The Cheltenham Music Festival doesn’t start until Tuesday but has already attracted an unexpected amount of Irish love. Andy Farrell’s thoroughbreds have been dramatically denied the chance of becoming champions if the Six Nations trophy remains almost certain to come with a green ribbon. The first team this century to win consecutive Grand Slams.
Because on this day, England finally gave their supporters something truly exciting to watch. From start to finish, it was their most positive performance in years, trailing 22-20 going into the final seconds with one final offensive run remaining. With Ireland taking advantage, the ball found its way back to Marcus Smith, whose strike sealed England’s first win in five tries.
It was an exciting game, with Ollie Lawrence’s fierce early try setting an optimistic tone. Seven minutes into the second half, George Furbank completed another flowing attack to reduce the deficit to four points, setting the stage for the final half-hour of play.
England are at it again with the addition of Ireland captain Peter O’Mahony. They denied Ben Earl a shot from close range, only for Irish ponytail winger James Lowe to score his second with eight minutes from time.
Will that be enough to keep Ireland’s Grand Slam aspirations alive? They were still a good team, but they ran into an opponent that refused to budge. Smith will be the first to pay tribute to the hard work of those ahead of him, with Earle, George Martin and Ollie Chesson all outstanding, but Harlequins’ fly-half also had the guts to get the deal done.
After Scotland lost to Italy in Rome, England seemed to have another script in mind from the start. As early as the fourth minute, Firbank burst from the back and rushed forward in an attempt to cut off dangerous defender Calvin Nash who was crushed in contact with Tommy Freeman. It left some space on the left and smooth hands gave Henry Slade time and space to bring Lawrence down.
For those who have been eating mainly British cereals this winter, it will be like discovering the first promising crocus of a bright spring day. To their credit, England kept coming up. Ireland started calmly and confidently, but they found themselves being slammed back and hard pressed by opponents who were clearly determined to give them a proper shock.
With George Ford adding another penalty and Nash failing his head injury assessment, England’s defense was a few notches above any performance so far in this World Cup. Chessum was eager to join in the fun and he landed a punch on Bundee Aki to force contact, injuring his own shoulder in the process but exciting the crowd even more.
Suddenly Ireland was fighting for his life, and for a moment it looked like Lawrence was making a second attempt. However, the home side rightfully missed out on a potentially crucial score as Bath’s leading chip flew from Forbank’s fingers before bouncing back into his arms.
On the plus side, England’s intent has changed the atmosphere in the stadium. Finally, here’s the promised transition from slow-ball specialist to something more exciting. It would have been even more rewarding had Ford not missed a very kickable penalty just after the half-hour mark.
The Irish, however, are an enduring group. Their full-field ability was on full display as Chessum stormed into midfield and met his old nemesis Aki again. The squatting center reacted fastest after the collision, winning a Jackal turnover to allow Jack Crowley to kick a low-speed 45m penalty to give the visitors their first win of the thunderous game Get ahead.
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For a while, this felt like a pivotal moment. Ireland finally had a chance to get back to the form they excel in after a long storm, with a typical left-footed howitzer from Lowe leaving Forbank stranded near the touchline. Should he try to catch it or leave it? He chose the former, but his right foot was scuffed in white paint, giving Ireland the attacking advantage. Another three points were awarded for offside shortly after and England fell behind at half-time for a fourth consecutive game at this World Cup.
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Could this be a ball game? Just four minutes after the game restarted, Luo shot from the left corner to give his team an 11-point advantage. However, England were determined not to stop playing. Firbank’s try rejuvenated everyone involved and by the hour, Earl’s score put them back in front.
With Danny Care trotting off to win his 100th Test and Ireland now back to 15 players, can the fairy tale be complete? At first, it didn’t seem so. Good touch again provided space for Lowe, who brilliantly outscored Smith in the left corner, but Crawley’s conversion attempt was mishit.
This left Elliot Daley’s door ajar, but his long-range penalty shot drifted out. By now the pitch was littered with bodies from both sides, but there was still plenty of time for England to make a final push. The pending penalty was really just a formality, but Smith’s nightmarish final kick will haunt the Irish’s dreams for years to come.
