Ireland
Hugo Keenan: Fantastic under high balls and was everywhere during a top-class display. A possible Lions bolter. 8/10
Keith Earls: Opportunistic try – his 34th on the international stage – puts him a small step closer to Brian O’Driscoll’s Ireland record of 46. Unlucky to be denied another. 7
Robbie Henshaw: Arguably Ireland’s player of the tournament. Always a bright, willing runner and another exceptional display should strengthen his Lions chances. 9
Bundee Aki: A little unlucky with red card for dangerous tackle on Billy Vunipola. Left his team in lurch but it did not prove too costly. 5
Jacob Stockdale: Slipped back in seamlessly on his first Test outing of 2021 but evidence of rustiness and could have done more to deny Youngs’ try. 6
Johnny Sexton: Led his country to their best display of the Andy Farrell era. Reliable as ever with the boot, kicking a remarkable 22 points. 8
Conor Murray: Pulled the strings and kicking game continually put Ireland in position. Late yellow card blotted copybook slightly. 7
Dave Kilcoyne: Unfortunate to have only his third Six Nations start cut short by a head injury after just 20 minutes. 5
Rob Herring: Ended a solid tournament with another substantial contribution. Long line-out throw caught out England and helped free Earls to score. 7
Tadhg Furlong: Fine job to limit Mako Vunipola. Appears to be back to his best following year-long injury issues. 8
Iain Henderson: Went about his business with little fuss. Influential showing helped Ireland cope with James Ryan’s absence. 7
Tadhg Beirne: Another who Lions boss Warren Gatland will struggle to ignore. An absolute beast in the engine room, brilliant at the breakdown. 8
CJ Stander: Quietly efficient on his farewell appearance before international retirement. Fitting way to finish. Will certainly be missed. 7
Josh Van Der Flier: A sound and satisfactory afternoon from the hard-working flanker. Ripping the ball off Billy Vunipola was a highlight. 7
Jack Conan: Statement performance to celebrate his first Test start for 15 months. Deft assist for Earls’ score before a try of his own. Seized his opportunity. 8
Replacements – Cian Healy was thrown on early due to Kilcoyne’s injury and, as expected, was a more than able deputy. Such was Ireland’s dominance, the rest of the bench were given little time to impress. 7
England
Elliot Daly: Must have cursed his luck when Max Malins was ruled out by injury and he had to switch to full-back late on. Shaky. 5
Anthony Watson: A star of a disappointing Six Nations but the Bath wing was denied any meaningful ball. 6
Ollie Lawrence: Given more opportunities to make an impact than previously but his runs failed to dent. 5
Owen Farrell: Disappeared for a head injury assessment. Unable to impose himself on Ireland in any capacity. 5
Jonny May: Late try failed to mask a disappointing afternoon for the Gloucester wing who operated in a misfiring backline. 5
George Ford: England’s pack was overpowered, giving Ford a poor platform off which to operate. 5
Ben Youngs: Darted over for a try that hinted at a comeback but came off worst against an inspired Ireland. 5
Mako Vunipola: Hooked at half-time after giving away successive scrum penalties. 4
Luke Cowan-Dickie: Another to make way at half-time as England conducted urgent repairs to their front row. 4
Kyle Sinckler: A shining light in a pack that was over-run. Carried hard and was full of fight. 7
Maro Itoje: Even the Saracens colossus came off second best as Ireland emptied the tanks. 6
Charlie Ewels: England’s line-out and breakdown started well, but Ewels was present for the forwards’ collapse. 5
Mark Wilson: Put in a big shift full of low-key interventions but could not stop the dam bursting. 5
Tom Curry: The bulldozing flanker suffered with his team-mates, unable to make any impression. 6
Billy Vunipola: An ineffectual performance by the number eight, who was eventually concussed during a high tackle and departed. 5
Replacements – Ellis Genge played with controlled fury and there were fine moments by Ben Earl. 6
