Scotland player ratings v Ireland: Finn Russell’s ‘efforts in vain’ as visitors blow Six Nations title hopes
Scotland fly-half Finn Russell and openside flanker Rory Darge (inset).
After their 43-21 Six Nations defeat against Ireland at the Aviva Stadium, here’s how the Scotland team performed on Saturday.
15 Blair Kinghorn: The Toulouse star had some good moments on attack, especially when Scotland were chasing the game, and was solid under the high ball, but was less influential in other areas. 6
14 Darcy Graham: The Edinburgh flyer rounded off a brilliant team try early on but was caught out of position for Jamie Osborne’s try and missed a tackle when Robert Baloucoune dotted down. Despite that, Graham took the fight to Ireland on attack, although he made little impact and eventually gained 29 metres. 5
13 Huw Jones: The Toulon-bound star toiled manfully but had little influence on proceedings. Jones was kept in check by Ireland‘s defence throughout he struggled to make his mark in attack but his biggest contribution was made on defence where he made six tackles. 5
12 Sione Tuipulotu: Scotland‘s skipper was solid with ball in hand as he made some powerful carries which gave his side good momentum but knocked on a routine pass late on and Tommy O’Brien pounced before crossing for his second try. 6
11 Kyle Steyn: The Glasgow Warriors stalwart continued with his fine Six Nations form as he was good under the high ball, gained a team-high 46 metres on attack and did his bit on defence. 7
10 Finn Russell: Showed some deft touches on attack and gave his side good momentum with a well-taken try when the Scots were chasing the game and accurate goal-kicking. Russell also impressed on defence, where he made 12 tackles but his all-round efforts were in vain. 8
9 Ben White: The 27-year-old was caught in possession a few times while his option-taking and decision making was not always of a high standard. White was eventually replaced by George Horne in the 62nd minute. 5
The forwards
8 Jack Dempsey: As usual, the experienced back-row worked tirelessly in attack and defence while he also did his bit at the lineouts where he won his fair share of possession. Replaced by Magnus Bradbury after 62 minutes. 6
7 Rory Darge: The hard-working tearaway was superb on either side of the ball but despite a solid all-round display, the visitors came off second best in most facets of play. Darge’s attacking efforts were rewarded with a well-taken try while he led Scotland’s defensive onslaught as he finished with 16 tackle completions. 7
6 Matt Fagerson: Although he put in a huge defensive shift and eventually completed 12 tackles, he made little impact in other areas especially on attack where he only gained six metres. 5
Want more from Planet Rugby? Add us as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for world-class coverage you can trust.
5 Grant Gilchrist: The veteran second-row came to the fore with a tireless all-round effort as he did what was expected of him in the lineouts and emptied the tank on defence where he made a team-high 18 hits. 7
4 Max Williamson: The 23-year-old caught the with a good defensive shift, where he made 11 tackles, and was a willing ball carrier before being replaced by Alex Craig in the 62nd minute. 6
3 Zander Fagerson: He returned to the run-on side and was solid in the execution of his core duties, especially in the scrums, where he was penalised early on but came back strongly after that in that facet of play. Also did his bit on defence with nine tackles made before D’Arcy Rae replaced him after 69 minutes. 7
2 George Turner: The experienced Harlequins hooker was forced off with a head knock after 17 minutes. Turner subsequently failed his HIA which meant Ewan Ashman replaced him for the rest of the match. N/A
1 Pierre Schoeman: The burly prop stood up well in the scrums and gave his side good momentum at close quarters with some strong carries. Schoeman made his biggest impact on defence where he made 12 tackles before being replaced by Rory Sutherland in the 69th minute. 7
Replacements: After replacing Turner early in the opening half, Ashman hit the ground running as he took the fight to the Irish with some strong carries, a solid defensive shift. The rest of the replacements did what was expected of them with Horne the best of the lot as he showed some urgency on attack when the Scots were chasing the game but it had little effect in the grander scheme of things. 6
READ MORE: Steely Ireland win Triple Crown as Scotland’s Six Nations dreams evaporate in Dublin
