Nine-try Ireland U20s crush Scotland to claim Grand Slam success

Ireland 59

Scotland 5

IRELAND WERE ALWAYS going to win a Grand Slam at Musgrave Park this evening but this Richie Murphy-led crop did it in some style, adding nine tries to their previous 20 in this year’s tournament and creating memories that will last them a lifetime.

Scotland had won just three of their last 19 Six Nations games at this age grade and were winless in this year’s tournament. In less than 15 minutes, it had become clear for all to see that they would end the day three for 20, and bottom of the U20 Six Nations table.

Somehow — and not unlike the spirited Welsh who were hammered on the same ground on opening weekend — they never gave up, enjoying a couple of spells of pressure in the second half and eventually crossing through Ross McKnight.

But equally, even with the Slam secured, Murphy’s Ireland didn’t rest on their laurels, adding four second-half tries to their five in the first stanza as they powered to the country’s third Slam success at this age grade.

Jack Boyle, Jude Postlethwaite, Fionn Gibbons (twice), James Culhane, Ben Carson, Matthew Devine, James McCormick and Josh Hanlon crossed the whitewash, several of those scores wowing the sold-out crowd on Leeside. Impressive skipper Reuben Crothers raised the trophy to a cacophony of noise, one of several players who one would expect we’ll see more of in senior rugby.

This Ireland U20 generation weren’t heralded for their individual talents in advance of the tournament but ultimately, they became the first crop ever to win a Grand Slam while having to travel to France and England, scoring 29 tries and earning four try-scoring bonus points in their five games.

Ireland celebrate Ben Carson's try. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

When the action kicked off at a buzzing Muzzer, both sides exchanged early jackal turnovers — but the early stages were all about the Irishman who got over the Scottish ball for the hosts’ first poach, Jack Boyle.

The Leinster loosehead punched his side some promising go-forward moments later and after a carry by 12 Ben Carson, it was Boyle himself who added the finishing touch, crashing over from five yards to give Ireland a 5-0 lead. Out-half Charlie Tector poked over the conversion from close range and, already, things felt ominous for the Scots.

Fionn Gibbons added a second shortly afterwards after some wonderful handling across the backline, but it was skipper Reuben Crothers who turned Scotland over on their own 22′ to get the ball rolling.

Gibbons finished extremely well, feinting inside before cutting an outside line past Glasgow’s Ross McKnight down the left-hand touchline and powering over in the corner. Tector pushed a far more difficult conversion to the right but Ireland led 12-0 before the quarter-hour mark. Their second-placed French counterparts, hoping for a miracle before they took on England in Perpignan later in the night, could have probably changed channel at this point.

That’s not to demean the Scots who, while struggling to get anything going, absolutely put bodies on the line to fend off waves of Irish pressure. A brilliant goal-line intercept by Montpellier’s Robin McClintock prevented a certain try but no sooner than Scotland had escaped via a booming clearance kick did Ireland go down the other end and score their third.

After a tasty carry by last week’s hero, Aitzol King, a searing move down Scotland’s left flank saw Boyle feed outside centre Jude Postletwhaite, who in turn expertly delayed his pass to send Fionn Gibbons clear. Gibbons’ pass back inside to scrum-half Matthew Devine appear to travel at least a yard forward, but Italian referee Federico Vedovelli adjudged it to have travelled backwards out of the wing’s hands and ordered play on. With Scott McClintock unable to seize upon the loose ball, Devine regathered it and nonchanlantly fed Postletwhaite who waltzed over.

Vedovelli and TMO Matteo Liperini reviewed Gibbons’ pass and concurred that the ball had been passed backwards and travelled forward only on account of the Leinster man’s momentum, therefore awarding the score.

Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

Moments later, the influential McClintock was forced off for Scotland with an apparent hamstring injury. It was a cruel blow for the wiry fullback who is on the fringes of the Montpellier first team, and was replaced by Southern Knights’ Keiran Clark.

