International
Wallabies hold on for hard-fought victory over Scotland
The Wallabies have survived a tense finish to escape Murrayfield with a 16-15 win over Scotland.
Blair Kinghorn had a 79th-minute penalty to win the game for the hosts, pushing it to the left as the visitors started their Spring Tour on a positive note.
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Ollie Smith got Scotland off to the perfect start before a pair of Bernard Foley penalties put the Wallabies in front at the break.
This was short-lived as Kinghorn won the race to a loose ball to put Scotland in front 15-6.
Glen Young’s yellow card brought Dave Rennie’s men back into the contest as James Slipper dived over, with the boot of Foley proving the difference-maker with a 70th-minute penalty.
“There’s a bit of relief especially with Blair Kinghorn lining up and a hell of a lot of noise in the
crowd so there’s either a hell of a lot of Aussies or some drunk Scotsman in the stands. We’re happy to hang on,” Rennie said after the match.
“I’m proud of the effort because at 15-6 we’d given up a soft try straight after half-time but we fought our way back in and put our nose in front.
“We can be a lot better. We had a lot of possession inside their 22 we didn’t convert and we knew Scotland were very good post-tackle and got their hand on the ball so we know we have to better against France.
“There’s been a hell of a lot of hard work from people and it’s pleasing to get a result.”
The Wallabies were dealt a late blow as Pete Samu (back) was ruled out, handing Langi Gleeson a debut.
This failed to derail their campaign as they started strong via Tate McDermott, who relished his first start of 2022, instantly breaking through the line.
Whilst the visitors had the early chances, it was Scotland that opened the scoring as Ollie Smith sliced through some weak defence to dive over.
The Scottish continued to build pressure via the breakdown as the Wallabies struggled to build consistent pressure.
Bernard Foley reduced the margin via a penalty goal as both teams traded attacking opportunities.
The Wallabies went close before the ball spurted out whilst great work from Rob Valetini held up lock Glen Young over the line after the hosts turned down multiple penalty shot opportunities.
Foley’s second penalty of the night got Dave Rennie’s men in front at the break as they struggled to make use of their dominant share of territory.
Scotland caught the Wallabies napping after the break as a loose pass from Foley hit the deck, allowing Blair Kinghorn to grubber it through and win the race to the putdown.
Some great maul defence from the visitors kept them in the contest before Kinghorn extend the lead via the boot.
As the hosts built pressure, the Wallabies were given a golden opportunity when Glen Young’s cleanout collected Tate McDermott in the head, earning a yellow card.
This allowed captain James Slipper to strike, finishing off some great interchange between the forwards and backs.
With the game in the balance, the Wallabies earned a penalty with ten to go, with Foley continuing his perfect night to put the visitors in front.
After a strong injection, Taniela Tupou provided Scotland with one last chance to win the game after a breakdown infringement.
Up stepped Kinghorn, who pushed the penalty to the left to stun a packed Murrayfield crowd as the siren sounded.
Needing to close out the game, Nic White’s experience shone through as he delivered a bullet restart to find the touchline on the bounce, getting the Wallabies home
SCOTLAND 15
TRIES: Smith, Kinghorn
CONS: Kinghorn 1/2
PENS: Kinghorn 1/2
WALLABIES 16
TRIES: Slipper
CONS: Foley 1/1
PENS: Foley 3/3
Scotland: 15 Ollie Smith, 14 Darcy Graham, 13 Mark Bennett, 12 Sione Tuipulotu, 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 10 Blair Kinghorn, 9 Ali Price, 8 Matt Fagerson, 7 Hamish Watson, 6 Jamie Ritchie (captain), 5 Grant Gilchrist, 4 Sam Skinner, 3 Zander Fagerson, 2 Dave Cherry, 1 Pierre Schoeman.
Replacements: 16 George Turner, 17 Jamie Bhatti, 18 WP Nel, 19 Glen Young, 20 Jack Dempsey, 21 George Horne, 22 Ross Thompson, 23 Damien Hoyland.
Australia: 15 Tom Banks, 14 Andrew Kellaway, 13 Len Ikitau, 12 Hunter Paisami, 11 Tom Wright, 10 Bernard Foley, 9 Tate McDermott, 8 Rob Valetini, 7 Michael Hooper, 6 Jed Holloway, 5 Cadeyrn Neville, 4 Nick Frost, 3 Allan Alaalatoa, 2 David Porecki, 1 James Slipper (captain).
Replacements: 16 Folau Fainga’a, 17 Matt Gibbon, 18 Taniela Tupou, 19 Ned Hanigan, 20 Langi Gleeson, 21 Nic White, 22 Noah Lolesio, 23 Jock Campbell.
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Assistant referees: Karl Dickson (England), Christophe Ridley (England)
TMO: Stuart Terheege (England)
Content & Images from – Australia Rugby
Munster Rugby and the IRFU are pleased to confirm contract extensions for Conor Murray and Jack Daly with Brian Gleeson to be promoted from the Academy to the senior squad next season.
Murray and Daly have signed one-year extensions with Gleeson moving up to the senior squad on a two-year deal.
Gleeson is one of five Academy players moving up to the senior squad next year with Tony Butler, Ethan Coughlan, Mark Donnelly and Edwin Edogbo also signing two-year deals.
Conor Murray is one of the most decorated scrum-halfs in world rugby with 116 Ireland caps and three British & Irish Lions tours to his name.
