There was almost too much emotion at the start of this atmospheric game in front of another record-breaking crowd. England paid the penalty for playing at 100mph when less pressure on the pedal would have led to fewer minor accidents.
Leanne Infante (50 caps) had to play second fiddle as Emily Scarratt (100) was welcomed on to the field as the conquering hero she is. Both had very eventful games.
The Irish came to play; they defended heroically over the first 40, often winning the verdict at breakdowns when the English let themselves get isolated.
But there are some features of their game that are well-nigh unstoppable, the driving maul above all. First try to Lark Davies.
In the blustery wind line-out throws were tricky. Infante picked up one offering, fed inside to Sarah Bern who was over. But the eagle-eyed TMO Lee Jeffrey spotted a forward pass.
Vickii Cornborough was deemed at fault at the first scrum, but from then on the Red Rose eight proved all but immovable.
Ireland conceded six penalties in the first quarter-hour, but they were keeping the hosts at bay. Bern claimed a try off a slowly developed drive.
On twenty minutes Ireland built their first big attack. They won a penalty in front, but Nicole Cronin had the misfortune to pull her kick to the left. A reminder of the pressure players are under these days in front of a huge crowd and a few dozen cameras.
Shortly after Cronin left the field, affected by an injury to her back. This meant restructuring the Irish back-line.
There was a touch-and-go moment when Infante found herself over the line but reacted to what she thought was unnecessary violence. Fortunately for all concerned, the referee took a lenient view. Less lenient later.
Still, England could manage no more scores by the break. The end came with a Zoe Harrison cross-kick just evading Lydia Thompson’s leap.
Half-time 10-0
Simon Middleton claims he was very polite asking his team for a better performance second time around. The approach worked.
Barely a minute gone and Packer was on the end on a big passing movement. She performed an admirable version of a Breach step and go and was over on the far left.
The game had had its feisty moments -‘feisty’ is the in-word these days – but what happened next was of a different order. Dorothy Wall tackled Jess Breach in the vertical and was shown yellow. More on that later. Breach left the field not to return; Ellie Kildunne replaced her.
With Ireland down to 14, Davies had her second offering from forward pressure. That was the bonus secured.
Two minutes more and a glorious move saw Helena Rowland – who was utterly outstanding on her first start in a No 15 jersey – fed a brilliant ball to Thompson.
Next a powerful scrum let Poppy Cleall, just on at No 8, pick and drive over.
Despite Wall’s return the English pack, now largely remodelled, proved even stronger than before. Hannah Botterman claimed her team’s seventh try from another drive.
Ireland suffered another setback as Eimear Considine had to be stretchered off, paying the penalty for the non-stop assault on the Irish line. Cleall had her second try before Kildunne reminded us of an early wonder score she produced against Wales at the Stoop. With deceptive stepping she found her way past three defenders to curve in from the left and dot down.
Now came another bad monent. The TMO called McLachlan’s attention to a tackle by Naoupu on Scarratt, again with both in the vertical. This time it was a red card, so the 38-year-old’s return to international rugby was ended all too soon.
There can be little doubting the correctness of the decision, but it brings into question why Wall didn’t see red as well. Worryingly it was Breach who left the field for good; Scarratt walked off to sympathetic cheers, but returned in the 79th minute.
Given that Cleall was another to depart, limping from a leg injury, the English management will be checking over the casualty list with some concern. Just a week to the Really Big One in Bayonne.
These unfortunate events didn’t slow the scoring-machine though. There was still time for Kildunne to post her second, one-handed again, and for Thompson to claim her 43rd for the nation.
