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Ireland show fight against England but lose again

Updated / Saturday, 22 Apr 2023 18:28
Mackenzie Carson of England is tackled by Ireland's Deirbhile Nic a Bháird
Mackenzie Carson of England is tackled by Ireland's Deirbhile Nic a Bháird

One of the most frustrating aspects of the plight in Irish women's rugby is that in spite of several years on a downward curve, their support from the outside remains as strong as ever.

The unwavering support this team have was best summed up just after the half-hour mark at Musgrave Park this afternoon.

After watching England run over and through Irish bodies for 30 minutes and scoring four tries, Ireland's first foray into the English 22 was greeted as if they'd scored a try of their own.

Aoife Doyle skipped by a couple of tackles, among just 14 England had to attempt in the opening half, and the resulting Irish penalty, which ultimately came to nothing, was met with the biggest roar of the afternoon.

Imagine what a crowd like that could do with a team that was set up to compete?

Every little moment of positivity for Ireland was greeted in a similar manner; Brittany Hogan stopping a maul in her 22 in the opening minutes, the Irish front row forcing a penalty at the scrum moments later, Natasja Behan intercepting from Claudia MacDonald as the winger looked to set up a near-certain try, and the relentless Deirbhile Nic a Bháird running hard and fearlessly.

They were moments, and Ireland were only ever going to able to get by on moments. The gap between these sides is as large as it ever was, and hopefully as large as it ever will be.

Tatyana Heard scores one of England's eight tries

Winning was never an option in this game, and despite never getting close to top gear, England dominated from start to finish, crossing for their first try inside two minutes through second row Sarah Beckett, and eventually running out 48-0 winners.

The narrative all week was that the World Cup runners-up could put up a record score, and in reality they were held to their lowest of this championship.

The attitude from Greg McWilliams' side was immense, and in particular the forwards who emptied themselves defensively in a game in which some suggested could have been dangerously one-sided.

The hefty missed tackle count was inevitable in a game like this, but the tackles made shows how hard Ireland had to work, with Neve Jones making a staggering 28 alone in her 65 minutes on the pitch.

Trailing 27-0 at half time, there were fears the game could have followed a similar script to their meeting in Leicester 12 months ago, when England cut loose to rack up a 69-0 win.

But the third quarter was arguably Ireland's best spell of the championship, holding the visitors scoreless until the 69th minute, before a couple of late run-ins.

Unlike last week's defeat in Parma, Irish jerseys were hitting the ball at pace, and while their lineout issues continued to frustrate them at crucial stages, there was a greater variety to their throwing, with Sam Monaghan used far more in the air in comparison to earlier rounds.

Right from Dannah O'Brien's kick-off, the task facing Ieland was evident, Beckett bouncing off a couple of tackles before eventually being brought to ground, but there was less than two minutes on the clock when the totemic second row crossed the line.

It was Sadia Kabeya's break up the middle and pass back inside that brought them into scoring territory, O'Brien hauling the scrum-half just short of the line, and after moving touchline to touchline they found the gap out wide for Beckett to dive over.

Tuima's conversion fell short, leaving the scores at 5-0, but it took England until the 16th minute to get in for a second try.

It started when Abby Dow found space down the right wing, before England recycled and moved infield as they hit the 22. Hogan was unlucky not to force a turnover having got in over a midfield ruck, but after England wrestled the ball out, they whipped it out to the left of the pitch for Tatyana Heard to beat Aoife Doyle to the line, their second unconverted try making it 10-0.

Ireland had barely touched the ball in the opening quarter, but aggressive defending from Jones, Monaghan and Moore in particular were forcing errors from an English side who were in complete control, but sloppy in possession.

Their ability to create physical mismatches was always going to see them find opportunities to score, and when Beckett was given an open channel to run down the throat of O'Brien, it resulted in a try out on the right wing for Ellie Kildunne.

And by the 26th minute the defending champions had brought up their bonus, captain Marlie Packer driving over from close range, after a well-worked strike play off the lineout.

Tuima's poor kicking was preventing the gap opening even wider, missing all four conversions to keep the score at 20-0.

The centre found her radar with her fifth attempt though, pushing the visitors out to a 27-0 half time lead after converting Morwenna Talling's try from the back of a dominant maul, Talling having replaced the injured Packer only moments earlier.

The 10-minute block after half time was Ireland's best period of the game. Having barely touched the ball in the opening 40, Ireland looked to hold onto possession and play through the phases, and they were rewarded by England coughing up three penalties in quick succession.

Turning the penalties into points was still an issue; a lost lineout close to the England line, followed by a kick to touch from O'Brien that went out on the full.

As the second half wore on, it became clear that although England would comfortably win, the scoreline would be much lower than anticipated. The visitors thought they were in for their sixth try on 67 minutes, Kildunne's second score of the afternoon was chalked off on review, following a forward pass by Sarah Bern.

The scoreless second half wouldn't last much longer, Amber Reed eventually diving over after sustained England pressure, converted by Helena Rowland who ticked the lead up to 34-0.

By now, Ireland were running on fumes, and in the final three minutes England put some gloss on the scoreline as Dow and Alex Matthews crossed for tries, both converted Rowland, bringing the margin up to 48, but some way short of the numbers being suggested earlier this week.

Ireland: Lauren Delany; Aoife Doyle, Aoife Dalton, Vicky Irwin, Natasja Behan; Dannah O'Brien, Molly Scuffil-McCabe; Linda Djougang, Neve Jones, Christy Haney; Nichola Fryday (capt), Sam Monaghan; Brittany Hogan, Grace Moore, Deirbhile Nic a Bháird.

Replacements: Clara Nielson, Sadhbh McGrath, Kathryn Buggy, Hannah O'Connor, Jo Brown, Ailsa Hughes, Anna McGann, Méabh Deely.

England: Ellie Kildunne; Abby Dow, Lagi Tuima, Tatyana Heard, Claudia MacDonald; Holly Aitchison, Natasha Hunt; Hannah Botterman, Connie Powell, Maud Muir; Zoe Aldcroft, Sarah Beckett; Sadia Kabeya, Marlie Packer (capt), Alex Matthews.

Replacements: Lark Davies, Mackenzie Carson, Sarah Bern, Delaney Burns, Morwenna Talling, Lucy Packer, Amber Reed, Helena Rowland.

Referee: Lauren Jenner (FIR)

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