Ireland player ratings as they annihilate Argentina with huge performance in Dublin

A lot of positives but more negatives...

There were a number of top quality outings, in what was a hugely encouraging night for Andy Farrell's charges.

Andrew Porter - 8

Immense shift.

Scrum went well, his famed work rate was on show, and the maul was a real plus.

Dan Sheehan - 7.5

Looks to be back to his world-class, barnstorming best, and was on course for a captain's and Player of the Match performance.

Caused havoc in the loose for the Argies, was nearly flawless at set-piece, and pitched in with a try.

However, he was forced off with a head injury in the 35th minute.

Tadhg Furlong - 7

Really, really solid.

Not quite as good as Porter, but he's building nicely back to somewhere near his best.

Joe McCarthy - 8.5

A definite contender for the Player of the Match.

Continued his world-class form, with an imperious showing at the lineout, and was also Ireland's best carrier in the forwards.

Tadhg Beirne - 7.5

Was a key element in what was Ireland's best lineout performance in years, probably.

Had one turnover, which you might as well mark him down for before the game starts.

Ryan Baird - 7.5

At the start of the game, it looked like he may have been a bit off the pace after a really poor and costly missed tackle.

But from then on he showed his worth, as he helped make Ireland's defensive lineout a real weapon, and also had a classy assist for Hugo Keenan's hat-trick try.

Nick Timoney - 8

Big, big performance, that will ease any worries Andy Farrell might have had about depth, and have Josh van der Flier looking over his shoulder.

He made 25 metres and 11 tackles, while his highlights included a monstrous first-half hit followed by a turnover soon after, when Ireland were really looking for some aggression up front, and holding up Argentina over the line in the second half.

Sean Jansen - 7.5

A really good performance, and was given the tough and crucial task of being Ireland's heavy carrier and go-to guy.

Despite often getting double-tackled, he got over the gainline each time.

His highlight was huge first-half turnover less than five metres from the Ireland line, when the game was still close.

His one error was a mess up from a kick-off, while he also only played for 46 minutes.

Craig Casey - 8

After a string of sub-par Ireland performances, he produced his best game in green.

His speed and decision making was 10/10, while his kicking impressed, and his defence was a sight to behold at times.

Sam Prendergast - 8.5

Looked incredibly comfortable out there (one hugely ill-timed cross-field kick aside).

Kicked all his goals and showed pace that would have surprised many for his second-half finish.

Showed up a lot of detractors.

Mack Hansen - 8

As John Wick famously said, "People keep asking if I'm back, and I haven't really had an answer. But now, yeah, I'm thinkin' I'm back."

In the second-half in particular, he showed what we have been missing the last year, as he popped up everywhere with a number of classy touches.

Produced a tasty assist for Ireland's first.

Stuart McCloskey - 7

Quiet by his lofty standards, but he was often and cleverly used as a decoy runner.

Didn't put a foot wrong.

Robbie Henshaw - 7

Defended like an animal.

However, there were some missed opportunities in attack when his distribution could have been better.

Robert Baloucoune - 7.5

After a summer where those around him failed to feed him the ball he so desperately needs, Ireland used him on of their early first-phase attacks, where his pace and pass helped create Ireland's opener.

His aerial ability is still top notch as well.

Hugo Keenan - 9

Utterly baffling that this man still seems to be underrated by many, and probably still will be.

Unshakable in the core fullback duties, while it is easy to see how he is one of the world's fittest players.

Scored a deserved hat-trick, with the finish for his second particularly special.

Replacements:

Rónan Kelleher - 7

Tom O'Toole - 6.5

Sam Illo - 7

James Ryan - 6.5

Josh van der Flier - 7

Jamison Gibson-Park - 6.5

Ciarán Frawley - 7

Jamie Osborne - 7