Ireland won the 2023 Six Nations grand slam in Dublin, which was well-deserved

Ireland defeated England 29-16 at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin this evening to win the Six Nations Grand Slam championship.

With a 29-16 victory over England at the Aviva Stadium, Ireland clinched just their fourth Six Nations grand slam, reaffirming their position as the top team in the world going into the World Cup in September.

Ireland achieved the clean sweep at home for the first time since 1948 and for the first time ever in Dublin on what will be remembered as one of the greatest days in the annals of the country’s rugby.

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The Six Nations grand slam has been added to the ever-growing list of accomplishments for Andy Farrell’s modern Ireland, who were already the best team in the world.

Score by Six Nations Game :: Ireland 29-16 England

On his final-ever Six Nations appearance, Johnny Sexton added to the joyous atmosphere by surpassing everyone else’s record for points scored in the tournament.

After France defeated Wales earlier on Super Saturday, Andy Farrell‘s team entered the game aware that they still required a losing or try-scoring bonus point to be declared champions.

However, they had their sights set on a rare Grand Slam, and many had predicted that they would cruise to a fifth straight victory against an England team that had just experienced the humiliation of a record-breaking home loss to France.

Despite losing Freddie Steward to a dubious red card on the verge of halftime, England played much better than they did in the disastrous Twickenham match and kept Ireland at bay for the majority of the contest.

Steve Borthwick may regret what might have been if the score had remained 15 to 15, as there was only one point separating the two teams until the final 20 minutes, when Ireland started to capitalize on their numerical edge with three late tries.

After 18 minutes, Sexton’s big play occurred when he missed a penalty to surpass his countryman and predecessor in the Ireland 10 jersey, Ronan O’Gara, as the top scorer in Six Nations history.

The only try of the tightly contested first half was scored by Dan Sheehan, giving Ireland a 10-6 advantage at the break. However, Steward’s red card right at the end of the half may have ultimately had the most significant effect.

The England full-back collided with Hugo Keenan while appearing to defend himself and back away from a challenge following a knock-on, and a TMO review determined that there were no mitigating circumstances, leading to a contentious red.

Despite being down a man, Borthwick’s team fought valiantly, and Owen Farrell, who was starting for his father’s squad, kicked his third penalty of the day to cut the deficit to one point.

However, in the last 20 minutes, Ireland’s 15 men started to pull away after Robbie Henshaw scored a nerve-calming try and Sheehan added his second of the game.

After the loss to France, there was a brief England riposte as Jamie George scored to dispel claims that they had given up, but a subsequent sin bin left them with just 13 players left, and Rob Herring put the finishing touches on the Irish celebration with a fourth try to clinch the bonus point late in the game.

The final score may have favored the home team, but their Grand Slam championship status does not, and later this year, the top-ranked rugby team will be among the favorites to win their first RWC Live Online.

After completing the impossible feat of capturing the Grand Slam in Dublin versus England on St. Patrick’s Day, it would likely need World Cup glory to exceed today as possibly the best in their history.

While Scotland, Ireland, and France all finished the Six Nations with winning records, England finished fourth.

source https://thedailyrugby.com/ireland-won-the-2023-six-nations-grand-slam/