Quantcast

Ireland in the Five Nations of 1976

By Gary Watton
April 6 2013

1976 was a vintage year for Wales as they completed a clean sweep. It was a fairly forgettable one for the men in green, save for a third consecutive win at Twickers against an England team that were 'sadly' whitewashed. In mitigation, throughout the tournament the Oirish were missing stalwart open-side flanker, Fergus Slattery, and he certainly proved irreplaceable. The captaincy baton in this post-McBride era quickly passed from Gibson to Grace. Mike Gibson was an outstanding back, but his captaincy abilities were not quite so good. Team line-ups for our opponents can be sourced at www.espnscrum.com 

FRANCE 26 IRELAND 3; 7th February; at Parc des Princes

15 Ensor

14 Grace

13 McIlrath

12 Gibson (c)

11 McMaster

10 McGann

9 Robbie [penalty]

8 Duggan

7 Deering

6 McKinney

5 Foley

4 Keane

3 O'Callaghan

2 Cantrell

1 Orr

A second-half penalty from John Robbie was of little consolation for Ireland's debutants, Brendan Foley and Phil Orr.

IRELAND 9 WALES 34; 21st February; at Lansdowne Road

15 Ensor

14 Grace (c)

13 Lavery

12 Gibson

11 McMaster

10 McGann [3 penalties]

9 Canniffe

8 Duggan

7 Deering

6 McKinney

5 Hakin

4 Keane

3 O'Callaghan

2 Cantrell

1 Orr

Ireland only trailed 10-9 at half time, but ended up conceding four tries for the second successive match.

ENGLAND 12 IRELAND 13; 6th March; at Twickenham

15 Ensor

14 Grace (c) [TRY]

13 Brady

12 Gibson

11 Blake-Knox

10 McGann [2 penalties, drop goal]

9 Canniffe

8 Steele

7 Deering

6 McKinney

5 Foley

4 Keane

3 O'Callaghan

2 Cantrell

1 Orr

Recovering from a 9-0 interval deficit, the Irish grabbed both points after Tom Grace pounced on a kick by McGann.

IRELAND 6 SCOTLAND 15; 20th March; at Lansdowne Road

15 Moloney.L

14 Grace (c)

13 Brady

12 Gibson

11 Blake-Knox

10 McGann [2 penalties]

9 Moloney.J

8 Duggan

7 Deering

6 McKinney

5 Hakin

4 Keane

3 O'Callaghan

2 Cantrell

1 Orr

Scotland's full back Andy Irvine kicked four penalties in a contest that had been deadlocked at 6-6 at half time.

View a Printer Friendly version of this Story.

Bookmark or share this story with:

Ireland in the Five Nations of 1976
Discussion started by Ireland , 06/04/2013 14:12
Ireland
06/04/2013 14:12
What do you think? You can have your say by posting below.
If you do not already have an account Click here to Register.

Sorry, only registered users may post in this forum.
We record all IP addresses on the Sportnetwork message boards which may be required by the authorities in case of defamatory or abusive comment. We seek to monitor the Message Boards at regular intervals. We do not associate Sportnetwork with any of the comments and do not take responsibility for any statements or opinions expressed on the Message Boards. If you have any cause for concern over any material posted here please let us know as soon as possible by e-mailing abuse@sportnetwork.net