In the Under-20 Six Nations, the English and Irish squads ended at a 32-32 deadlock, an outcome which sapped Ireland’s hopes of a Grand Slam triumph. Nevertheless, the Irish players demonstrated tremendous tenacity, bringing the game to a tie due to Luke Murphy’s spectacular injury time try, which was ably converted by Sean Naughton. The competition’s fate now rests on the last match of the season.
Both teams, reflecting on their previous draw in the World Cup over the summer, will lament their missed opportunities and minor errors, as well as the points they left on the field. Evan O’Connell, the Irish captain, acknowledged the intensity of the match, expressing disappointment at not clinching a win, but satisfaction at the fightback that resulted in the draw.
The Irish endured the initial scrum pressure but struggled at subsequent attempts. While their performance at forging towards England’s lineout was commendable, notable contributions came from outstanding individuals. The efforts of Danny Sheahan, Bryn Ward, Alan Spicer and Luke Murphy were instrumental in the pack’s fantastic performance. Jack Murphy shone in open play, Wilhelm de Klerk showed off his finesse, and Hugo McLaughlin’s offensive brilliance was unmatched.
Despite a disasterous initial blunder involving a missed tackle and knock-on, which afforded England a scrum on Ireland’s 22, Ireland strived on. Following a penalty, England found the corner and shift drove from the maul, enabling the English captain, Finn Carnduff, to secure a try. This was converted by Sean Kerr.
Ireland’s anxiety started to show following an out-of-bounds kick and a stolen lineout, but the spirits were lifted once Murphy successfully struck a penalty, decreasing England’s lead to 7-3. Astonishingly, they surrendered another kicking opportunity to Kerr within minutes, which he clinched gracefully.
Ireland’s discipline plummeted, with 5 penalties conceded within the first 13 minutes of play – three associated with not rolling away in the rucks. Consequently, they needed to stop hindering their own progress. Eventually, they did – and the results were remarkable.
The youthful Irish team, despite enduring hardship, exhibited undeniable qualities of tenacity, courage, and skill. This was clearly evidenced in the 15-minute mark when Murphy’s excellently executed cross-kick was received by his primary school friend, Finn Treacy, whose superb sidestepping stunned opposing English fly-half Josh Bellamy, ending in a splendid try beneath the posts.
The Irish prowess of utilising the quick-witted McLaughlin was made possible by the brilliant long-range passes from Murphy, Hugh Gavin and Wilhelm de Klerk. However, continual errors slightly tarnished their efforts; fortunately, the lax moments from the home team also rendered costly handling mistakes deep in Irish territory.
Gradually, the visitor side started to harmonise their plays, with the scrum showing tenacity, they effectively disrupted triple lineouts, and celebrated these minor successes with a grand triumph, a remarkable try. A havoc was caused by McLaughlin on one wing, and subsequently, Murphy’s outstanding long-pass found Treacy who assisted Ben O’Connor in making a successful try.
Flanker Bryn Ward too deserves mention for his line break that led to this development. Murphy might have missed a challenging conversion, but his line-kicking was a spectacle, demonstrating excellent ball-striking skills. When Kerr got an opportunity to decrease the English deficit due to another Irish breakdown offence, he did not fail to do so. However, the visitors were still ahead, 15-13 at the half-time whistle.
Teenager Alan Spicer, who had returned to the team, showed extraordinary performance for Ireland. The Irish forwards put in tremendous efforts, the scrum showed immense resilience, barring the first one. The Irish backline exhibited great creativity whenever they received any platform, especially along the fringes. The strategy to maintain a high tempo when in possession seemed capable of neutralising the English defence.
Irish discipline at the breakdown, as well as initial tackles, needed to improve. However, the visitors remained competitive. O’Connor’s break could have potentially resulted in Ireland’s third try, but his pass to McLaughlin was too high and behind him. Nonetheless, it mattered less since the former Gonzaga student soon scored a well-deserved try.
