Ireland throw down gauntlet
A dominant display by Ireland’s forwards earned them an impressive bonus-point Rugby World Cup win over Celtic rivals Scotland on Sunday.
The emphatic 27-3 Pool A win underscored Ireland’s status as one of the favourites and sent out a message to southern hemisphere challengers New Zealand and Australia, who both won on Saturday.
World Player of the Year Johnny Sexton answered his critics after a worrying dip in form as Ireland shrugged off injuries to key players in their back line to seize the initiative in a tight group.
But it was the tight five who broke Scotland’s resistance, with pushover tries in the first half from lock James Ryan, prop Tadhg Furlong and hooker Rory Best. Scotland had lost six of the previous seven games against the Irish, but scented an upset in Yokohama as coach Gregor Townsend named the most experienced Test team in Scottish rugby history with an astounding 630 caps in the starting XV.
“I think we started really well. We were positive. We wanted to attack. Obviously with the conditions in the second half, it became more of an arm wrestle, but we know how good a team they are and we’re delighted with the win,” said skipper Best.
Sunday’s clash of the Celts in Yokohama followed an unconvincing 47-22 win by fellow Six Nations outfit Italy against Namibia, the lowest-ranked side in the competition.
England got their World Cup campaign off to a scrappy start in Sapporo on Sunday with a 353 Pool C victory over Tonga as
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Manu Tuilagi scored two tries while skipper Owen Farrell added 15 points with the boot.
The Tongans, led by big-hitting loose forwards Sione Kalamafoni and Zane Kapeli, proved difficult to break down at the Sapporo Dome and it was only rampaging centre Tuilagi’s tries that gave England an 18-3 advantage at half-time.
With a combination of basic errors and ill-discipline robbing England of momentum, they had to wait until the 56th minute for their third try as hooker Jamie George went over off the back of a driving maul.
England somehow failed to claim their fourth try when Henry Slade did not connect with Elliot Daly, with the line at their mercy, but replacement Luke Cowan-Dickie claimed the bonus-point try after being sent clear by Jonathan Joseph. /