Muristek
Ireland got what they came for at the Aviva Stadium and the capacity crowd went home happy. A Triple Crown is a good reward for a team who claimed their fourth bonus-point win in five Championship games and they’ll probably park their analysis of a scrappy performance for a couple of days to toast their achievement. After the anarchy of Twickenham, this was a more sedate affair. Ireland were expected to win and might have hoped to do it more comfortably, but Scotland proved a doughty opponent who hung with them until Conor Murray’s fourth try at the death. The home team were looking to have every angle covered ahead of the late game in Paris, but their pursuit of the bonus point and inaccuracy in attack probably kept the Scots in the hunt for longer than they needed to. They can point to the result as they clinch the first silverware of the Andy Farrell era, knowing that this is a platform rather than a peak. Having been pilloried back home for their lack of discipline and with little to lose on the day, it was no surprise to see Scotland start with an abandon that seemed to take Ireland aback. There was a wildness to the affair that wasn’t matched by a subdued atmosphere punctuated by piped-in crowd noise and music and despite looking a little rattled the home side rode out the initial storm. They brought intent, but the visitors lacked the discipline to make it count and slowly Ireland gained control with Jamison Gibson-Park threatening with a break before Johnny Sexton’s calmness brought a 50:22 kick that recovered possession for his side on the 5m line.
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