Elwood hails battling display as Irish rally to outlast Tonga

Ireland 45 Tonga 27

Ireland trailed 17-10 at the interval and were on course to complete a humiliating Pool A whitewash in Cardiff following defeats to Argentina and New Zealand.

But two tries from both wing Chris Cochrane and full-back Niall Morris along with 20 points from the boot of Ian Porter sealed an emphatic victory which sets up a play off tie with Italy on Wednesday. Ireland coach Elwood said: “The second half performance was fantastic. We had a chat at half-time and a few harsh words were said because we didn’t turn up at all and we were second fiddle.

“We got some great scores in the second half though and played some good rugby. We’re not as physically strong as some of the other teams so we try and get the ball away and this has been a while coming.”

Tonga gained their lead through Mateo Malupo’s try before replacement prop Stephen Archer rounded off a convincing win at the Arms Park.

Scorers for Ireland: Tries: Chris Cochrane 2, Niall Morris 2, Stephen Archer; Cons: Ian Porter 4; Pens: Ian Porter 4

Scorers for Tonga: Tries: Mateo Malupo, Salesi Sete; Con: Sione Toke; Pens: Sione Toke 5.

IRELAND: N Morris, D Kearney, E O’Malley, C Cleary, C Cochrane, M Dufficy, I Porter, P Karayiannis, J Harris-Wright, B Barclay, I Nagle, E Sheriff, K Essex, P Ryan, P Mallon

Replacements: MN Entwistle for P Ryan (Temporary, 48-49) S Douglas for J Harris-Wright (65), S Archer for P Karayiannis (73), E Sheridan on for C Cleary (77).