Result: England 69 Ireland 0
Player of the Match: Marlie Packer
Attendance: 15,836
Teams:
England
15. Helena Rowland (Loughborough Lightning, 13 caps); 14 Lydia Thompson (Worcester Warriors, 51 caps), 13. Emily Scarratt (Loughborough Lightning, 99 caps),12. Holly Aitchison (Saracens, 6 caps), 11. Jess Breach (Harlequins, 20 caps), 10. Zoe Harrison (Saracens, 36 caps); 9. Leanne Infante (Bristol Bears, 49 caps); 1. Vickii Cornborough (Harlequins, 67 caps), 2. Lark Davies (Loughborough Lightning, 38 caps), 3. Sarah Bern (Bristol Bears, 43 caps), 4. Zoe Aldcroft (Gloucester-Hartpury, 28 caps), 5. Abbie Ward (Bristol Bears, 53 caps), 6. Alex Matthews (Worcester Warriors, 48 caps), 7. Marlie Packer (Saracens, 81 caps), 8. Sarah Hunter (captain, Loughborough Lightning, 133 caps)
Bench:
16. Amy Cokayne (Harlequins, 60 caps), 17. Hannah Botterman (Saracens, 26 caps), 18. Maud Muir (Wasps, 7 caps), 19. Rosie Galligan (Harlequins, 4 caps), 20. Poppy Cleall (Saracens, 53 caps), 21. Natasha Hunt (Gloucester-Hartpury, 57 caps), 22. Amber Reed (Bristol Bears, 60 caps), 23. Ellie Kildunne (Harlequins, 21 caps)
Ireland
15. Molly Scuffil-McCabe* (Railway Union/Leinster),14. Aoife Doyle (Railway Union/Munster, 8 caps), 13. Sene Naoupu (Old Belvedere/Leinster, 46 caps), 12. Enya Breen (UL Bohemian/Munster, 12 caps) 11. Eimear Considine (UL Bohemian/Munster, 25 caps), 10. Nicole Cronin (UL Bohemian/Munster, 19 caps), 9. Kathryn Dane (Old Belvedere/Ulster, 21 caps), 1. Linda Djougang (Romagnat/Leinster, 20 caps), 2. Neve Jones (Gloucester-Hartpury/Ulster, 9 caps), 3. Christy Haney (Blackrock College/Leinster, 2 caps), 4. Nichola Fryday (captain, Exeter Chiefs/Connacht, 25 caps), 5. Aoife McDermott (Railway Union/Leinster, 18 caps), 6. Dorothy Wall (Blackrock College/Munster, 13 caps), 7. Edel McMahon (Wasps/IQ Rugby, 17 caps), 8. Hannah O’Connor (Blackrock College/Leinster, 10 caps)
Bench:
16. Emma Hooban (Blackrock College/Leinster, 10 caps), 17. Chloe Pearse (UL Bohemian/Munster, 4 caps), 18. Katie O’Dwyer (Railway Union/Leinster, 8 caps), 19. Grace Moore (Railway Union/IQ Rugby, 1 cap), 20. Maeve Óg O’Leary (Blackrock College/Munster, 1 cap), 21. Aoibheann Reilly (Blackrock College/Connacht, 3 caps), 22. Michelle Claffey (Blackrock College/Leinster, 12 caps), 23. Niamh Byrne* (Railway Union/Leinster)
*uncapped
Officials:
Referee: Amber McLachlan (Rugby Australia)
ARs: Aurélie Groizeleau and Doriane Domenjo (both FFR)
TMO: Lee Jeffrey (NZR)
with thanks to rugbyreferee.net
Table:
P W L B Pts
England 4 4 0 4 20
France 4 4 0 4 20
Wales 4 2 2 2 10
Ireland 4 1 3 0 5
Italy 4 1 3 0 4
Scotland 4 0 4 2 2
Afterthoughts
We knew all along that Ireland were going to be deprived of their Sevens players before the end of the 6 Nations. Greg McWilliams did too, but he went on involving them through three rounds. Injuries to Sam Monaghan and Aoife Wafer didn’t help his strategy, but it left the team gravely lacking in test-match experience.
Since Ireland don’t have a short-term target like a World Cup to worry about, McWilliams could stress the importance of testing new talent, widening the player-pool.
The pattern of England’s play is becoming familiar; the opening stages are marred by over-playing, as if trying to please the crowd too soon. Chancy passes didn’t making their mark and individuals darted ahead before the support could arrive. Time and again they were pinged for holding on.
For much of the first half the deep passes that have proved so effective were absent.
On the other hand the counter-rucking became a prize weapon. Several times forwards spotted a weakly set breakdown in front of them, and powered through the opposition.
A 22nd win for England leaves them one short of equalling their own all-time record of 23.
