Ireland Player Ratings vs England | 2026 Guinness Six Nations
Ireland Player Ratings vs England | 2026 Guinness Six Nations
Ireland rugby player ratings from their 42 - 21 Guinness Six Nations victory over England at Allianz Stadium Twickenham in round three.
Andy Farrell’s Ireland got back on track with arguably their best performance of the past months with a 42 – 21 win over England at Allianz Stadium Twickenham.
Racing into a 22 – 0 lead, Ireland rarely looked challenged by their hosts. Marshalled around the park by halfbacks Jamison Gibson-Park and Jack Crowley, Ireland were back to their assured best.
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Getting his side up and running, Crowley nailed an early penalty in the 8th minute. Ten minutes later Gibson-Park caught his hosts on the hop with a quick tap penalty try in the corner. Crowley drilled the touchline conversion to give his side a 10 – 0 lead.
Firmly in ascendancy despite having only 30% territory, Ireland struck again with two tries in the space of three minutes through wingers Robert Baloucoune and Tommy O’Brien.
England would score right on the stroke of halftime through Fraser Dingwall to have a pulse at the break.
This joy would be short lived with Henry Pollock receiving a yellow card immediately in the second half as he chase back to recover a big Caelan Doris break.
Two minutes into the second half, Ireland secured their four try bonus point when Dan Sheehan burst over the line.
Two Jack Crowley penalties in the 58th and 65th minute followed by a Jamie Osborne try in the 69th sealed the deal in what was a record victory at Twickenham.
Here is how the Ireland players fared.
1. Jeremy Loughman – 6
Conceded a few scrum penalties but ultimately it was more of a collective issue than just the loosehead side. Around the park, the Munster man was incredibly busy at the breakdown and got through a handful of solid carries with 6 tackles made too.
2. Dan Sheehan – 7.5
Similar to Loughman, the Irish hooker struggled at scrum time again. At line-out time, he was on the money and around the park he was monstrous. Crossing for a well-deserved will be a big boost to confidence following what has been a challenging season.
3. Tadhg Furlong – 6.5
Not to repeat, but the experienced tighthead had a few tetchy moments at scrum time once again. Around the park, he was noticeably more involved with 10 tackles and some massively influential work at the breakdown.
4. Joe McCarthy – 8.5
Big Joe did Big Joe things! Ireland’s enforcer settled some scores having been questioned over the past two weeks. Around the park he wreaked havoc with 14 tackles and some big time carries one of which was a 50m+ rumble which was called back by the match officials.
5. James Ryan – 8.5
Quietly one of Ireland’s best performers through the opening two rounds, Ryan has brought a hard edge to this year’s Championship. Making 12 tackles, 6 carries and rag dolling English players at the breakdown, Ryan is picking up the mantle left by Peter O’Mahony with aplomb.
6. Tadhg Beirne – 9
Cometh the hour, cometh the man! The Munster skipper was a terror to his hosts in a performance that served as a timely reminder as to why he is considered among the lite forwards in World Rugby. Making 19 tackles, winning a pair of big time turnovers and dominating at lineout time. Beirne was instrumental in getting Ireland over the line.
7. Josh van der Flier – 8.5
Another of Ireland’s stalwarts who were in desperate need of a morale boosting performance. The former World Player Of The Year delivered on all fronts with some menacing carries beating 2 defenders, making a line-break and getting through 13 tackles. If ever there was a case for iron sharpens iron, this is it. For the first time in six years, van der Flier has been challenged for his shirt and he has responded in kind.
8. Caelan Doris – 9.5
A true captain’s performance in every sense of the word. Doris made a whopping 22 tackles, won a key turnover and made 11 carries. In his dealings with the match officials, he calmly got his point across and ensured that Ireland stayed on the right side of the penalty count.
9. Jamison Gibson-Park – 10
In short, it was a perfect performance from the Ireland scrumhalf. Whether it was scoring the opening try with his quick thinking, nailing pinpoint box kicks or pulling the trigger with well-timed passes, JGP had about as good a performance in green as he ever has.
10. Jack Crowley – 8.5
In short, the debate is over. Ireland know who their best ten for the Rugby World Cup is. Pulling the strings masterfully, the Munster Outhalf had the Irish attack humming. Getting multiple touches in attacking sets, nailing most of his shots at goal and managing the game at the level Farrell would’ve hoped for. Defensively, whilst the stat line reads 5 missed tackles, in truth Crowley still stopped the attacker for long enough to allow his support to finish the job. Even still, he completed 16 tackles and it was noticeable how much stability he brought to the Irish defence as a collective.