A penalty was kicked to the corner by Murphy, the forwards covered the challenging yards, and then the Irish fly-half passed an accurate pass to the open McLaughlin. The Irish wing quickly escaped again but was checked by the home team’s desperate defensive measures.
In a thrilling rugby encounter, England managed to execute a try by Ollie Spencer, matching the strength of Ireland who already had a commanding lead with four tries, the bonus-point try by substitute hooker, Henry Walker included. An accumulation of simple mistakes and recurring discipline problems, however, provided England with the chance to equalise through a converted try by Kane James.
The substitute forwards for England shifted the dynamics of the game, winning penalties at the scrum, clashing with the opponents at the gain-line, and forcing the visitors to give away penalties with their maul. It appeared that the game was in the bag for England following Ben Waghorn’s try three minutes to full time, splendidly converted from the touchline by Kerr. However, a stunning break from McLaughlin and an incredible finish by Murphy, facilitated by Naughton’s conversion two minutes into extra time, ensured the visitors secured a well-deserved draw. Remaining dauntless and undefeated, the match reflected the epitome of rugby tension.
The game scoring went as follows: Just after 3 minutes, Carnduff’s try along with Kerr’s conversion made it 7-0. By 8 minutes, Murphy’s penalty led to a score of 7-3. At 11 minutes, Kerr’s penalty resulted in 10-3 score. At the 15th minute, Treacy’s try coupled with Murphy’s conversation equalised the score at 10-10. O’Connor’s try by the 28th minute made it 10-15. Kerr’s penalty at the 35th minute concluded the first half with a score of 13-15. The thrill continued in the next half with the score at 47 minutes to 13-20 due to McLaughlin’s try. Spencer’s try at the 55th minute made it 18-20. 63 minutes in, Walker’s try made it 18-25. By 68 minutes, Kerr’s conversion of James’ try equalised the score again at 25-25. In the final moments, Kerr’s conversion of Waghorn’s try made it 32-25, only to be equalised by Ireland with Murphy’s try and Naughton’s conversion in the final moments, finalising a rollercoaster score of 32-32.
The following is a recollection of the England vs. Ireland rugby match. Representing England were B Redshaw from Newcastle Falcons, T Cousins and A McParland representing Northampton Saints, and B Waghorn, S Kerr and J Bellamy from Harlequins. In addition, A Willis and A Opoku-Fordjour hailing from Sale Sharks, J Oliver and O Spencer from Newcastle Falcons, and B Sela and S Kirk wearing Bath colours were present. The team was led by F Carnduff, hailing from Leicester Tigers. Other participants included O Sodeke and N Michelow from Saracens, H Pollock from Northampton Saints, and J Kpoku represented Racing 92. The substitutes were G Makepeace-Cubitt standing in for Willis at halftime, J Isaacs replaced Oliver at 48 minutes, Spencer filled Bellamy’s position at 48 minutes, James stood in for Pollack at 47 minutes and Kirk replaced Opoku-Fordjour at 57 minutes. Other replacements included James Halliwell for Sela, Z Carr for Sodeke and B Douglas.
The Irish team included B O’Connor from UCC, F Treacy from Galwegians, W de Klerk from UCD and H Gavin representing Galwegians as well. H McLaughlin was there from Lansdowne, J Murphy filled a spot from Clontarf and O Coffey played for Blackrock College. Making also part of the team were A Usanov from Clontarf, A Spicer from UCD, E O’Connell from UL Bohemian and D Sheahan from the Cork Constitution. J Boyd and J Hopes participated, both from QUB, B Ward from Ballynahinch and L Murphy from Shannon were enlisted. During the event, substitutions were made at various stages with the likes of S Edogbo for Spicer, P Bell in place of Boyd, H Walker as a replacement for Sheahan, B Howard in place of Usanov and lastly S Naughton in Murphy’s position. Overseeing the proceedings was Australian referee, Reuben Keane.