Johnny Sexton is having one of his best Six Nations campaigns to date in an Ireland jersey, and yet, there is still so much room for improvement.
Sexton was by no means perfect against Wales on Saturday, and as with the opening round in Paris earlier this month, if he had kicked his penalty goals, there might not have been a need for such a frantic finish in Dublin this afternoon.
If Sexton had backed himself to kick a second-half penalty rather than take that quick tap, Ireland might not have needed a Jacob Stockdale intercept try to keep the Welsh at bay.
There were a lot of maybe’s with Sexton’s play on Saturday, but there was only one definite, as apart from his poor goal kicking and an uncharacteristic decision from a penalty, he was brilliant.
Ireland came into this weekend’s match with Wales with a lot to prove.
There were questions over their ability to score tries in the Six Nations against teams that weren’t Italy. There were questions over their ability to beat Wales, who they hadn’t won against since 2014. There were questions over their ‘narrow’ style of rugby.
After a 2015 Rugby World Cup warm-up game against Wales, Gatland said of Ireland:
“I don’t think Ireland play a lot of rugby, but they’ve been incredibly successful,” said the Wales and Lions coach. “I thought they were really narrow at times and a lot of the players are quite narrow.
“When they play that game effectively, when they use their one-off runners effectively and get some success from cross-kicks, that’s what they’re good at doing.”
Ireland do play narrow and so much of their play runs through their halves pairing of Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton, but there is nothing wrong with playing narrow when you’re able to put 37 points on the board, and that’s with Sexton leaving at least eight, and what could have been 11 points on the pitch.
Warren Gatland: "I don't think Ireland play a lot of rugby."@IrishRugby: pic.twitter.com/uVevZNfysG
— Virgin Media Sport (@VMSportIE) February 24, 2018
If you can defeat your critics side with 66% possession, 457 metres and five tries, you’ll take criticism concerning your style any day of the week.
Ireland play narrow because they have a forward pack with the likes of CJ Stander, James Ryan, Cian Healy, Andrew Porter and Rory Best.
It’s a pack consisting of a lot of big ball carriers, and that’s with Sean O’Brien and Tadhg Furlong both sidelined.
But Ireland also play a lot of their rugby not too far from the ruck because it’s how Sexton dictates play.
The Leinster fly-half plays incredibly flat and effectively uses a nice mix of forward runners, decoy runners and loop receivers to exploit gaps in the opposition defence.
Sexton was at his masterful best on Saturday as he varied his attack to include his forward runners, his patented wrap around, the backs outside of him and his inside runners to counteract the Welsh linespeed.
What a pass! Super try, Ireland. #IREvWAL #TV3Rugby pic.twitter.com/nQnaZBzLIs
— Virgin Media Television (@VirginMedia_TV) February 24, 2018
When Sexton did step into the line, he ripped the Welsh open with a beautiful cut out pass to send winger Jacob Stockdale over for his seventh try in as many games.
Sexton caught the ball from Murray and in one foul swoop left Leigh Halfpenny in no man’s land with a superb pass to send Stockdale over the line.
The pass makes for a great highlight but so much of Sexton’s brilliance on Saturday didn’t make the highlights or post-game shows.
The 32-year-old steered his side around Lansdowne Road expertly, and while he mixed up his attacking options to keep a traditionally strong Welsh defence honest, he was also able to keep Warren Gatland’s side in their 22 with his kicking, highlighted by an excellent touch finding grubber kick in the first-half.
Sexton’s goal kicking has been suspect over the last few weeks but his general play has been exceptional.
The Ireland fly-half boasts an 80% goal kicking record over his career in green, so any criticisms over his goal kicking should be made with that in mind.
However, goal kicking aside, he’s been brilliant for Ireland this year, and if Joe Schmidt’s side are contending for a Grand Slam heading into St. Patrick’s Day, you can guarantee that Sexton will have a major part to play.
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