Ireland Six Nations Team

Ireland has enjoyed the least success of any of the Celtic nations in the Six Nations championship. Despite boasting a strong domestic game featuring some of the most successful clubs in European rugby, the Irish have developed a reputation as the perennial underachievers at international level. However, this has changed in recent years as Ireland have defeated a number of the top ranked teams in the world and claimed their second Grand Slam title.

Stats:

Six Nations titles (outright): 11
Six Nations titles (shared): 8
Grand Slams: 2
First won the Six Nations: 1894
Last Six Nations title: 2009
Home ground: Croke Park, Dublin
Team colours: Emerald Green
Highest IRB Ranking: 3

Strengths:

Irish rugby is known for producing strong forwards and a formidable pack. For decades the Irish played 10-man, forward dominated rugby. This was until the 1990s, when a new generation of back-line players came to the fore.

In recent years Ireland has been recognised for it’s talented centres, who have helped the Irish back-line develop genuine attacking potency. The Irish are particularly hard to beat at home, and have defeated some of the best sides in the world in Dublin in recent years.

Weaknesses:

Lack of discipline has traditionally been the biggest obstacle to Irish success on the world stage. The ill-tempered forwards are known for turning games into scrappy affairs with little benefit to the Irish team.

The men in green have often come under fire from critics for their inability to respond well to high-pressure situations, as their game has a tendency to crumble when they become overwhelmed by the occasion.

Six Nations History:

Ireland was one of the founding members of the Home Nations Championship first played in 1883. During the early years of this tournament Scotland and England dominated their opponents, and the Irish had to wait until 1894 to claim their first Championship title, doing so in fine style by taking a Triple Crown.

Ireland entered a golden era in the tournament between 1935 and 1951, when they won the Five Nations Championship five times and picked up a grand slam title and triple crown along the way. It was not until the 1980s that the Irish once again made their presence felt in the tournament, by winning the Five Nations three times between 1982 and 1985.

The Irish came close to winning the Six Nations three times during the first six years of the new millennium. The Irish finished as runners up in the tournament in 2003, 2004 and 2006, and won two Triple Crowns in the process. In 2009 the determination and hard work of the Irish team was finally rewarded with Six Nations success as the Irish celebrated the end of a 60 year long wait for a second Grand Slam by defeating Wales at the Millennium Stadium with a last minute drop goal.