Ireland U-20s Secure Grand Slam With Nine-Try Win Over Scotland

The Ireland Under-20s completed their Grand Slam mission with a fantastic 59-5 bonus point win over Scotland in front of a capacity Musgrave Park crowd.

Match Photo Gallery: Ireland Under-20s 59 Scotland Under-20s 5

Securing Ireland’s second U-20 Grand Slam in four seasons, Richie Murphy’s side turned on the style as they completed the clean sweep, taking their try tally to 29 in the process.

They crossed five times during the first half, with Jack Boyle, Fionn Gibbons, PwC player-of-the-match Jude Postlethwaite, James Culhane and Ben Carson sharing out the tries.

Charlie Tector converted four of them and his replacement Tony Butler added three more conversions, as Matthew Devine, James McCormick, replacement Josh Hanlon and Gibbons again made it over the whitewash.

Robin McKnight’s 70th-minute effort was the lone response from Scotland, leaving captain Reuben Crothers to lift the trophy as Ireland’s class of 2022 joined the 2007 and 2019 teams as Grand Slam champions at this grade.

Applause and a moment’s silence were marked before kick-off to show solidarity with the people of Ukraine and to mark the tragic passing of Scottish parliament official David Hill, who died while playing a rugby match against a Dail & Seanad XV yesterday.

Early Irish momentum was halted by a turnover penalty won by Michael Jones, before Boyle returned the favour and the hosts’ second lineout maul resulted in Rory McGuire being tackled into touch.

However, the breakthrough came soon after, McGuire pinching a ball that had squirted out of a ruck and then, a few phases later, Boyle broke from a ruck, beating the initial defender and crashing over past two more for a well-taken try.

Tector converted it and then sparked a fine team break past halfway, an offside call against Culhane denying them initially before a Scottish knock-on handed possession back to the table toppers.

Ireland did likewise but a subsequent turnover from Crothers paved the way for an 11th-minute try, the ball shipped wide for Gibbons to neatly get past Robin McClintock and make it over in the left corner past two more defenders.

Now trailing by a dozen points, Scotland had a couple of decent launches off lineouts but Ireland defended smartly and Patrick Campbell covered well in the back-field.

Mark Morrissey got his fingertips to a Scottish lineout, the strong-carrying Postlethwaite almost linking up with Campbell as the home side got on the front foot again.

Postlethwaite was next on the scoresheet, the big Ulster Academy centre sending Gibbons down the left touchline before Devine retrieved his own kick and fed Postlethwaite who stepped around McKnight to touch down on the left.

Following Tector’s well-struck conversion, his opposite number Christian Townsend overcooked a penalty kick to touch. Ireland built again from deep with Postlethwaite threatening from his own chip kick.

Incredibly, Postlethwaite’s offload was intercepted by Townsend before he threw a pass straight back to the influential Ireland back. Scrum half Devine wriggled through, the momentum almost leading to a try for Carson.

Barely two minutes later, Ireland had the bonus point in the bag. Boyle narrowly missed out on his second score, just losing control in the act of grounding, but Culhane benefited from a wicked bounce of a Tector kick to swoop in and score.

The Ireland out-half had stripped Scottish skipper Rhys Tait of possession before that, and he quickly shook off an ankle injury to add the conversion, making it 26-0.

As the pace of the game quickened approaching the break, Tait caught Campbell with a crucial ankle tap. Ireland’s maul took them back to the Scottish 22, though, and after Morrissey went through a gap, Carson was on Tector’s shoulder to take a short pass and score.

Tector knocked over his fourth successful conversion with the final kick of the half, and an early Culhane turnover kept Ireland playing in the right areas of the pitch when the second period started.

A thunderous tackle from Max Williamson, who followed up with a powerful carry, sparked the best out of the Scottish attack. Nonetheless, a promising attack broke down when Andy Stirrat’s offload went to ground.

Ireland got the scoreboard moving again in the 52nd minute, Chay Mullins, a permanent replacement for Campbell, flying past two defenders on a kick return. He linked inside with Devine who collected his own clever dink through to dot down in the left corner.

38-0 became 45-0 by the hour mark, replacement prop Scott Wilson coming on to help Ireland win a scrum against the head before hooker McCormick plunged over on the end of a maul. Butler landed the extras.

Four successive penalties against Ireland led to Postlethwaite being sin-binned for not rolling away, and Scotland duly took advantage with out-half Townsend swinging a long pass wide for winger McKnight to hold off Mullins and score in the right corner.

Fittingly, Ireland had the final say with two closing tries, the first of them seeing replacement Hanlon hurtle onto an Ethan Coughlan pass to cross beside the posts. Butler knocked over the conversion.

