Five-Try Triumph Gets Ireland Up And Running

Ireland’s extended squad got their first game of the season under their belts as they recorded a 29-10 victory over Italy at the Aviva Stadium.

The GUINNESS Summer Series opener saw Joe Schmidt’s men edge the first half 19-10, with tries from Joey Carbery, man-of-the-match Andrew Conway and Dave Kearney cancelling out unconverted efforts from Maxime Mbanda and Carlo Canna.

Jordi Murphy and replacement Kieran Marmion touched down to seal a solid first win, although out-half Carbery’s 49th-minute ankle injury was a cause for concern. Schmidt said afterwards that the X-ray showed no fracture and that the swelling is not too bad. The next 48 hours will determine whether he needs a further scan.

The Athy man was hugely influential during the first half, combining notably with Conway from cross-field kicks on exits. Other positives were debuts for Jean Kleyn and Mike Haley, along with a powerful showing from the scrum, the testing of some new combinations, and the return to international rugby of Kearney and Tommy O’Donnell.

Knock-ons thwarted both teams early on, but Kearney went close from a fifth-minute hack through by Carbery with Angelo Esposito doing just enough to deny him. Nonetheless, successive maul penalties got Italy into range and Mbanda dived over unopposed from a ruck, following a forceful carry by his back row colleague Jimmy Tuivaiti.

The try went unconverted and Ireland managed to hit back by the end of the opening quarter. Carbery increased his influence with a dangerous kick securing prime lineout position and then the hosts won a penalty on the opposite right wing. Italy leaked further penalties near their line before Carbery turned Chris Farrell’s pull-back pass into a crisply-finished try beside the posts.

The back-and-forth exchanges continued as Tommaso Benvenuti broke from close to halfway, a busy multi-phase Italian attack leading to their second try with Canna successfully grounding the ball from Giulio Bisegni’s kick through from the edge of the Irish 22. The TMO review confirmed that the out-half was not offside but he missed his second conversion.

Italian indiscipline, including a second scrum penalty, invited Ireland forward soon after and they took full advantage. Quick lineout ball from Devin Toner sent Farrell powering into tackles, and slick handling from captain Rhys Ruddock, Carbery, Garry Ringrose and Jordan Larmour released Kearney to dive over in the left corner.

Carbery nailed the touchline conversion for a 14-10 scoreline, and it was his dinked kick for Kearney which quickly got Ireland on the attack again. The winger also put boot to ball, forcing Matteo Minozzi back to his own try-line, and Ringrose and O’Donnell followed up to earn a five-metre scrum. Two more scrum penalties kept the pressure on and Larmour’s second try assist put Conway over in the right corner.

Nine points remained the difference at the break, and when play resumed, John Ryan’s introduction into the Irish front row saw Andrew Porter switch to loosehead. Ireland were quickly back on the try hunt thanks to a Larmour tip-on pass and a pacy break involving Ringrose and Luke McGrath which very nearly resulted in a score for Niall Scannell who had replaced Rob Herring (back spasm).

Murphy made it over from a subsequent lineout maul, the early try the result of Ireland’s lifting of the intensity and an improved sharpness in attack. The tempo slackened again, though, following Carbery’s unfortunate departure. He fell awkwardly in a tackle and was stretchered off with Connacht’s Jack Carty replacing him for the final half-an-hour.

Better maul defence from the hosts prevented Italy from adding to their first half tally, Scannell earning the plaudits for a turnover-winning tackle. Carty hit two well-struck touchfinders either side of an O’Donnell turnover, while Larmour reacted swiftly to cover two threatening kicks which were dangled towards the Irish whitewash.

Both benches were in full flow now, with Haley making his debut on the hour mark. Tadhg Beirne announced himself with a trademark turnover penalty, while fellow replacement Marmion flew up to block down Ian McKinley’s attempted clearance kick and gather on the bounce to score the final try, 18 minutes from the end. Carty’s conversion shot bounced back off the right hand post.

There was a rather listless finish to the game, Ireland’s defence standing firm as Italy were repeatedly closed down. The visitors did manage to get over the line from a short lineout move, but Federico Zani’s effort was ruled out as his throw to fellow replacement Sebastian Negri did not go the required five metres.

Ireland’s best opportunity during the closing stages came via a second Beirne turnover and Scannell gobbling up an overthrown Italian lineout. O’Donnell drove to within a couple of metres of the line, but Murphy knocked on a Marmion pass and the chance was gone. Italy also defended a last-minute maul attempt in their 22.