The Irish criticisms still on Sexton's mind from 12 months ago
Captain Johnny Sexton insists Ireland are on the right path – regardless of whether they end up as Guinness Six Nations champions. Victory over Scotland this weekend will guarantee the Triple Crown, but Irish dreams of topping the final standings are also reliant on England avoiding defeat to Grand Slam-chasing France in Paris.
Andy Farrell’s men kept themselves in title contention going into the final round with a stuttering 32-15 success away to Eddie Jones’ 14-man side. Three-time Six Nations winner Sexton now wants to improve on Saturday’s Twickenham showing as Ireland attempt to underline recent progress with a memorable end to the tournament.
“I remember talking to you guys [the media] twelve months ago or longer and things weren’t going great from a results point of view, but we were sticking in there and our confidence levels were the same as they are now,” said the 36-year-old. “We are confident in what we are doing and where we are going.
“Will silverware make that any better or worse? It might validate it a little bit, but I still think we are on the right path. We are not really thinking like that. We are thinking it’s a great opportunity for us and we need to keep building, keep improving every game we play. We showed some great things against England, but we hope we are a lot better this week.”
Ireland kick-off against the Scots in Dublin just over three hours earlier than England run out at Stade de France. Irish hopes of a Grand Slam were wiped out by a narrow 30-24 round-two defeat in the French capital, but they have sufficiently recovered from that setback to remain in hot pursuit of Fabien Galthie’s men.
Ireland have not clinched a Triple Crown – awarded for Six Nations victories over England, Scotland and Wales – on home soil since 2004. Sexton has urged his teammates to focus on matters within their power. “Once we lost that game to France, we set our targets on this [the Triple Crown] and it’s the only thing within our control,” he said. “If we can get a win then we are guaranteed a Triple Crown, obviously that would be a good thing.
“And then we sit back and watch the end of it. We have to hold our end of the bargain up. We have to make sure we play really well. We have to perform on the big stage, which is where we are at. We want to perform for all of the people that come and watch us, so all of our focus is on the performance. If we do get it right and we do get a win then we have got a chance to lift some silverware in front of all of those people.”
Scotland travel across the Irish Sea having not won in Dublin for twelve years. Gregor Townsend’s side remain an inconsistent force but, given they have recently triumphed away to both France and England, Ireland veteran Sexton is taking nothing for granted. “We definitely won’t be underestimating them. They have had some big scalps away from home and they’re a team to be reckoned with.
“I know they have got no championship to play for, but that is when they can be at their most dangerous because they have got nothing to lose. They will want to finish as high up the table as possible but any time you play a game, whether it’s a November international or a summer international, a Six Nations game that doesn’t have something riding on, it’s very special.
“You are still playing for your country, you are still representing a lot and we are preparing for their best performance and they have got some outstanding individuals.”
Comments on RugbyPass
Mack Hansen, Ethan Roots, Taine Plumbtree, Louis Lynagh, Emmanuel Meafou? Which country do you want to pick your Barbarians from?
3 Go to commentsInstead of apologising, try to act like an adult, fcknut.
1 Go to commentsLooks like the Force twisted his leg…ahem arm
5 Go to commentsScotland should change their name to the Barbarians
3 Go to commentsThe game was already over leave the bloke alone ….from a Welsh fan 😀👍
2 Go to commentsShamefully the Toulouse players acted like footballers, falling down feigning injury at the slightest knock. About time refs penalised this play acting.
7 Go to commentsAnother non Scot for the anti Scot Townsend. Soon there will be no Scottish born and bred players in the National team.
3 Go to commentsGreat comeback to the playing field by Richie Mo’unga after the loss of his father. A great performance by Richie . I know him well and he is a great guy. On and off the field one of the greatest for the Crusaders. Scott Robertson would have loved him in his All Black’s side. A very missed player and person.
2 Go to commentsYeah nah he comes across as a funny bloke, but that stopped abruptly after the Nutcracker Prince debacle✋
2 Go to commentsAt this point I can’t watch him without thinking he’s a dirty slimebag. He should have been banned for the same amount of time that Quinn was out. It took Tupaea near on a fricking year to get fit enough to play again and his leg will never be the same. The other crap thing is that he was at ABs level and now he has to claw his way back there when he could have had several games under his belt.
5 Go to commentsThe Black Ferns 7’s have been without Captain Sarah Hirini now since Dec 23 in Dubai where she suffered a bad ACL injury - hopefully she is on the road to recovery for Madrid and Paris. Now also have Tyler King and Shiray kaka on the Injured List but the Team still found a way to win in Singapore and claim the overall Title.
1 Go to commentsUtter grub, hope he gets his leg broken. Shocking he is still playing after intentionally breaking quinn tupaeas knee
5 Go to commentsGreat to see NZ 7s teams finally coming into form and playing at the level that is expected of them.
2 Go to commentsChief Cheapshot on the market again.
5 Go to commentsCrusaders went all in to buy Hotham and Kemara staight from Hamilton Boys. Then they picked up Reihana and Hohepa; all have been dropped for superstar Havili, who is a very good fullback, that’s it. Ennor and Goodhue were schoolboy stars too but went backwards at the Crusaders. Maybe they have finally decided to give another poach Levi Aumua the ball?
16 Go to commentsJoe S has some talent to pick from. The Reds loosies look the best in Super? Aus might just give Razor a headache this year. Int. experience v Cantab greenhorn:) Should be fun.
16 Go to commentsEnd to end play, “THE FANS” this game was entertainment of the best. The conditions added to the spectacle.
1 Go to commentsSorry to say, but sadly the sadas were just ordinary and havilli at 10 as an abs selection just won’t cut it. He’s better suited in the centre’s and is a victim of past charge down kicks, he’s too slow under pressure. There’s better talent further north and I don’t mean dmac however I believe razor will sort him out. A feature of his presents on the park is the fact that the guys will follow him.
16 Go to commentsMarler was brilliant throughout both in the scrum and open play. His slap made virtually no contact with Ramos who milked it for a penalty when he could have been a decent sportsman and laughed it off, it was non-violent and shouldn't have been penalised. Smith failed repeatedly to kick when necessary and put up a couple of bombs into the TLS 22 that just handed back possession at key moments to the other side.
3 Go to commentsCros was outstanding and rightly awarded France TVs player of the match award. Mallia was brilliant as usual (the y is below the 6 on a UK keyboard and he deserves better than that). Level also seems to have been scored harshly as he walked the ball into touch under pressure from a Lynagh kick from well outside his own half which should never have led to a 50-22. Agree with BullShark that Dupont, while class at times, seemed to go missing for patches in the second half with props, hookers and wings frequently filling in at 9 as he couldn't get off the deck and up to the next ruck on time. A 7 by his standards at best, his kicking was also too long, too often. Kinghorn's overall contribution was worth well more than a five.
7 Go to comments