How to celebrate St Patrick's Day
Posted: Sat Mar 19, 2011 8:45 pm
Ireland destroyed England's Grand Slam hopes as Brian O'Driscoll became the all-time leading try scorer in the history of the Six Nations.
Three Jonathan Sexton penalties gave Ireland an early 9-0 lead which they extended as Tommy Bowe scythed over.
Toby Flood finally got England on the board with a penalty but Sexton made it 17-3 at the break.
O'Driscoll crossed for the record 25th try before Steve Thompson collected a consolation score for England.
The result was a crushing disappointment for the visitors, who were chasing a first Grand Slam since 2003 when England manager Martin Johnson captained them to a thumping 42-6 win in Dublin.
But the youthful visitors - 10 of the side were 25 or under - were on the back foot from the first whistle and Ireland never looked like losing as they secured a seventh win in eight attempts against England.
The hosts looked far more fired up than the visitors in the opening stages. Declan Kidney's side were better at the breakdown for much of the match and looked much more threatening with ball in hand as they ended a disappointing championship on a vibrant note.
England will still win the title bar the unlikely situation of Wales absolutely thrashing France later on Saturday, but as Johnson admitted afterwards, that is little consolation after their Grand Slam dreams turned sour.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/rugby_union/9426975.stm