Key events
You sense that the team that stays in the fight longer will edge it.
Not exactly the hottest take, I’ll admit. After all, most rugby games are decided in this fashion, but this feels especially true here.
Ireland’s bench is immense, and their forwards test the opposition pack with continuity and and relentless pressure. Can the Scots hold them?
Rory Sutherland is one heavy who’ll have to be at his best today.
Ireland team news
Peter O’Mahony returns and plays his first match for Ireland since the tour of South Africa last summer.
Mack Hansen has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. He’s replaced by Munster’s Calvin Nash.
The evergreen Cian Healy will become Ireland’s most-capped player when he comes off the bench, passing Brian O’Driscoll’s tally. Dan Sheehan, who was the difference maker last week, starts again on the bench in a ploy that has proved so successful for the Springboks, who keep their best hooker, Malcolm Marx, in reserve to finish the game out. Jack Crowley and Jack Conan should also have a say by the end.
Ireland: 15 – Hugo Keenan; 14 – Calvin Nash, 13 – Robbie Henshaw, 12 – Bundee Aki, 11 – James Lowe; 10 – Sam Prendergast, 9 – Jamison Gibson-Park; 1 – Andrew Porter, 2- Ronan Kelleher, 3 – Finlay Bealham, 4 – James Ryan, 5 – Tadhg Beirne, 6 – Peter O’Mahony, 7 – Josh van der Flier, 8 – Caelan Doris (c).
Replacements: Dan Sheehan, Cian Healy, Thomas Clarkson, Ryan Baird, Jack Conan, Conor Murray, Jack Crowley, Garry Ringrose.
Scotland team news
Apart from the very cringey co-captain nonsense, and the absence of arguably the best 12 in the game right now, that’s a pretty handy side.
I’m such a fan of Blair Kinghorn and he’d be my Lions fullback if the first Test against the Wallabies was next week. Huw Jones is in the form of his life, the half-backs are settled and the wingers are scoring tries for fun. The only fresh face in the backline belongs to Tom Jordan, who starts for the first time in the Six Nations.
It’s the pack that needs to front up. Rory Darge (one of the co-captains) is in fine fettle while Rory Sutherland comes in at loose-head having last started for Scotland in this competition since 2022. Jack Dempsey returns to the back of the back and will be tasked with providing go-forward ball.
Scotland: 15 – Blair Kinghorn; 14 – Darcy Graham, 13 – Huw Jones, 12 – Tom Jordan, 11 – Duhan van der Merwe; 10 – Finn Russell (cc), 9 – Ben White; 1 – Rory Sutherland, 2- Dave Cherry, 3 – Zander Fagerson, 4 – Jonny Gray, 5- Grant Gilchrist, 6 – Matt Fagerson, 7 – Rory Darge (cc), 8 – Jack Dempsey.
Replacements: Ewan Ashman, Pierre Schoeman, Will Hurd, Sam Skinner, Gregor Brown, Jamie Ritchie, Jamie Dobie, Stafford McDowall.
Preamble
Daniel Gallan
The last time Scotland beat Ireland, Donald Trump was championing a nationalist agenda from the White House, a generational quarterback was about to lead his team to Super Bowl glory and Timothée Chalamet was doing that big-eyed, softboy thing he does, which ist both incredibly endearing but also a little annoying.
Not much has changed since that heady day in Edinburgh when two late penalties from Greig Laidlaw saw Scotland pull off a stunning 27-22 win. And that’s the point. Because for all their huff and puff, for all their talk of combinations, superstars in the backline and the number of domestic titles some of their foreign-based players have collected, this contest is a rivalry in name only.
Ireland romped to a 22-7 win the last time they visited Murrayfield. They bagged a 27-24 win the time before that and a 22-13 victory the time before that. Over this period Ireland have won three Six Nations titles, two grand slams, have beaten the All Blacks in New Zealand, squared a series in South Africa and climbed to the number one ranking in the world. Scotland have promised much but failed to deliver.
But all runs have to end at some point and there’s every chance it happens today. Even without their injured captain, Sione Tuipulotu, Scotland have dazzlers who can turn games on their own. And Ireland are not quite the cohesive force they were a few years back and can be got at if their young flyhalves are forced to play off their heels.
The smart money is on another Irish win which would be their 11th in a row against Scotland, but don’t bet the farm on it.
Kick-off is at 3pm GMT.
Teams and more updates to follow.
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