Talking points: Defiant Wales show they are on the way back

After this spirited display, the Wales faithful will be back in force to help the team avoid a third successive wooden spoon.

Wales' Olly Cracknell (left) and Nicky Smith looking dejected after the final whistle. Pic: Brian Lawless/PA Wire.

Welcome Back Wales, the dragon that has learned to roar again 

Wales may have lost their 15th straight game in the Six Nations, defeated for the 25th time in 27 tests but it is far from the doom and gloom that those stats might suggest. There was heart and soul in much of their defensive work, intent too in their attack. 

And for that we can all be grateful. If the clamour to introduce relegation had been heeded then Wales would have been cast to the winds, perhaps never to return. But that would suit no one. 

Today Wales, then who next? The Six Nations championship is only as strong as its weakest link. And that is why it was heartening to see signs of defiance in Welsh ranks. 

Their last game of the championship is against Italy next weekend at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, once a devoted temple of worship for Red Dragon followers, recently reduced to an echo chamber of concern and dissent. 

After this spirited display, the faithful will be back in force to help the team avoid a third successive wooden spoon.

In Faz we trust 

Was he ever really doubted, the busted-nose warrior of so many on-field scraps as a player to the head coach who had taken Ireland to such heights? Ireland wobbled through last autumn and then hit the canvas with a lifeless performance at the Stade de France. 

With his back to the wall, Farrell has always ever known one direction in which to head, towards the sound of fire. Coaching is as much about man-management as it is about game plans. The ‘intent’ and ‘fight’ of his players had been questioned. They no longer are. The public bollocking had another positive return. 

It allowed Farrell to further develop depth in his squad. Nathan Doak became the fourth debutant in Irish colours this season when he came on for Jamison Gibson-Park. Front-row resources have been shredded by injury but Farrell has managed to shuffle the deck, having the confidence to switch Ulster tighthead, Tom O’Toole, on to the loosehead. 

Thirty-three players in four games have been used and blooded. And now, Ireland await Scotland and yet another tilt at a Triple Crown. It may not have been a pretty performance but Farrell’s men got the job done.

Ulster Back in the game 

What a difference a year makes. This self-same fixture last season saw zero representation from Ulster. There were seven players in the match-day 23, five in the starting line-up, the most in over six years of Andy Farrell’s tenure. 

The players themselves are a mix of the old and the new, and all were prominent against Wales, from ageless rocker in the midfield, Stuart McCloskey, all heavy metal influence throughout, to young scrum-half, Nathan Doak, debuting from the bench in the first-half. 

There were other notable Ulster contributions, from the fast-twitch running of wing, Robert Baloucoune, to the hard-nosed involvements all over the field of flanker Nick Timoney. 

The renewal of talent in Ulster has helped the Irish cause.