Ireland 27, Wales 17: Brave Welsh display gives hope for the future

Simon Thomas

So, the long wait for a Six Nations win goes on, but what we can now say for certain is that this Welsh team is providing real hope for the future.

After the much improved performance against Scotland a fortnight ago, the concern was whether it would prove to be another flash in the pan.

The rare displays which brought some degree of encouragement last year – the Championship game versus Ireland, the summer win in Japan and the four-try autumn effort against New Zealand – were to be followed by thumping defeats amid a succession of false dawns.

Would it be the same story this time around? Would the progress stall? Would the significant step forward at home to the Scots be followed by two steps back in daunting Dublin?

Happily, the answer was to be an emphatic no. As it turned out, the performance against the Irish title hopefuls was a step up again.

Yes, it was another defeat – a 15th in a row in the Six Nations – and yes there is still a lot to work on.

But there were so many positives to take out of an immensely committed, intensely physical and hugely brave Welsh display.

When you take on Andy Farrell’s Ireland, you know what’s coming. It’s going to be wave after wave of powerful green carriers heading your way. If you fail to stand your ground against them, you are in for a hiding.

Much of what we have seen from Wales over the past couple of years didn’t bode well on that front.

All too often, they have looked a soft touch defensively, losing the collisions, losing the gain-line and conceding tries far too easily.

However, they were anything but soft touches last night at the Aviva Stadium.

Aggression

The physicality and aggression they brought in the contact area was at a level we haven’t seen from a Welsh team in ages, as they repeatedly stopped their opponents on the advantage line, matching their ferocity as they met it head on.

With the hosts enjoying 57 per cent possession, it had to be a massive defensive shift from Steve Tandy’s team if they were to stay in the contest and the stats reveal just how big that shift was.

In all, they put in 240 tackles, with outstanding flanker Alex Mann leading the way on 32 as he set a new record for a Six Nations match, surpassing the previous best of 31 held jointly by French hooker Guilhem Guirado and Wales lock Luke Charteris. It was a truly remarkable tally from the tireless blindside, who had the game of his young life.

But he wasn’t alone in putting his body on the line time and again, with Dafydd Jenkins (27), James Botham (26) and Dewi Lake (23) also posting big numbers.

They may not be winning, but one thing you can certainly say about this Welsh team now is they are playing for each other and they are playing for their coach.

After the embarrassing hammerings of the past year, you are starting to see the emergence of a competitive outfit, one that is giving everything for the shirt and for the country. And that, above all, is what people have wanted to see.

While the defence has moved up a gear, the attack is still a work in progress with a need to improve on the conversion rate from visits to the opposition 22.

There were too many instances last night of opportunities being spurned, either through a wayward pass, an errant lineout, a failure to protect the ball at the breakdown or a player being held up over the line.

But the game did provide one Welsh attacking memory which will live on forever in the minds of all who witnessed it.

So, take a bow Rhys Carre.

Whatever else his career brings, his place in Welsh rugby folklore is now assured thanks to his jaw-dropping score in the final play of the first half.

Delight

It will be played and replayed time and time again over the coming days, weeks and even years – and each time it will provoke a chuckle of delight.

In terms of the greatest ever tries from a Wales prop, it is right up there alongside Graham Price’s ‘They’ll never believe it in Pontypool’ effort in Paris in 1975 and Gethin Jenkins’ charge down during the Grand Slam clincher against Ireland in 2005.

Carre has already shown his threat from short range in this Championship, twice bulldozing over off tap penalties and coming tantalisingly close to doing it a third time midway through the first half last night.

But when his try did come, it wasn’t to be another close range affair – far from it.

He was actually some 35 metres out when he received the ball from scrum-half Tomos Williams.

What happened next was the stuff of legend.

With Eddie James outside him on the left touchline, he half dummied as though to pass, but instead produced a show and go before audaciously taking on Robert Baloucoune on the inside.

Moving the ball into his left hand, he swatted the Irish winger out of the way with his right and then put down the throttle as he crossed the 22, showing a startling turn of pace as he steamed away from fellow prop Tadhg Furlong.

There was to be no stopping him with Baloucoune’s despairing tackle from behind proving in vain.

As he bore down on the line, a beaming smile broke out across Carre’s face and it reached Cheshire cat proportions as he touched down.

