Twenty wins in 21 games and step 3 complete of a journey to a back-to-back Grand Slam against an inexperienced and ill-disciplined Welsh side. Ireland dominated the game in the first half but dropped off and lost their way in the 2nd half with some poor discipline and a very sloppy attack as they huffed and puffed to the Bonus point getting it in the last minute. With a week's respite ahead, the focus now shifts to the upcoming challenge at Twickenham in two weeks, a crucial next step in their campaign.
Here's a look at the individual performances of the Irish team.
Ireland Rugby Player Ratings - Starting XV
Ciaran Frawley – 7/10
Slotted into the 2nd playmaker role very well. Covered the backfield well for much of the game. He counter-attacked well. Capped off a good performance with a 2nd half-try.
Calvin Nash – 6/10
The Munster winger getting very comfortable at Test rugby. Great work rate to get a try on his opposite wing and made the pass to put Lowe over for the 2nd try. Needs to improve his 1 v 1 defence.
Robbie Henshaw – 7/10
Lively 1st half with some big carries. Made his tackles but Wales never stressed him in defence. 10 Tackles / 7 ball carries.
Bundee Aki – 8/10
Continues to be Mr Consistent for this Irish team. Straightened up Ireland’s lateral attack when it was badly needed. Great poach to win an Ireland penalty early in the game. 9 Tackles / 15 ball carries.
James Lowe – 7/10
A big work rate for most of the game. Got off his wing well and his left boot continues to be a big feature in the team’s kicking game. Got over for Ireland’s 2nd try.
Jack Crowley– 7/10
Continues to be a work in progress in attack where he mixed the excellent with the ordinary. The attack got too static at times as Ireland lost their way in the 2nd half. Silenced a few of his critics with an excellent place-kicking performance – 5/5.
Jamison Gibson-Park – 8/10
His forwards gave him an armchair ride with the quality of the ruck. Kept the pace of the game high as he continued to probe around the breakdown with some smart running and quick passing.
Andrew Porter – 7/10
Took great pride in demolishing the Welsh scrum. Excellent in defence with 10 tackles.
Dan Sheehan – 7/10
He’s in great form with try number 4 for the Irish hooker, while getting on the end of a huge Irish maul. Quiet 2nd half. 3 Tackles / 9 ball carries.
Tadhg Furlong – 7/10
Was excellent at scrum time. Much of his work in Attack was very good around the breakdown.
Joe McCarthy – 7/10
Another solid performance as his ball carrying caused the defence issues, especially before Lowes’ try. Was destructive around the Welsh tackle area as he slowed them down at every tackle he was involved in. Still needs to control his discipline as he gave away a few silly penalties. 9 Tackles / 9 ball carries.
Tadhg Beirne – 7/10
Got through a huge amount of work and led the Irish line-speed in defence. Got himself a yellow card for a technical offence in the lineout. Came up with a massive turnover win in the 2nd half and got over for the Bonus point try in the last play of the game. 9 Tackles / 7 ball carries.
Peter O’Mahony (Capt) – 6/10
Puts everything into his game and led the team well with a big defence performance but faded badly in the 2nd half as the game got scrappy. 10 Tackles / 7 ball carries.
Josh Van Der Flier – 7/10
Dominated the battle of the two 7s with a big breakdown performance.
Caelan Doris – 8/10
Welsh defence just couldn’t live with his ball carrying. Had to put out a lot of fires for Ireland as they were forced into defending for much of the 2nd half. His post tackle work was excellent. Ireland’s top defender with 20 tackles / 10 ball carries.
SEE ALSO: Peter O'Mahony Finds Ingenious Fix To Andrew Porter Scrum Issues
SEE ALSO: Tadhg Furlong Full Of Emotion In First Aviva Game Since Father's Passing
Ireland rugby player ratings: replacements:
16· Ronan Kelleher – 7/10
A massive impact after he came on with a big penalty as Wales looked to get back into the game.
17· Cian Healy – 6/10
Saved Ireland’s blushes with a try-saving tackle with Doris to stop Wales in the last few minutes.
18· Oli Jager – 6/10
An Irish debut for the big man and will be all the better for his 26 minutes on the pitch.
19· James Ryan – 7/10
Had to make a massive 11 tackles in the 20 minutes he was on the pitch which shows where Ireland were at when he came on. Was on the receiving end of a yellow card for a team penalty in the last 5 minutes .
20· Ryan Baird– 7/10
Adds a massive impact to Ireland off the bench and again he put his hand up to start in Twickenham in 2 weeks' time.
21· Jack Conan – 7/10
Another great impact when he came on. Had to make a massive 15 tackles when he came on.
22· Conor Murray – 6/10
Saw 10 minutes of action – a good passage of play before the Beirne try.
23· Stuart McCloskey – 6/10
Won a penalty in the last few minutes that got Ireland into position for the Bonus point try
Coach– 6/10
A game that will give Farrell and his coaches something to think about. In truth, Ireland never really got out of 3rd gear for much of the game but maybe they didn’t have to. A worry will be around the return of the shaky lineout and static attack in the 2nd half. The bench was used well and at the right time.
