Conor Murray claims there were a few nerves in the Ireland camp as they overcame a resilient Scotland side 28-8 in the NatWest 6 Nations.
An instinctive interception from Jacob Stockdale thwarted a resurgent Scotland as the hosts ran in four tries to seal a bonus-point victory.
Scotland wasted several crucial opportunities to keep Ireland within touching distance and Murray admits nerves started to creep in during the contest in Dublin.
He said: “There was probably a bit of nerves, we started really well and got into their 22 and didn’t convert a few changes and maybe doubts started creeping in.
“But Jacob [Stockdale] did really well, he’s been scoring a few and thankfully he popped up with two more. We built on that and got a score early on in the second half.”
Ireland are now just one win away from a historic third Grand Slam and Murray concedes the prospect of clinching a perfect title has been in the back of his mind.
He added: “I think that talk has been there, not from us but from outside for the last six or seven weeks, and it’s been in the back of our minds and you always dream of it. A lot of hard work went into getting to this point.
“We played a good Scottish side and it took us a while to break them down. They’re a very dangerous side and I think everyone is smiling after that and we can look forward to next week.”
