Dan Sheehan will captain Ireland against Wales in Saturday’s Six Nations game in Cardiff. The hooker will lead the team for the first time with regular skipper Caelan Doris ruled out because of a knee injury. Sheehan came off the bench in Ireland’s wins over England and Scotland but replaces the injured Ronan Kelleher in a team showing seven changes from the win at Murrayfield.
Read more
Ireland kept their Six Nations Grand Slam hopes firmly on track with an 11th victory in a row over a disappointing Scotland at Murrayfield. The visitors blew away their hosts when speeding into a 17-0 lead with tries from Calvin Nash and captain Caelan Doris, both converted by Sam Prendergast, who also added a penalty. Duhan van der Merwe’s spectacular finish at the end of the opening half gave Scotland some respite but Ireland responded in style in the second half to keep their three in a row bid alive.
Read more
Ireland spoiled Joe Schmidt’s return to Dublin to end their Autumn Nations Series campaign on a high as Andy Farrell signed off for his British & Irish Lions sabbatical by scoring a psychological blow against Australia ahead of next summer’s three-Test series Down Under. It was an uplifting end to this four-game set at Aviva Stadium that had begun with a below-par defeat to New Zealand and gradually improved through victories over Argentina and Fiji.
Read more
Gus McCarthy scored a debut try and Mack Hansen touched down twice as Ireland set aside their unconvincing start to the autumn to ease to a 52-17 win over Fiji in Dublin. Andy Farrell’s much-changed side were seeking an improved performance in their third outing of the month following a sobering defeat by New Zealand and a narrow success over Argentina. First-half scores from Caelan Doris, Josh van der Flier, Craig Casey and Hansen put the hosts in control at the Aviva Stadium.
Read more
Warren Gatland’s return was spoiled by Ireland as the world’s number one side humbled Wales in the opening Six Nations match in Cardiff. Ireland’s storming start saw tries from Caelan Doris, James Ryan and James Lowe – and 12 points from Johnny Sexton – establish a 27-3 half-time lead that Wales would never manage to surmount.
Read more