A former St Munchin’s College student, the Garryowen man won his fifth 6 Nations title with Ireland last month and earned his second league title with Munster last season.
The 34-year-old has made 185 Munster appearances and scored 34 tries for the province to date and was named on World Rugby’s Team of the Decade in 2019.
25-year-old flanker Jack Daly came up through the ranks at Castleisland RFC and made his Munster debut against Zebre in 2020.
Daly joined the Academy in 2018, moved up to the senior squad in 2021 and plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen. A former Ireland U20 international, he made his Champions Cup debut against Toulouse in the quarter-final at the Aviva Stadium in 2022.
Try-scoring number 8 Brian Gleeson leads the charge for the Ireland Under-20s against France ©INPHO/Evan Treacy
20-year-old Gleeson moves up to the senior squad after just one year in the Academy that has seen him score one try in nine senior appearances.
Currently out of action with an ankle injury, he had already made three Champions Cup appearances before turning 20.
The powerful back-row forward was a Grand Slam winner with the Ireland U20s last year. plays his AIL rugby with Garryowen and came up through the ranks at Thurles RFC and Rockwell College.
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against Scotland at Aviva Stadium (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Ireland – currently sitting top of the Six Nations table heading into Super Saturday – can clinch back-to-back Championship titles with victory over Scotland in Dublin.
Farrell has named an unchanged starting XV for the Round 5 clash, as Hugo Keenan, Calvin Nash and James Lowe continue in the Ireland back three. Robbie Henshaw and Bundee Aki are once again selected in midfield, with Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park the starting half-backs.
Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong pack down in the front row, with Joe McCarthy partnering Tadhg Beirne – who is set to win his 50th Test cap for Ireland – in the engine room.
Captain Peter O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have opted for a 5-3 split on the bench, with Rónan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan providing the reinforcements up front, and Conor Murray, Harry Byrne and the fit-again Garry Ringrose the backline options.
Saturday’s match is live on Virgin Media One and ITV, with live radio coverage available on RTE Radio 1.
Ireland Team & Replacements (v Scotland, Guinness Men’s Six Nations, Saturday, March 16, 4.45pm)
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(39)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(5)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(71)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(55)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(30)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(13)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(34)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(63)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(25)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(75)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(9)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(49)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(104)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(61)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(40)
Replacements:
16. Rónan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(30)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(128)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(39)
19. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(19)
20. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(45)
21. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(115)
22. Harry Byrne (UCD/Leinster)(3)
23. Garry Ringrose (UCD/Leinster)(57).
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
Head Coach Andy Farrell has named his Ireland Match Day Squad for Saturday’s Guinness Men’s Six Nations clash against England at Twickenham (Kick-off 4.45pm).
Peter O’Mahony captains Ireland for the Round 4 visit to London, with Hugo Keenan returning to the starting XV after recovering from injury.
Keenan joins Calvin Nash and James Lowe in the Ireland back three, with Bundee Aki and Robbie Henshaw continuing their midfield partnership.
Jack Crowley and Jamison Gibson-Park are retained as the half-back pairing.
In the pack, Andrew Porter, Dan Sheehan and Tadhg Furlong are in the front row, with Joe McCarthy and Tadhg Beirne named in the engine room. Captain O’Mahony is at blindside flanker, Josh van der Flier is at openside and Caelan Doris completes the starting XV at number eight.
The Ireland Coaching Team have selected a 6-2 split on the bench, as Ronan Kelleher, Cian Healy, Finlay Bealham, Iain Henderson, Ryan Baird and Jack Conan provide the reinforcements in the pack.
Backs Conor Murray and Ciaran Frawley complete Ireland’s Match Day 23 to face England.
Saturday’s match is live on RTÉ2 and ITV.
Ireland:
15. Hugo Keenan (UCD/Leinster)(38)
14. Calvin Nash (Young Munster/Munster)(4)
13. Robbie Henshaw (Buccaneers/Leinster)(70)
12. Bundee Aki (Galwegians/Connacht)(54)
11. James Lowe (Leinster)(29)
10. Jack Crowley (Cork Constitution/Munster)(12)
9. Jamison Gibson-Park (Leinster)(33)
1. Andrew Porter (UCD/Leinster)(62)
2. Dan Sheehan (Lansdowne/Leinster)(24)
3. Tadhg Furlong (Clontarf/Leinster)(74)
4. Joe McCarthy (Dublin University/Leinster)(8)
5. Tadhg Beirne (Lansdowne/Munster)(48)
6. Peter O’Mahony (Cork Constitution/Munster)(captain)(103)
7. Josh van der Flier (UCD/Leinster)(60)
8. Caelan Doris (St Mary’s College/Leinster)(39)
Replacements:
16. Ronan Kelleher (Lansdowne/Leinster)(29)
17. Cian Healy (Clontarf/Leinster)(127)
18. Finlay Bealham (Buccaneers/Connacht)(38)
19. Iain Henderson (Academy/Ulster)(80)
20. Ryan Baird (Dublin University/Leinster)(18)
21. Jack Conan (Old Belvedere/Leinster)(44)
22. Conor Murray (Garryowen/Munster)(114)
23. Ciaran Frawley (UCD/Leinster)(3)
Images & Content from Irish Rugby & Images © Inpho Photography
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