is a method to anything is incredibly methodical visibly.

‘So I’d have huge respect for Gregor and I would never pigeon hole him by saying, “Right, they are going to come here and throw it everywhere or they are going to do this or that”.’

Schmidt dabbled in the unexpected when eschewing the option of a recall for Iain Henderson and persisting with Devin Toner alongside James Ryan in the second row.

He sticks with a pairing that did well against Italy, and suggested Henderson can bolster the team in the final quarter — a period in which they have been under pressure in all three games so far.