Ireland secured a crucial 27-17 bonus-point victory over Wales in Dublin to keep their Six Nations title hopes alive, with head coach Andy Farrell praising Wales’ performance despite their 15th consecutive championship defeat
Andy Farrell lavished praise on “tremendous” Wales following Ireland’s hard-fought 27-17 bonus-point victory in Dublin, which kept their faint Guinness Six Nations title hopes alive.
After ruthlessly dismantling England in the third round, Farrell’s men were denied another commanding performance by resilient opponents seeking their first championship triumph since 2023.
Ireland held a slender 12-10 advantage at the interval following Wales prop Rhys Carre’s excellent individual try, which came after Jacob Stockdale and Jack Crowley had crossed for the hosts.
Jack Conan and Jamie Osborne touched down after the break, sandwiching a score from Welsh flanker James Botham, as Ireland edged through to secure a Triple Crown clash with Scotland next weekend.
Ireland boss Farrell said: “I actually thought Wales did fantastically well to stay in the game.
“They played tough, they hung on in there and kept it close on the scoreboard. I thought they were tremendous tonight.
“It was a proper Test match and for us to come away with a bonus-point win, we’d certainly take that with how the game unfolded because it was a different game to the game we played last time around.
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“We weren’t playing rugby on the front foot because of how well they defended.
“I thought they were excellent in contact and at set-piece and they can be really proud of their performance.”
While Ireland remain in the hunt for championship honours, table-topping France can secure the title with a match to spare by defeating Scotland with a bonus point at Murrayfield on Saturday.
Wales, meanwhile, will attempt to avoid finishing bottom for the third consecutive Six Nations when they welcome Italy on the final weekend, having slumped to a 15th straight championship loss despite a commendable showing at the Aviva Stadium.
“I thought we came up against a rock-solid defence who kept knocking us back and we should have been just a little bit more patient at times and I thought we’d get our reward from that,” said Farrell.
“But most of the credit of how that Test match unfolded has to go to Wales because I thought they were outstanding in the way they went about the fight.
“It was a dogged Test match and that’s how these type of Test matches should be.”
Wales head coach Steve Tandy believed his side merited ending their prolonged Six Nations winless run following arguably the finest display of his reign.
The visitors opened the tournament with comprehensive defeats to England and France before enduring a heartbreaking 26-23 reverse to Scotland last time out.
“(I’ve) massive pride in the boys and the shift they put in,” said Tandy. “The physicality they left out on the field was outstanding.
“Disappointed we didn’t get something from the game for the group because I felt we deserved something by the fight they showed, a lot of great skill out there as well.
“This group, they’re unbelievable to work with, they’re always learning, they’re growing.
“I know it’s tough for people, everyone want us to win, but I think the way the group are developing and then when you think about the start we had in England and where we’ve come to, this performance tells you so much about the group.”