'We had to find a way' - Easterby praise for problem-solving Ireland

The home side blitzed England in an impressive second half. 

JOB DONE: Ireland's Interim Head Coach Simon Easterby and Caelan Doris after the match. Pic: INPHO/Dan Sheridan

Interim Ireland boss Simon Easterby praised his players for problem solving on the run as they came from behind to beat England in a 27-22 bonus-point victory to get their Guinness Six Nations title defence up and running in Dublin on Saturday.

Ireland had trailed 10-5 to the English at half-time but the second half brought a distinct change in momentum with Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan adding to man of the match Jamison Gibson-Park’s opening try before the interval.

Ireland had been guilty of repeating some of the mistakes perpetrated two months earlier in a disjointed Autumn Nations Series, botching try-scoring opportunities and having a score scratched off for a ruck infringement in the build-up to Ronan Kelleher crossing the line during a first half which saw England open the scoring through debutant wing Cadan Murley and a conversion and penalty from Marcus Smith.

Easterby’s side, watched from the stands by permanent head coach Andy Farrell in his capacity as British & Irish Lions head coach, grew into the game and produced to some scintillating attacking play with Gibson-Park, fly-half Sam Prendergast and returning left wing James Lowe in particular providing the spark, Lowe contributing three try assists.

Ireland next face Scotland in Murrayfield on Sunday week with the Scots having scored a bonus-point win themselves at home to Italy.

Two late England tries, from Tom Curry and Tommy Freeman in the dying minutes left the interim head coach with a bittersweet sense of the game as Ireland gifted the visitors a losing bonus point as Easterby reflected on the game as a whole.

“I think the first half, it's first round of the Six Nations, England here in Dublin, it's always going to be a bit of an arm-wrestle. It's nothing we didn't expect,” he said.

“We had to find a way. I thought we played well in patches in the first half, we didn't quite get our accuracy right, and that's probably why the scoreline was in their favour.

“We felt at half time if we did a few things better, that we would get the rewards, and we did that.

“Our accuracy, we had lots of opportunities in their 22, but didn't quite make the most of them. They defended well and made it tough for us. I think on reflection we'll be happy with the way our set-piece went, and we set up some lovely opportunities through that.

“Up until the last couple of minutes, defence was okay. We know we need to be better next weekend.” 

Conceding those late tries with the game already won could come back to haunt Ireland if the tournament came down to points difference, as it did last year when Ireland pipped England to the title to complete back-to-back championship successes and Easterby added: “It gives them a bonus point in a competition where BPs are important, but listen, the result stands and it didn’t change the results and at the beginning of the day if you’d offered us that we’d have taken it. There’s lots we can get better at.”