Opinion: Ireland can take nothing for granted against Scotland

IRELAND travel to Murrayfield this Sunday in search of a victory against Gregor Townsend’s Scotland.

Andy Farrell’s men have won just one of their opening three fixtures in this season’s Six Nations Championship and this weekend is sure to provide another stern test.

Power of Scotland

Sunday’s opponents have combined industry and invention in a fashion not seen from many Scottish sides in recent memory. Scotland enjoyed an impressive 11-6 victory over England in the opening round of the competition before falling to a narrow 25-24 defeat against Wales a week later.

Scotland’s performance levels prior to the postponement of their round three fixture with France were immaculate and Ireland cannot afford to take anything for granted against such an imaginative outfit.

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With forwards such as hooker George Turner, second row Johnny Gray and flanker Hamish Watson putting in inspired performances in both round one and two, the Scots were able to provide a strong attacking platform for their devastating backline.

Scotland’s 22 line breaks in the opening two rounds compared to Ireland’s 11 in the same time, shows that once their attack starts motoring it can certainly prove a difficult juggernaut to stop.

Talents like outhalf Finn Russell and captain Stuart Hogg have proved stars of the championship so far and Ireland will need to find a way to cut their supply at source to give themselves a good chance at coming away with an important win.

Irish Attack

Ireland will take some confidence heading into Sunday having hammered Italy 48-10 last time out at Stadio Olimpico. Paul O’Connell took over as forwards coach prior to the tournament and to his credit, the pack have put in convincing displays in all three of Ireland’s games.

Against Italy, Ireland completed 13/14 lineouts and won three Italian scrum feeds against the head. The Tadhg Beirne-led Irish breakdown performance was equally convincing and with that kind of foundation, Franco’s Smith side never really stood a chance. Tries from Garry Ringrose, Hugo Keenan, Will Connors (2) , CJ Stander and Keith Earls duly followed to breath confidence back into the set-up.

Ireland have been excellent up front and have won twice as many turnovers (20) than any other team in the Six Nations. However, just how efficiently they have used that possession is a whole other story.

For all of Ireland’s great work in the set-piece and on the deck, their uncreative attack has without doubt become the primary talking point in recent weeks. Attack coach Mike Catt has come under some scrutiny as Ireland’s offensive play continues to be unimaginative and lateral. The absence of effective back-plays or strike-moves that so often proved key to Ireland’s success under Joe Schmidt is proving chief among concerns.

Without such pre-planned moves, Ireland have struggled to make their way over the gainline and instead find themselves relying on individual inspiration from the likes of Robbie Henshaw, Garry Ringrose and Limerick’s Keith Earls.

The number of offloads thrown doesn’t make for brilliant reading either. Ireland’s five offloads against an Italian side that missed 25 tackles was the most Andy Farrell’s side have managed since their November 21st defeat to England. Offloads alone don’t win games but when the prescribed attacking strategy is inadequate, expression becomes all the more important.

Verdict

Ireland have had a far from perfect Six Nations so far and will need to be at their best to come away with a win on Sunday. Scotland’s attack appears to be on another level than Ireland’s right now and so the breakdown battle will be vital for the visitors.

Townsend’s troops sprung a surprise in the opening rounds in terms of how well their forwards fronted up to England and Wales and Ireland will need to be ready for a similar challenge.

Tadhg Beirne, James Ryan, Iain Henderson and CJ Stander have played incredibly well in this year’s Championship and their influence will be hugely important in that department.

Not only will they need to disrupt Scottish possession in defence but also carry the responsibility of being Ireland’s main attacking threat. The more open the game gets, the more it will play into Scottish hands – Ireland must arrive with a plan to prevent that.

Ireland take on Scotland this Sunday at Murrayfield (3pm KO, Virgin Media One)

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