The immediate Gregor Townsend verdict on Triple Crown defeat to Ireland

Scotland head coach Gregor Townsend handed Ireland their flowers after his side came off second best in their 43-21 Triple Crown defeat in Dublin.

The visitors went toe-to-toe with Ireland for periods, but Ireland never really relinquished control after scoring through Jamie Osborne after just three minutes.

The men in blue got within striking distance of reeling in Ireland’s lead twice in the second forty, only to concede points more or less immediately after scoring.

“The second half was much more what we can do and what we have been doing in the championship. It was a mixed first half,” Townsend told ITV after the match.

“We needed to be more physical and we definitely applied a lot of pressure on Ireland. We could have got more reward but at the end of the day, a couple of errors let them in and they were very good. I thought they were excellent in their attack today.”

Townsend conceded he felt a little frustration after twice getting back to within five points of Ireland, only to fall back again.

“Absolutely. We had put a lot of effort in and we were making a lot of yards into the 22. Those two tries put us in a position to go back there and go ahead. But when Ireland got possession, they capitalised.

“Of course it was a missed opportunity today. We didn’t play our best game. It’s hard to do that. No team has done that through the tournament. It’s been hard for any team to do that for more than two or three games.

“The third quarter showed us at our best, but we probably needed to do that in at least another one or two quarters.”

“It will be both those emotions [pride or regret]. But the players in that period after half-time put their bodies on the line for their country and threw everything at Ireland. We just needed to not give them those chances because they were very accurate today and they made the most of them.

“But we have showed this year that we have a game plan that can challenge any team.”

Skipper Sione Tuipulotu was pleased with Scotland’s resolve when they went behind but was sore that errors opened the door so often for Ireland.

“We managed to fight our way back in the second half but off kick-offs and things like that, we let them back into the game after we closed the gap. We let them hit back straightaway. Credit to them, they are deserved winners today,” the centre told ITV.

He also conceded his side were edged in the physical battle by the home side.

“A little bit. It’s something we prepared for, but every time we closed the gap, we let them back through missed tackles or mistakes off the kick-off. They are all our doings and Ireland are deserved winners today.”

“It’s hard to put my finger on which one [pride or regret] to be honest but I am proud of my group massively and the way we stuck to it after a tough start to the championship. It was difficult but look, we wanted to come away with the Triple Crown, that is what we were after.”

“We have taken another step forward. It’s been quite an emotional tournament but credit to them (Ireland) and I am super proud of my boys too.”