Ireland fight back to deny England with injury-time try in thriller
IRELAND produced a stunning fightback to seal a thrilling draw in their Six Nations showdown with a powerful England side in the Rec in Bristol last night. Both sides went into the soldout clash with a 100pc record, with Ireland in pursuit of a third straight Grand Slam under coach Richie Murphy. That dream is gone now but the Irish were still celebrating at the end of a pulsating encounter having come within seconds of agonising defeat. It was all-action No8 Luke Murphy who scored the injurytime try next to the posts with a powerful carry after Ben Waghorn looked to have sealed a famous victory for the hosts. Both teams are still in contention for the title but Ireland are in the better position, with bottom team Scotland travelling to Cork for the final fixture next week while England take on a dangerous French side. The first half was a nervy affair but England seized early control via a Finn Carnduff try before the visitors struck back when out-half Jack Murphy found Finn Treacy out wide with a perfect kick for Ireland’s first score. It was back and forth between the teams for the rest of the game, Ireland refusing to roll over in the face of a savage physical challenge. Ireland had the more fluent attack and added tries from Ben O’Connor, Hugo McLaughlin and then a bonus-point clincher from substitute Henry Walker, while England added three of their own. The last by Waghorn wide on the left sparked wild celebrations as it seemed to clinch victory but Ireland had not read the script.