In a game that promised to be tighter than the final scoreline, Ireland eventually romped home to a four try victory against Scotland, with the game finishing 32-14 at the Aviva. In what was a terrific first half that saw the two packs battle ferociously and saw momentum swing to and fro, Ireland went in 22-14 ahead courtesy of tries from captain Rory Best, Eoin Reddan and an Andrew Trimble effort. The pick of the tries, however, undoubtedly came from Scotlands Richie Gray. The Lions second row elect showed terrific power to break the line initially and then showed deft of hand and quickness of feet to sell full-back Rob Kearney a dummy to maraud over the try line. The Scottish pack competed gamely in the first half, but Gray was a solitary shining light for Scotland for the full 80 minutes. The second half did not match the intensity of the first, but it was not helped by early changes to both teams midfield and a sickening looking injury to Lee Jones, who departed on a stretcher after about eight minutes of treatment on the pitch. The good news is that the early prognosis from the touchline was that the medical attention he received was just precautionary, yet absolutely necessary to carry out given the nature of a head injury. The moment may have invoked painful memories for Scottish fans and team doctor James Robson, who witnessed another promising winger, Thom Evans, be forced to retire from the game after a similar looking neck injury. What will be hugely encouraging for Ireland and coach Declan Kidney will be the way that they comprehensively saw the game out. After a bit more tussling for possession and territory, it was eventually the Irish who really pressed their dominance up front and an in the set piece, leading to further scores from Johnny Sextons boot and a try from replacement Fergus McFadden. A pack that was missing both Paul OConnell and Sean OBrien really stood up to their Scottish counterparts, in particular the men who replaced them: Donnacha Ryan and Peter OMahony respectively. With that said, the task is made much easier when you have a man such as Stephen Ferris packing down with you. Ferris was a colossus all day with his tackling and break-down work. What will worry Kidney is, yet again, the misfiring midfield and especially Gordon DArcy. It was another poor showing from the Leinster man who was replaced early again, causing an uncomfortable reshuffle in midfield with Ronan OGara moving to ten, pushing Sexton out to inside centre. The two men coped well today but their pairing is certainly not a long term measure and will leave Kidney thinking about the future of his midfield. Kidneys problems are dwarfed, however, by Andy Robinsons and his Scottish teams inability to tackle. Why it may not have surprised anyone to see Rory Best power over scrum-half Mike Blair after a slick set piece move for the first try, the two other tries in the first half should have been avoided. Sean Lamont should especially feel guilty about his effort on Reddan, seemingly looking to smash the scrum-half with a no arms challenge, only to see Reddan wriggle free and score a decisive try. Such Scotland errors always seem to arrive right at the moment they are appearing to get a foothold in the game. It must be hugely frustrating for Robinson, but he cannot expect to win a game of test match rugby with such fundamental mistakes. And so, onto the final round of what has been an intriguing Six Nations. Ireland travel to Twickenham to face England on Saint Patricks Day in what is sure to be a cracking match. Scotland, meanwhile, travel to Italy to avoid the dreaded wooden spoon.