Ireland's 34-10 bonus point victory over Wales in Cardiff, following a one sided Ireland v Wales match, gave them a great start in the Six Nations Championship. Wales chased shadows and tried to keep up with the pace of the game Ireland was playing, but Ireland put on an excellent first half in a nearly faultless performance. Despite a second-half decline, Ireland earned the bonus point thanks to a superb touchdown from Josh Van Der Flier.
A look at how we rate the Ireland rugby team's performance today. Here's our Ireland player ratings after Ireland v Wales.
Ireland v Wales: Ireland Starting XV Player Ratings
15 Hugo Keenan - 9
Such calmness in the chaos in Cardiff. A performance of great maturity, excellent at dealing with the Wales aerial bombardment and his chase to Sexton’s clever kicks was outstanding.
14 Mack Hansen - 5
Struggled to match the intensity of his teammates. His chasing was poor. Lucky not to see a yellow card for a incident after Wales’s 1st try. Came up with a good tackle in the 2nd half and 2 good offloads.
13 Garry Ringrose - 6
He probably would have liked to see more ball but when the forwards were that dominate they weren’t going to share it with the backs. His defence reads were great but needs to stick better. 10 tackles.
12 Stuart McCloskey - 7
Wales struggled to deal with his running power and lines of running. Great performance by the Ulsterman.
11 James Lowe - 6
Got his 7th Irish try with a brilliant defensive intercept. Used his trusty left boot to great effect.
10 Johnny Sexton (Capt.) - 7
A masterful 1st half performance by the Ireland great as he had given the run of Cardiff. He marshalled the attack superbly as Wales just stood off and watched him play. A slight concern with how he dealt with an increase in pressure that came on him in the 2nd half. Carried too much ball to contact due to the pressure he was under.
9 Conor Murray - 6
A late addition to the team and started like a man with something to prove. His speed at the breakdown in the 1st half was better than he has produced in recent months. Tired badly in the 2nd half as the team struggling with the intensity.
1 Andrew Porter - 7
Great 1st half performance. Prevented a certain Welsh try on half time with an outstanding tackle on the Irish try line. Will be disappointed with his 6 penalties he gave away.
2 Dan Sheehan - 8
A simply class performance by a player who is now vital to how this team performs. His throwing was exceptional. Some great work in the wide channels in the 2nd half. 9 tackles in defence, very aggressive.
3 Finley Bealham - 7
His first Six Nations start and a won a big scrum penalty in the 18th minute. Got through a lot of defence work in the 2nd half.
4 Tadhg Beirne - 7
Got through a lot of work with a massive work-rate.
5 James Ryan – 8
Got over for Ireland’s 2nd try. His lineout defence reads are as good as anyone playing the game. His defensive effect was outstanding with 14 tackles.
6 Peter O’Mahony - 7
His work rate for his 60 minutes was excellent. An excellent lineout performance by the big backrower.
7 Josh Van Der Flier - 7
He was key to getting Ireland to play at the intensity they did with his outstanding breakdown work. Got over for the bonus point try. 17 tackles
8 Caelan Doris - 9
A superb exhibition of No.8 play. Got the team off to a great start with a try inside 2mins. Was involved in all the key moments of the game – came up with a big turnover to stop Welsh momentum in the early stages of the 2nd half. Top ball carrier with 15 carries. An epic 19 tackles (mostly in the 2nd half)
SEE ALSO: Stephen Ferris's Six Nations Matchday 1 Predictions
Ireland v Wales: Ireland replacements player ratings
Rob Herring - n/a
Only saw 6minutes of action. A worry at what impact he gives this team.
Dave Kilcoyne - n/a
A late call up . Only saw 6minutes of action – gave away a scrum penalty.
Tom O’Toole - 6
Struggled at scrum time. Made 5 tackles in his 20minutes on the field.
Iain Henderson - 5
Gave a poor penalty away when he came on. Good lineout work
Jack Conan - 5
Very quiet – no real impact. Good clearouts when needed.
Craig Casey - 7
Impressive passing performance. Came on when the team was struggling.
Ross Byrne -- 7
A huge impact off the bench. Steadied the ship when it was badly needed. He would have liked to be trusted with more game time.
Bundee Aki - 7
Like Byrne, an instant impact. Huge energy in attack and defence while those around him were struggling.
Coach – 7
Ireland’s first Six Nations win in Cardiff in 10 years. Coaching staff will be delighted with the first half performance but will be concerned with how the intensity dropped in the 2nd half.
