An incredible 1,328,000 people in Ireland tuned into TV3’s coverage of their Grand Slam success as they beat England 25-14 at Twickenham on St Patrick’s Day.
Ireland were crowned Grand Slam champions at full-time, lifting not only the NatWest 6 Nations trophy but also the Triple Crown in south west London.
The clash at Twickenham had an average audience on TV3 of 951,000 who were glued to their screens as Garry Ringrose, CJ Stander and Jacob Stockdale all scored tries.
It is the most-watched TV programme on Irish television this year with a further 100,000 viewers catching up via TV3’s on demand service.
With fans gripped to the action, they were not disappointed as Ringrose dotted down inside ten minutes following a huge up-and-under from Johnny Sexton.
A training ground move involving Tadhg Furlong and Bundee Aki then saw CJ Stander ground the ball against the post and Ireland fans were in dreamland.
Stockdale’s individual brilliance, to chip Mike Brown and dive full length to touch the ball down seconds before the half-time whistle proved crucial as the Irish led 21-5.
A spirited England fightback after the break failed to overturn the deficit giving the thousands of Ireland fans watching from home the perfect start to their St Patrick’s Day.
TV3’s Director of Programming, Bill Malone, said: “Ireland’s historic Grand Slam win over England at Twickenham on Saturday was the perfect ending to TV3’s first NatWest 6 Nations Championship.
“It truly was a national event, and with over 1.3 million viewers tuning in during the course of the game, it is the most-watched television programme this year.”
