Ireland did the hard work in erasing a 16-point deficit, with Paddy Jackson’s 61st-minute try nudging them in front, before captain Greig Laidlaw’s late brace of penalties guided Scotland to a frenetic opening RBS 6 Nations victory at BT Murrayfield.
It was a deserved result in the end as the Scots were clinical in a three-try first half performance, man-of-the-match Stuart Hogg’s brilliant brace exposing Ireland’s alarmingly narrow defence and Alex Dunbar’s score straight from a five-metre lineout seeing the visitors completely switch off.
Ireland lacked the precision and aggression they had shown during their November Tests, and an under-fire lineout was a real area of concern. They trailed 21-8 at half-time with their brightest moment coming when Keith Earls was fed by Simon Zebo for his 20th international try.
Gunning for their maiden round 1 Championship win since 2006, Scotland were winning the physical battles and outsmarting the visitors tactically despite a scrum that was under regular pressure. Their defensive alignment and scrappy breakdown work meant that Ireland’s big carriers were continually knocked back and gained little yardage.
That changed in the third quarter as Joe Schmidt’s men began to find some form and dictate play, the forwards punching some holes at last and second row Iain Henderson reached over for a momentum-building 47th-minute try converted by Paddy Jackson.
The Ulster out-half ensured that Ireland had the lead with little under 20 minutes remaining, bursting onto a pass and showing his pace and strength to stretch out for the line. His conversion, sent over from the left of the posts, made it 22-21.
Crucially, the men in green failed to add to their lead, failing to convert possession and field position into points either side of Jackson’s seven-pointer. A Conor Murray-led break ended with Jamie Heaslip’s attempted offload being picked off by the covering Sean Maitland, while Rob Kearney, who made great yardage up the right wing, had a foot in touch before he linked with Earls for a possible second try for the winger.
Hard-won front foot ball was lost as Ireland’s error count rose amid the high-tempo phases – there were knock-ons in contact, a gilt-edged lineout chance deep in the Scottish 22 led to a turnover and Kearney’s loose pass – when Zebo was in space – went straight into touch.
The off-colour first half display and those mistakes in and around the hour mark caught up with Ireland in a tense, strength-sapping end-game. Despite the bench provided some impact, including Josh van der Flier and John Ryan on his second cap, the visitors lapsed at vital moments late on.
In what was a thrilling first match of the 2017 Championship, particularly for the neutral watchers, the pendulum swung back in Scotland’s favour as Jackson was penalised for not rolling away in the 72nd minute and Laidlaw gladly mopped up with the three points.
A knock-on in contact from CJ Stander and then a misplaced pass from Devin Toner left Ireland scrambling in their own half. Scotland tried to maul for a bonus point try in the dying minutes but a subsequent high tackle from replacement Tommy Bowe, winning his first cap since the 2015 World Cup, allowed Laidlaw to wind down the clock and clinch the result with his second penalty success of a memorable six-try clash.
The losing bonus point in Edinburgh was of little consolation to Ireland who have to regroup quickly for next Saturday’s round 2 date with Conor O’Shea’s Italy side in Rome.
Head coach Schmidt said afterwards: “We were really well off our game and I think the Scottish attack took advantage of that. They’ve got some very sharp players, especially when they’re given some width.
“I thought we clawed our way back in the second half, I thought we shut down some of that attack. They didn’t score (a try) in the second half but as much as we clawed our way back, it was disappointing to let it slip at the end.
“We had some gilt-edged chances. Rob just put a foot in touch, Jamie almost got to the line. It’s incredibly disappointing but I know that Vern (Cotter) and the Scottish lads will be happy with that to start their campaign.”
He added: “We were very passive, we were very slow to get ourselves set, and that was incredibly disappointing because it’s something that we work incredibly hard on. It will be a tough reflection on Monday.
“We probably just missed our timing. We haven’t played for a long time and there’s a few changes in there as well since the last time we played. You’re always trying to bed things in as best you can in training, but until you actually get into the match arena and that pressure that comes with it, with that very slow ball we were getting in the first half, it does make it very difficult.”
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