Boyle went close to a second try of his own on the half-hour mark but, after an Irish assault on the Scottish line, he just about lost control of the ball before touching down on the line.

Scotland needed a reprieve but from the ensuing scrum, number eight and skipper Rhys Tait was stripped of possession off first phase by Charlie Tector — who might have been a touch fortunate: Tait’s knee appeared to be on the ground. Ireland reloaded and Tector chipped over the Scottish defence and gave chase. He was less fortunate with the bounce, which evaded him in the Scottish in-goal and instead hopped gratuitously into the arms of his Leinster team-mate James Culhane, who dotted down for Ireland’s bonus-point score.

Tector, who had his right ankle strapped for the next couple of minutes, added the conversion with aplomb and Ireland took their lead to 26-0.

Scottish skipper Tait made partial amends for his earlier stripping, a miraculous ankle-tap halting home favourite Patrick Campbell after the Munster fullback skinned him in a sensational, slaloming one-on-four linebreak. Campbell was in some discomfort as he hit the turf and went off for a HIA, possibly having tasted a bit of Scottish knee from the subsequent ruck. He wouldn’t return, with Chay Mullins replacing him after the break.

Ireland rounded off the half with a fifth score: Lock Mark Morrissey’s bursting run took Ireland to within five. Devine fed Tector, whose clever pulled-back pass sent over inside centre Ben Carson for his first try of the tournament. Tector was again on the mark with the conversion.

At the break, Ireland led the understandably downtrodden-looking Scots 33-0.

Ireland out-half Charlie Tector with a big hit on Scotland's Andy Stirrat. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

Between eight and 10 minutes after the break, Scotland produced their best attack, building multiple phases and travelling some 60 yards as they posed questions of the Irish defence. Unfortunately for the visitors, after a brilliant break down the right flank by inside centre Andy Stirrat, his offload back inside to Ross McKnight went awry.

Indeed, Ireland took some 12 minutes to get going in the second stanza but when they eventually did click, it was magic.

Collecting a clearance kick, replacement Chay Mullins built upon his superb tournament with a scintillating linebreak, eventually feeding inside to scrum-half Matt Devine. Noticing that he was about to be milled by two Scottish tacklers, the Connacht man showed his ingenuity, catching Mullins’ pass and grubbering through the Scottish line in one movement, without breaking his stride. He deserved the bounce on the other side and he got it, strolling over for Ireland’s sixth, and their best try of the day.

Matthew Devine celebrates his try. Ben Brady / INPHO Ben Brady / INPHO / INPHO

Tector pulled his conversion left. It was to be the final act for both half-backs, who were replaced by Munster duo Ethan Coughlan and Tony Butler seconds later.

Ulster hooker James McCormick rolled over off the back of a maul for Ireland’s seventh on 57 minutes, Butler adding the extras with the help of the left-hand post. McCormick was replaced moments later by his fellow Ulsterman Josh Hanlon as Richie Murphy began to empty his bench.

With Ireland taking a few minutes to re-sync, Scotland grew into proceedings and built another sustained spell of pressure, showing glimpses of what they would have liked to have done in attack had Ireland allowed them earlier.

Skipper Crothers was warned about his side’s three successive infringements at the breakdown and Jude Postlethwaite had the misfortune to commit the fourth, earning himself 10 minutes in the bin.

After a fifth penalty for a no-arms tackle inside his five-metre line by Crothers, Scotland went again but were once more fended off. All but out of options, out-half Christian Townsend — son of Scottish senior head coach Gregor — heaved a Hail Mary pass half the width of the pitch, perfectly finding wing Ross McKnight who held off Chay Mullins’ challenge to crash over in the right-hand corner.

Scotland's Ross McKnight scores. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

Scotland’s efforts were warmly applauded by the Cork crowd. The conversion was missed, but they had gotten themselves on the board after a lot of toil.

