Ireland captain Johnny Sexton says his side must stop conceding soft tries but praised their resilience for snatching a late win over Scotland in Edinburgh.
Ireland appeared to be heading for a comfortable victory when leading 24-10 with 20 minutes to go but Scotland fought back to level proceedings heading into the final five minutes.
That lapse in concentration left the skipper frustrated but he was proud of the way his side immediately went on the attack and earned a penalty that he himself slotted from near the left touchline to earn a 27-24 victory.
“It’s the same old story sometimes with us,” said Sexton after the game. “We’re letting in soft tries, tries that aren’t acceptable at international level.
“It’s frustrating because I felt we dominated large parts of that game and we were 14 points up but suddenly, we were drawing with a few minutes to go.
“But it was great character to stay in the moment and bounce back. Those are the things we’ve been working on.
“The other part we’ve been working on is keeping our concentration and not giving away soft tries like we did. In fairness to the last try, it was pretty good by Scotland – they held the ball for a large number of phases and they’re a very good side.”
Ireland could have let their heads drop when Huw Jones and Hamish Watson crossed to eradicate their 14-point lead but Ali Price was then pinged for a penalty in his own 22 to give the visitors a chance of victory.
The kick was certainly no gimme, out towards the left touchline, but Sexton held his nerve to slot it just inside the left upright and take his points total for the day to 17 points.
So what was the skipper thinking as he stepped up to take the potentially winning penalty?
“Just try and stick to your process,” he explained. “It was tough enough in here with the swirling wind, so just try to pick your line and bang it at the left post.
“I was trying to keep it a little bit lower and I got a little bit lucky to be honest because it wasn’t my best strike of the day but it got there, thankfully.”
Having started the 2021 Guinness Six Nations with defeats to Wales and France, Ireland have bounced back well to defeat Italy and Scotland – meaning they head into Super Saturday second in the table.
The title is out of their reach but a game against fierce rivals England always gets the juices flowing and Sexton promises his side won’t lack for intensity.
“Every time you pull on the Irish jersey, you want to make everyone proud at home,” he added. “You want to make your teammates and family proud.
“No matter what’s on the line, even though we can’t win this Championship anymore, there is still lots at stake.
“We’re playing for our jerseys and trying to get on Lions tours – there is so much at stake. If we can finish second after the start we had in this competition, then it won’t be a bad result.”
