Should Ireland have won more convincingly?

Question

Ireland were tipped to win their Six Nations opener against Italy by a bigger margin than29-11. Should Declan Kidney’s side have put Italy to the sword?

Answer 1

As the reigning champions and Grand Slam winners, Ireland were largely expected to have beaten Italy by a bigger margin. However, it was a tight and scrappy contest and sometimes these matches can occur in opening matches of such tournaments. Their second half performance was a cause for concern, but they should not be written off at this point – after all, they still won.