Ireland stay in 6N hunt with win over Wales

Ireland have kept their slim hopes of retaining the Six Nations title alive with a comfortable 27-12 victory over Wales at Croke Park.

Ireland, for whom captain Brian O'Driscoll won his 100th cap, capitalised on the silly first-half sin-binning of Wales fullback Lee Byrne with tries from wing Keith Earls and scrumhalf Tomas O'Leary to earn a lead they never looked like losing.

A poor kicking display from Ireland flyhalf Jonathan Sexton allowed the visitors to stay in touch but Earls' third try in two games on the hour kept the strangely subdued Welsh at bay.

Champions Ireland need top-of-the-table France to suffer an unlikely loss against either Italy or England and make up ground on points difference to stand a chance of retaining the title.

Sexton, who also struggled from the kicking tee in an otherwise strong performance against England last time out, may rue leaving so many points on the field.

The Leinster flyhalf missed his first penalty on four minutes before his more experienced opposite number Stephen Jones opened the scoring with an easier chance.

Jones put a long effort just wide and Sexton made amends for his earlier miss by levelling the scores midway through the first period.

Sexton continued to mix the good with the bad, fluffing an up-and-under before nearly putting wing Tommy Bowe through with a neat pass and making it 6-3 from the resulting penalty.

Ireland lost centre Gordon D'Arcy to injury five minutes later but more significantly Wales then lost Byrne to the sin bin for a needless infringement.

STUPID BINNING

After a similarly stupid binning cost Wales badly in their opening day loss to England, Ireland wrestled control of the game just as decisively, scoring two tries while the fullback watched from the side.

Kicking deep into the hole left at the back, Earls was the beneficiary of a quick tap penalty, going over in the opposite corner.

Sexton, 24, missed the easy conversion and then another after man-of-the-match O'Leary scurried away from the back of a scrum to power over in the corner for a 16-6 halftime lead.

After Ireland survived a series of Welsh scrums on their own line in the opening exchanges of the second half, Sexton made Jones regret his decision not to opt for goal with a close-range penalty by stretching the lead with one of his own.

Jones edged Wales back in touch with his third successful penalty but Munster wing Earls enhanced his growing reputation by striking again from the constantly lively O'Leary.

Wales, as poor in attack as defence, failed to trouble the Irish for the remaining 20 minutes and Sexton wiped out another Jones penalty with a finely taken drop goal just before the end.

- Reuters