11. James Lowe – 5
Departed with what Farrell classed as a bad injury in the 18th minute. To that point, the veteran wing was looking rock solid in shutting down the English attack.
12. Stuart McCloskey – 9.5
Locked and loaded as Ireland’s first choice having spent the best part of a decade behind Robbie Henshaw and Bundee Aki. Ulster’s McCloskey has become the heartbeat of the Irish team. Dominant on both sides of the ball, his offloading ability has added a new dimension to the Irish attacking game. He once again topping the carry charts with 15 with 5 defenders beaten and 2 offloads thrown in to go with his 16 tackles made one of which summed up Ireland when he chased down Marcus Smith.
13. Garry Ringrose – 7
Got through 54 minutes of a highly impressive shift despite clearly carrying a knock coming into the contest. Ringrose utterly tormented the English backline with his defence, cutting off the option to go wide with his 13 tackles. In attack, his impact was a tad limited with just 3 carries but on the whole, it was a very strong showing.
14. Robert Baloucoune – 9
Utterly immense in every department, the Ulster winger has firmly made the 14 shirt his own. Winning 3 turnovers, scoring a try and terrorizing the English back three in the air, Baloucoune was immense. What might go under the radar is his immense physicality with 4 of his 11 tackles being dominant hits. Combining beautifully with Tommy O’Brien on a few occasions, the wing pairing showed what out and out pace can bring to this Irish attack.
15. Jamie Osborne – 7.5
Yellow card aside which felt more of an accumulation that a once off incident, the Ireland fullback was exceptional. Dominating in the air, returning kicks with aplomb both in the carry and through the boot, Osborne was the perfect second playmaker for Jack Crowley to bounce off. His coverage of the backfield stopped dead, a handful of English attacks.
Replacements:
16. Ronan Kelleher – 6
Came on for the final 25 minutes and looked more assured at the lineout but struggled to rectify the scrum issues in the way he has previously. Around the park, he was quieter than his usual barnstorming self but was still a noticeable presence at the breakdown.
17. Tom O’Toole – 6
Quite clearly out of position at loosehead, the Ulster tighthead battled hard at scrum time. Around the pitch he got stuck in with 5 tackles and 3 carries for what was a productive 34 minute shift.
18. Finlay Bealham – 5
Caught out with regularity at scrum time, the veteran tighthead struggled to get to the pitch of the match in that department. Around the park he was industrious without being quite as impactful as he has been in the past.
19. Nick Timony – 8.5
Once again, a bundle of energy off the bench, the Ulster backrow beat 3 defenders on his 3 carries, made 9 tackles and completely nullified England’s vaunted ‘Pom Squad’.
20. Cian Prendergast – 7.5
Off the bench and straight into the lion’s den! The Connacht skipper will be feeling he has a point to prove after being one of the players dropped post Paris despite what felt to be a solid performance. Immediately making his presence felt with a lineout win on the Irish line to set the tone for what was an impactful 18 minute outing.
21. Craig Casey – 6
Did well with the 10 minutes he got at the end to get back on track after what was a tough outing in round two. There is no doubting the Munster 9’s quality and behind a dominant Irish pack he looked far more assured.
22. Ciaran Frawley – 6.5
Getting so much needed minutes in green, Frawley played his part in shutting down the English comeback when the hosts got their tail up. When he did get ball in hand, he had a nice offload and linked well as another playmaker outside Crowley.
23. Tommy O’Brien – 8.5
Replacing James Lowe in the 18th minute was exactly the opportunity O’Brien needed following his dropping post Paris. Grasping the opportunity, the electric winger joined Baloucoune in absolutely dominating his opposite number in the air. One grab in particular in the 64th minute saw his reach back mid-air to snatch the ball from an English hand having slightly over run the chase. He brought an air of electricity with him every time he chased, had ball in hand or line-up a tackle. His only blemish was a missed tackle in the build up to Ollie Lawrence’s try. Otherwise, he was exceptional and finished off a superb try down the left flank.
How To Watch Six Nations 2026
The 2026 Six Nations Championship will be broadcast on different networks all over the world.
If you live in the USA, you can watch the games on Peacock.
- UK: BBC / ITV
- USA: Peacock
- Ireland: RTÉ / Virgin Media
- Wales (Welsh-language): S4C
- France: France Télévisions
- Italy: Sky Sport / NOW (all matches); TV8 (Italy matches free-to-air)
- South Africa: SuperSport
- Australia: Stan Sport
- New Zealand: Sky Sport NZ
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