SM
Watford vs. Leeds: 8 hrs 18 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews
Six Nations | Group Stage
Feb 9, 2019 at 2.15pm UK
 
Scotland
13-22
Ireland
Johnson (29')
FT
Murray (10'), Stockdale (17'), Earls (56')

Joe Schmidt plays down Sexton head injury

:Headline: Joe Schmidt plays down Sexton head injury: ID:349850: from db_amp
British and Irish Lions fly-half was replaced by Joey Carbery.

Joe Schmidt hopes Johnny Sexton will shake off a head injury in time for Ireland's Guinness Six Nations trip to Italy.

British and Irish Lions fly-half Sexton lasted just 24 minutes of Ireland's fraught 22-13 victory over Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday.

The 33-year-old failed a Head Injury Assessment (HIA) and Joey Carbery came on, stepping up to set Keith Earls free for the winning score as Ireland hit back from last weekend's 32-20 defeat to England.

Head coach Schmidt later downplayed the extent of Sexton's injury as he said: "Johnny failed an HIA, he just banged his head in the build-up to our second try, he just fell pretty heavily.

"He seems to be doing quite well now though, so we're hopeful he'll be okay for the next game (against Italy on February 24).

"He copped a stamp at one point; I don't even think it was a Scottish foot, I think it was one of our guys who tripped over him.

"He got two knocks so they were cumulative, and he has a swollen ankle, but that's just swelling and he should bounce back from that pretty quickly."

Admitting Ireland expected Scotland to single out Sexton and attempt to shut him down physically, Schmidt insisted that worked to the visitors' advantage.

Jacob Stockdale goes over for Ireland's second try (Ian Rutherford/PA)

Sexton's cute inside ball sent Jacob Stockdale haring clear for Ireland's second try, leaving Schmidt happy with another training-ground ruse come good.

Schmidt was phlegmatic on Scotland targeting Sexton, replying: "It was going to happen, and Johnny probably knew he was only going to play 20 minutes so tried to cram it all into one quarter!

"That pass release for Jacob's try was perfect, the guy maybe could have got to Jacob if not for that intent in trying to get to Johnny. So sometimes that works to our advantage.

"We felt that if we got the ball into Peter O'Mahony's hands they would think he was just going to carry round the corner.

"So for Johnny to come back and strike round that side of the ruck might be an option.

"Mostly we would strike on the other side of the ruck, so we thought it might be an opportunity. And there's no better man to get it in his hands than Jacob."

Conor Murray, Stockdale and Earls all crossed for Ireland, with Carbery shrugging off an intercept pass that led to Sam Johnson's try to set up his Munster team-mate Earls for the winner.

Schmidt admitted Ireland fell flat in their build-up to their England defeat, but was pleased and relieved to report greater buoyancy and urgency in Edinburgh.

"There was definitely a rise in temperature, definitely a rise in energy, from last week," said Schmidt.

"You've got to have a lot of energy when you make as many tackles as we did in the first half.

"Now we've got to make sure we kick on from here. We're relying on other people now, but the one thing we don't have to rely on other people for is how we approach things and how we perform."

Townsend looks on during the defeat to Ireland (Ian Rutherford/PA)

Gregor Townsend took responsibility for Scotland's defeat, admitting his side's attack slipped off in the second half.

"Just that final piece, the execution off set-piece, that fell off the jigsaw today, and that's my fault," said Townsend, who confirmed full-back Stuart Hogg suffered a shoulder injury.

"I'm the attack coach, and we weren't able to get those two or three phases either to get in behind the defence or set up our set plays."

amp_article__349850 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2019-02-09 18:58:13:
html db last update - 2021-02-17 10:24:45 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Joe Schmidt

Click here for more stories about Ireland

Share this article now:
Read more about Joe Schmidt Rugby Union
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Arsenal28204470244664
2Liverpool28197265263964
3Manchester CityMan City28196363283563
4Aston Villa29175760421856
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs28165759421753
6Manchester UnitedMan Utd28152113939047
7West Ham UnitedWest Ham2912894650-444
8Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton2811985044642
9Wolverhampton WanderersWolves28125114244-241
10Newcastle UnitedNewcastle281241259481140
11Chelsea27116104745239
12Fulham29115134344-138
13Bournemouth2898114152-1135
14Crystal Palace2878133348-1529
15Brentford2975174154-1326
16Everton2887132939-1025
17Luton TownLuton2957174260-1822
18Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest2967163551-1621
19Burnley2945202963-3417
20Sheffield UnitedSheff Utd2835202474-5014
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .