Eddie O’Sullivan’s men dominated the first half and fully deserved their 13-point interval lead as hapless Scotland struggled to make any impression on the opening match of their RBS 6 Nations campaign.

Scotland had their first kick at goal in the 24th minute but Ross' effort did not have enough power, allowing Ireland to break from deep in their own half.

O’Driscoll was stopped once again as the visitors surged up the field but after receiving medical attention he was back on his feet and helping set up the first try of the afternoon.

A powerful forward drive saw the ball released to O’Driscoll and the Lion looked set to scamper over only to be hauled down four metres short.

Possession was quickly recycled to winger Denis Hickie who crossed despite the close attention of two Scots, Humphreys adding the conversion to give his side a healthy 10-point lead.

The try stung Scotland into action as they staged several raids of their own, the pick of which saw Logan tear down the right flank before being flattened by the Irish cover when he should have done much better.

Ross also found himself in space moments later but by the time his support had caught up, Ireland had pulled enough players back to deal with the threat.

Scotland’s problems were compounded in the 36th minute when Humphreys landed his second penalty and then in injury-time they squandered the best chance of the first half.

Logan made inroads down his wing before the ball was switched left where the home side had a two-man overlap, but instead of threading the ball through the hands Laney launched a long-range pass which found nobody and bounced harmlessly into touch.