Scots pack rule Murrayfield

Centre Andrew Henderson landed a hat-trick of tries as Scotland ran out 31-21 winners against Ireland at Murrayfield.

The hosts had lost the last seven encounters with their Celtic rivals but they withstood a second half fightback to claim a deserved win.

Frank Hadden fielded as strong a side as he could and the Scots were sharper from the outset.

Ally Hogg and Euan Murray added tries for the hosts while Isaac Boss and Andrew Trimble replied with second half scores for Ireland.

Dream start

Scotland made a dream start when Hogg touched down from behind the ruck just four minutes into the match after some great work by the forwards.

Chris Paterson added the extras but although Paddy Wallace soon narrowed the deficit with a penalty in the 10th minute, the Scots remained on the offensive.

The second try came 12 minutes later when Henderson showed great strength to go over between the posts despite the attentions of several Irish tacklers.

Still the hosts poured forward, and it seemed only a matter of time before they would add to their tally of tries.

Geordan Murphy added another penalty for the visitors on a brief foray into the opposition half, with Wallace dazed by a head knock, but after prolonged pressure the Ireland defence gave way two minutes before the interval.

And it was prop Murray who rewarded the home side for their dominance with his second try for Scotland - Paterson this time seeing his conversion come back off the left upright.

It meant the Scots went into the break 19-6 to the good and it only took them six minutes before they extended their lead with a fourth score.

More excellent work by the pack set up the chance for Henderson to grab his seventh international try in the corner, although Paterson was unable to convert once more.

But the open nature of the game gave the Irish their first chance of crossing as they made headway towards the line soon after.

The maul came up a few yards short but Boss, sporting a ridiculous dreadlocked mullet, was one hand to cross the white with Wallace adding the extras.

Boost

The score clearly boosted the visitors and eight minutes later they were over again when Andrew Trimble capitalised on a huge overlap on the left.

Wallace failed to add the extra couple and just after the hour mark he narrowed the gap to just three with another penalty.

However, the rally seemed to spark the Scots back into life, and they had the best of the final quarter as the forwards regained control.

Relentless pressure built up on the Irish line and seven minutes from time the opening came for Henderson to dive over just to the left of the uprights, completing a hat-trick and ending Irish hopes.