Autumn Nations Series: Ireland 41 Japan 10
This was far from perfect and not the kind of performance that will have Joe Schmidt and the Wallabies quaking in their boots, much less the all-conquering Springboks. But at least Ireland problem solved at the break, when only leading 17-10, to pull clear with four unanswered tries in the second half. The win came a cost too, with Jamie Osborne suffering a shoulder injury which will probably rule him out of the rest of the series.
Even in that patchy first half, there had been some nice shape, options and passing in attack as Ireland sought to play with plenty of width, but this was undermined by the loss of three of their seven lineouts before the break.
But when the lineout did click, it made the game look much, much easier for Ireland. Tadhg Beirne’s deft handling skills were used as Ireland employed a variety of first receivers and Jack Crowley had some nice moments and deft passes as he pulled the strings against tiring opponents. The respective benches exposed Ireland’s superior depth.
Crowley was replaced just past the 50-minute mark and there was no doubt that Sam Prendergast got the Irish att
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