A Crothers turnover penalty launched Murphy’s youngsters forward one last time, a penalty taking them into the left corner as the home fans willed them on.

Conor O’Tighearnaigh’s fine take at the rear generated quick ball which saw Lorcan McLoughlin send Gibbons storming over to complete his brace.

Ireland’s commitment to the cause was summed up by Mullins chasing back to deny Duncan Hood a consolation score, the Scots being held up as the final whistle spark jubilant celebrations for Crothers and his team-mates.

TIME LINE: 5 minutes – Ireland try: Jack Boyle – 5-0; conversion: Charlie Tector – 7-0; 11 mins – Ireland try: Fionn Gibbons – 12-0; conversion: missed by Charlie Tector – 12-0; 23 mins – Ireland try: Jude Postlethwaite – 17-0; conversion: Charlie Tector – 19-0; 32 mins – Ireland try: James Culhane – 24-0; conversion: Charlie Tector – 26-0; 39 mins – Ireland try: Ben Carson – 31-0; conversion: Charlie Tector – 33-0; Half-time – Ireland 33 Scotland 0; 52 mins – Ireland try: Matthew Devine – 38-0; conversion: missed by Charlie Tector – 38-0; 57 mins – Ireland try: James McCormick – 43-0; conversion: Tony Butler – 45-0; 68 mins – Ireland yellow card: Jude Postlethwaite; 70 mins – Scotland try: Robin McKnight – 45-5; conversion: missed by Christian Townsend; 74 mins – Ireland try: Josh Hanlon – 50-5; conversion: Tony Butler – 52-5; 78 mins – Ireland try: Fionn Gibbons – 57-5; conversion: Tony Butler – 59-5; Full-time – Ireland 59 Scotland 5

IRELAND U-20: Patrick Campbell (Young Munster RFC/Munster); Aitzol King (Clontarf FC/Leinster), Jude Postlethwaite (Banbridge RFC/Ulster), Ben Carson (Banbridge RFC/Ulster), Fionn Gibbons (UCD RFC/Leinster); Charlie Tector (Lansdowne FC/Leinster), Matthew Devine (Galway Corinthians RFC/Connacht); Jack Boyle (UCD RFC/Leinster), James McCormick (Ballymena RFC/Ulster), Rory McGuire (UCD RFC/Leinster), Conor O’Tighearnaigh (UCD RFC/Leinster), Mark Morrissey (UCD RFC/Leinster), Lorcan McLoughlin (Queen’s University Belfast RFC/Ulster), Reuben Crothers (Ballynahinch RFC/Ulster) (capt), James Culhane (UCD RFC/Leinster).

Replacements used: Chay Mullins (Bristol Bears/IQ Rugby) for Campbell (36 mins), Ethan Coughlan (Shannon RFC/Munster) for Devine, Tony Butler (Garryowen FC/Munster) for Tector, Scott Wilson (Queen’s University Belfast RFC/Ulster) for McGuire (all 55), Oisin Michel (Lansdowne FC/Leinster) for Boyle (57), Josh Hanlon (Ballynahinch RFC/Ulster) for McCormick (59), Adam McNamee (Malone RFC/Ulster) for Morrissey, Diarmuid Mangan (UCD RFC/Leinster) for Culhane (both 61).

SCOTLAND U-20: Robin McClintock (Montpellier); Ross McKnight (Stirling County/Glasgow Warriors), Duncan Munn (Boroughmuir Bears/Glasgow Warriors), Andy Stirrat (GHA), Ben Evans (Heriot’s/Edinburgh); Christian Townsend (Ayrshire Bulls/Glasgow Warriors), Murray Redpath (Newcastle University); Michael Jones (Heriot’s/Edinburgh), Patrick Harrison (Edinburgh), Gregor Scougall (Currie Chieftains), Josh Taylor (Ealing Trailfinders), Max Williamson (Stirling County/Glasgow Warriors), Matthew Deehan (Newcastle Falcons), Tim Brown (Glasgow Hawks), Rhys Tait (Boroughmuir Bears/Glasgow Warriors) (capt).

Replacements used: Keiran Clark (Southern Knights) for McClintock (28 mins), Ali Rogers (Glasgow Hawks) for Jones (44), Jonty Cope (Durham University) for Redpath (57), Innes Hill (Ealing Trailfinders) for Deehan, Corey Bowker (Fylde RFC) for Scougall (both 59), Robert Gordon (Exeter University) for Tait (67), Thomas Glendinning (Glasgow Hawks) for McKnight, Duncan Hood (Bath University) for Harrison (both 71).

Referee: Federico Vedovelli (Italy)