He had good reason to grin as it was an extraordinary solo score and one that earned richly deserved praise from the assembled pundits.

Speaking on ITV, Dan Biggar described it as “absolutely brilliant”, while fellow Wales great Jamie Roberts dubbed it “an incredible score”.

Roberts added: “For a loose head prop to finish that from 30 metres out is unbelievable. Special player, special moment.”

When you consider the impact Carre is having on this Six Nations, not just with his try scoring and his carrying, but also his scrummaging, it seems increasingly bizarre that he found himself out in the cold for as long as he did under previous Wales coaches.

Happily, that tough time is now well and truly behind him and he is proving an integral figure in the team Tandy is building.

As for his own take on his wonder try, the 28-year-old was suitably self effacing, as befits his laid back nature.

“It’s how rugby works,” he said.

“I saw some space and just went as hard as I could and luckily no-one caught me.”

Adding his take on Wales’ recent resurgence, he said: “We are showing our people that we are coming back.

“We are showing improvement and we are showing we are in the fight until the last play of these games.

“We are working hard and we are getting there. I think we are building something nicely.”

The early signs had not looked too promising last night with Ireland claiming the opening try after just six minutes through winger Jacob Stockdale and then seeming to have added a second from flanker Jack Conan five minutes later.

But Conan’s score was ruled out for a knock-on in the build up and Wales made the most of that escape.

They opened their own account through a Dan Edwards penalty and then stayed in the contest thanks to some heroic rearguard defiance close to their own line.

Skipper Dewi Lake pulled off a crucial breakdown turnover to halt one passage of sustained Irish attacking in the 22 and blindside Mann produced a great read to deny another with an interception.

The hosts’ pressure finally told three minutes before the break when remorseless forward carrying was followed by fly-half Jack Crowley sliding through to the line.

But then came that magic moment from Carre.

Stunning

As well as being a stunning solo effort, it was also a reward for Welsh ambition.

The clock was in the red when they were awarded a free kick at a scrum, but rather than kicking the ball off the park and heading for the sheds, they looked to play, with Tomos Williams tapping and going.

That was followed by Joe Hawkins, Louis Rees-Zammit, Ben Carter and Eddie James all making good ground, with Williams directing operations as he kept probing away – and then it was over to Carre to provide the fantastic finish.

That cut the half-time deficit to 12-10 and, although Ireland struck soon after the resumption through a Conan close-range effort which survived a TMO check, Welsh heads didn’t drop.

They were enjoying more possession and, after a couple of missed chances in the 22, they finally capitalised with a try from James Botham as the game moved into the final quarter.

Again showing ambition by opting for a tap penalty move, they demonstrated good patience as they went through a succession of forward carries with replacement No 8 Olly Cracknell twice putting in the hard yards.

Then came the clinical execution as Mann sucked in three defenders with a dynamic surge and Archie Griffin rumbled up to the line, with flanker Botham wriggling over for the all important last metre.

It was now back to a two point game and thoughts were turning to the possibility of a first Six Nations win in Dublin since 2012.

But it wasn’t to be with full-back Jamie Osborne going over for Ireland’s bonus point score with the visitors suffering a double whammy as Williams was yellow carded for illegally diving on his opposite number Jamison Gibson-Park in the build-up.

With that Welsh hopes were pretty much extinguished, with Crowley sealing the result with a late penalty which denied the valiant visitors even the consolation of a losing bonus point.

Huge heart

As I say, there is still a lot for Tandy and his fellow coaches to work on in terms of converting pressure into points, while the contestable kicking game needs improving and there are lineout lapses to iron out.

But in terms of effort, endeavour and application, he couldn’t have asked for much more from his troops.

It was a display of huge heart and, above all, the physicality was at a new level.

Of course, improvement is one thing. What this team really needs now is a win and, as such, next Saturday’s Championship finale against Italy at the Principality Stadium takes on enormous significance.

A victory there would do so much for this young team.

So, as we now turn attention to that Cardiff clash with the Azzurri, it’s fitting that the final word should go to Mr Carre.

“Next week is massive, back with our home fans,” said the Saracens prop.

“Hopefully, we will fill out the stadium again like we did two weeks ago against Scotland which was epic. We really felt the crowd behind us in that game.”

Here’s hoping it proves to be a Super Saturday for Wales.