By Chris Collyer
For a game that many were thinking would be a “foregone conclusion” with Ireland taking home the Triple Crown, what we all watched last Saturday underlined the undeniable aspect of uncertainty in sport.
I was lucky to be amongst the crowd for this game, the Principality evenly matched regarding shades of red and green.
The general feel amongst the Wales fans I spoke to was similar to that feeling when you fail your driving test in the first five minutes so you may as well relax and not worry about it.
Pre-Game Feeling
The Irish fans? Something of a creeping dread.
Irish supporters overall in my experience never seem to take any game for granted and are reluctant to roar victory from the rooftops before kick-off, possibly due to the favourites tag still settling in despite a very positive run of results and World Rankings sitting.
We had a week to build up to this game and in that time both teams shuffled the deck a bit, most noticeable was the return of Gareth Anscombe for Wales and Ireland’s seven changes along with first-time captaincy for Dan Sheenan.
Foregone conclusion? Sort of.
Kick-Off
The game kicked off as planned, Ireland taking the lead with excellent set pieces we’ve all come to see over the years and taking every opportunity to put as much of a gap between themselves and Wales as soon as possible. Around me, a pleasant mix of red and green cheered and groaned accordingly.
Then Wales took up the challenge.
Wales, boosted by the new manager and first home game feeling in my opinion came to life and put on an unbelievable display.
Quick play, dominant scrums and thrilling moments on the field made the sea of red around me drown out the sea of green vocally.
The loudest groan we let out was the Garry Ringrose red card. Game on.
Nothing but credit to Wales for how they capitalised on this and went on to be eight points clear not long after halftime, leaving us Irish fans tto hink we’ve gone back in time somehow.
Penalties coughed up, defenders beaten and a beauty of a try scored in the corner by Tom Rogers – arguably try of the season so far.
Second Half
I watched Ireland regroup, regather and calm down not long after. The plan had clearly changed – get ahead and defend!
The rest of the game they did just that. With nine minutes to go, I saw they had barely touched the bench which renewed hope in us now vocal again green supporters and with sheer elation we saw Ireland release Bundee Aki into the fray and gather the crucial turnover we very much needed. What a moment.
Wales have a huge amount to be proud of. I saw a resilient, determined team who if they can launch from this, will be a fierce contender again soon.
And Ireland? Great to see some experienced on-field decision-making when the plan needed to change.
Foregone conclusion? Sort of.
READ MORE: Six Nations – Battling Wales give Ireland a scare