By contrast, try number eight for Ireland was something of a cakewalk. Replacement scrum-half Ethan Coughlan was instrumental, as was Crothers who gained some yardage, before replacement hooker Josh Hanlon picked the perfect line to storm over off a Coughlan pass near the Scottish 22′. Butler, again, poked over the afters to take Ireland’s lead to 52-5.

Try number nine was Gibbons’ second of the day, his third of the championship, and it was fitting that the superb Lorcan McLoughlin teed it up on a day in which his work on the ball was so regularly a catalyst for what Ireland did well.

Scotland almost replied at the death, sub hooker Duncan Hood showing his wheels after an intercept only to get hauled down by Mullins a few yards short of the line. Scotland were held up over the line after a couple more phases and, with the sound of Federico Vedovelli’s whistle, Ireland were Grand Slam champions.

Reuben Crothers and Ireland raise the trophy. Laszlo Geczo / INPHO Laszlo Geczo / INPHO / INPHO

Ireland U20s

• 15. Patrick Campbell (Young Munster/Munster)
• 14. Aitzol King (Clontarf/Leinster)
• 13. Jude Postlewhaite (Banbridge/Ulster)
• 12. Ben Carson (Banbridge/Ulster)
• 11. Fionn Gibbons (UCD/Leinster)
• 10. Charlie Tector (Lansdowne/Leinster)
• 9. Matthew Devine (Galway Corinthians/Connacht)

• 1. Jack Boyle (UCD/Leinster)
• 2. James McCormick (Ballymena/Ulster)
• 3. Rory McGuire (UCD/Leinster)
• 4. Conor O’Tighearnaigh (UCD/Leinster)
• 5. Mark Morrissey (UCD/Leinster)
• 6. Lorcan McLoughlin (Queen’s University Belfast/Ulster)
• 7. Reuben Crothers (Ballynahinch/Ulster)(Captain)
• 8. James Culhane (UCD/Leinster)

Replacements:

• 16. Josh Hanlon (Ballynahinch/Ulster)
• 17. Oisin Michel (Lansdowne/Leinster)
• 18. Scott Wilson (Queen’s University Belfast/Ulster)
• 19. Adam McNamee (Malone RFC/Ulster)
• 20. Diarmuid Mangan (UCD/Leinster)
• 21. Ethan Coughlan (Shannon/Munster)
• 22. Tony Butler (Garryowen FC/Munster)
• 23. Chay Mullins (Bristol Bears/IQ Rugby)

Scotland U20s

• 15. Robin McClintock (Montpellier)
• 14. Ross McKnight (Stirling County/Glasgow Warriors)
• 13. Duncan Munn (Boroughmuir Bears/Glasgow Warriors)
• 12. Andy Stirrat (GHA)
• 11. Ben Evans (Heriot’s/Edinburgh)
• 10. Christian Townsend (Ayrshire Bulls/Glasgow Warriors)
• 9. Murray Redpath (Newcastle University)

• 1. Michael Jones (Heriot’s/Edinburgh)
• 2. Patrick Harrison (Edinburgh)
• 3. Gregor Scougall (Currie Chieftains)
• 4. Josh Taylor (Ealing Trailfinders)
• 5. Max Williamson (Stirling County/Glasgow Warriors)
• 6. Matthew Deehan (Newcastle Falcons)
• 7. Tim Brown (Glasgow Hawks)
• 8. Rhys Tait (Boroughmuir Bears/Glasgow Warriors) (Captain)

Replacements:

• 16. Duncan Hood (Bath University)
• 17. Ali Rogers (Glasgow Hawks)
• 18. Corey Bowker (Fylde RFC)
• 19. Innes Hill (Ealing Trailfinders)
• 20. Robert Gordon (Exeter University)
• 21. Jonty Cope (Durham University)
• 22. Thomas Glendinning (Glasgow Hawks)
• 23. Keiran Clark (Southern Knights)

Referee: Federico Vedovelli (Italy)
Assistant Referees: Shota Tevadze, Saba Abulashvili (both Georgia)
Television Match Official: Matteo Liperini (Italy)