Opta Facts: Ireland v Wales

Check out the Opta Facts, provided by Stats Perform, as Ireland get set to entertain Wales in the third round of the Guinness Men’s Six Nations at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday (kick-off 2.15pm).

– Ireland have won six of their last seven Test matches against Wales (L1), including the last two in a row, as many as they had won in their previous 15 encounters (D1, L8); Ireland’s last three victories over Wales have come by 20+ points

– Ireland are unbeaten in each of their last five home games against Wales in the Guinness Men’s Six Nations (W4, D1), winning the last three in a row

– Ireland have never won more consecutive matches (W3 on five previous occasions) or enjoyed a longer unbeaten streak (W4, D1 between 1888 and 1896) at home to Wales in the Championship (including the Home/Five Nations)

– Ireland have won their last 10 matches in the Six Nations, only England (W11, 2015 to 2017) have won more consecutive matches in the Championship (including the Home/Five Nations)

– Wales have lost nine of their last 10 matches in the Six Nations (W1), including their last three in a row. However, five of those defeats have come by four points or fewer, including both matches so far in the current campaign (1 point v Scotland, 2 points v England)

– Ireland have won 38 of their last 40 Test matches on home soil (L2), with only England (2019) and France (2021) winning in Dublin during that spell

– Ireland’s current run of 17 consecutive wins at the Aviva Stadium is their best ever run of home results in Test history

– Ireland have recorded the quickest average ruck speed in attack in the Six Nations so far this year (3.3s), while in defence, Wales have slowed down the opposition breakdown more than any other team, with opposition rucks taking 5.1 seconds to complete on average

– Wales have conceded just nine penalties in this year’s Six Nations, fewer than any other team, while Ireland have conceded the most (24). Wales are also the only team to have been awarded 20+ penalties in the current campaign (23)

– Wales captain Dafydd Jenkins has hit 68 attacking rucks in the Six Nations this year, the most of any player and 11 more than Ireland’s Caelan Doris who ranks joint second (57, level with Scott Cummings)

– Wales’ Corey Domachowski is the only player to hit 20+ attacking rucks and maintain a 100% effectiveness rate, clearing out or securing each of the 27 rucks that he has hit

– Rio Dyer (Wales) and James Lowe (Ireland) have each made four line breaks in the Six Nations this year, more than any other player

– Three of the four players to score multiple tries in the Championship this year play for either Ireland (Dan Sheehan – 3, Calvin Nash – 2) or Wales (Alex Mann – 2)

– Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony is set to make his 50th Six Nations appearance. He will become the ninth Ireland player to reach that milestone, joining Rory Best, Ronan O’Gara, Brian O’Driscoll, Cian Healy, Jonathan Sexton, Conor Murray, John Hayes, and Paul O’Connell