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SCORE UPDATES AND MAJOR INCIDENTS (all times GMT)
Wales coach Warren Gatland on BBC One: "I thought they would get closer but Wales were blasted off the rucks and there was no fluidity between 9 and 10. We gifted them two tries - it wasn't a great performance and they were outpowered by France." Jonathan Davies on BBC One: "I thought they would get closer but Wales were blasted off the rucks and there was no fluidity between 9 and 10. We gifted them two tries - it wasn't a great performance and they were outpowered by France." Wales skipper Matthew Rees: "We are very disappointed. We knew it would be a tough ask and they dominated up front especially in the second half. We committed a lot of errors and gave them easy ball and they capitalised. We lost the game in the first half but we only have ourselves to blame." 2140: Over in Dublin, England have just been presented with the Six Nations trophy - they seem to have cheered up a bit. As skipper Nick Easter says, they've got a few lagers inside of them. Right, that's me I think - thanks for reading, another intriguing Six Nations I think you'll agree. Night...
FULL-TIME: Lionel Nallet is the man of the match, as he makes a mess of the line-out. Bit of naughty stuff on the whistle as La Marseillaise is sung with some gusto by the Stade de France faithful - what a difference a week makes, no cowards in that France side today - and there ends the 2011 Six Nations. France take second in the championship, behind England, while Wales finish fourth. 77 mins: No try, Clerc grounded it short, and it's a Wales line-out. Davies is taken out in the air and Jones hammers it clear. Stephen Jones pops it over the top and Wales regather. Yapp down the crowded blind-side and Medard wrestles him into touch. This game is done and dusted. 74 mins: France penalty as a Wales player is called up for not supporting his own body weight and the hosts opt for the charge and drive. Wales shove the France pack backwards but France manage to peel left. Trinh-Duc is unable to ship the ball inside under some hefty Wales hits but he manages to recycle. Clerc eventually receives the ball out right and it's a one-on-one with North - out comes an arm, but he may well have been short... 71 mins: John Yapp is whistled for hinging in the scrum and France hoof it clear. French number eight Harinordoquy off for the 21-year-old Alexandre Lapandry... 70 mins: Jonathan Thomas is clattered by Bonnaire before Byrne manages to shift it to Halfpenny, who has a snipe down the right wing. Hibbard spills it but it's a penalty to the visitors for side-entry from the French. France win it back though, that's their put-in and a chance to clear. 67 mins: Doesn't look like we'll see James Hook again, Stephen Jones is coming on. Meanwhile, Ducalcon of Castres replaces Mas in the French boiler room. Phillips is replaced by Dwayne Peel at scrum-half Wales, Hibbard replaces Matthew Rees at hooker. 66 mins: North showing some derring-do, leaving the French cover for dead and carrying fully 30 yards. He's finally hauled down but not before he's managed to offload. Alas for Wales, the ball eventually goes forward... 64 mins: Halfpenny on the charge after a quick line-out before Roberts smashes through the line. The Wales full-back offloads to Jonathan Davies, who doesn't see Roberts inside him and is hauled down short. Wales eventually give way the penalty and France clear their lines. Chance gone and there may not be many more.
59 mins: TRY France 28-9 Wales It only took a minute for France to take advantage - Parra with a cheeky little kick over the top and Clerc's over under the posts for his 24th international try. Parra kicks the conversion, France look home and hosed.
57 mins: Hook's in the bin for a dangerous tackle, lifting the man horizontal and dropping him on the ground. Not sure about that to be honest, but it's a decision that could cost Wales dear. 56 mins: Nice work around the fringes, Parra to Dusautoir. France with plenty of thrust but they opt to go for the drop-goal and Traille slices it high and wide. Trinh-Duc hunted down by Jones but he manages to get his kick away. Byrne on the barrel and he hands off one man and bursts into the French 22. Bradley Davies spills it and France clear... 52 mins: PENALTY France 21-9 Wales France centre Traille on the deck but he looks fit to continue. Parra kicks the three-pointer, big ask now for Wales. Yapp on for Jones in the front row for Wales. 51 mins: France, by the way, need a 10-point win to finish second in the table, they currently lead by nine. Poor by France, Parra with a misdirected pass, before Trinh-Duc puts through the searching kick. George North covers and Byrne hoofs clear. Palisson now, arcing round the Wales defence, and he does very well to flip it inside. Penalty to France, Bradley Davies up to mischief on the ground. 48 mins: PENALTY France 18-9 Wales Hook could do without that right now - Dusautoir with a thumping hit on the Wales fly-half. Phillips with the back-of-the-hand pass to George but France counter-rucking again and Nallet is pinged for coming in from the side. Hook with a tester from a tight tangle but that's a sweet connection and Wales remain within sight.
44 mins: TRY France 18-6 Wales From hero to villain in the blink of an eye - Hook's clearance kick is charged down by Julien Pierre and his second-row partner Nallet ends up with the ball and rumbles over for his second try of the game. Parra with the extras, Wales under the pump. 43 mins: PENALTY France 11-6 Wales Hook hits the target with his three-pointer from wide out right... 41 mins: So, to recap, Wales need to win this by 27 to win the championship. That's not gonna happen. Trinh-Duc restarts and here comes Jonathan Thomas on the clatter. Naughty little grubber from Phillips before Wales send it right and win a penalty for not rolling away - Hook will have a stab. Wales flanker Martyn Williams on BBC One: "Both sides were pretty edgy in the first 20 minutes especially, both defences are very well organised with neither side looking like cutting through the line and they both seem happy yo go through the phases. I am sure both sides' defensive coaches are quite happy with this."
HALF-TIME: Parra slices his conversion attempt and the lead remains eight. France have got their hooks into the game these last five minutes or so and Medard makes sure they will have the final attack of the half with a penalty clearance. France with the rolling maul but they're pinged for obstruction and get marched back 10 for throwing the ball away. Hook turns down the chance to go for goal and that's half-time.
38 mins: TRY France 11-3 Wales Byrne offloads to Hook who is snagged by Parra. Here come France from deep but Wales got a good chase on and Medard is forced to kick. Wales cough it up and here comes Lionel Nallet, the giant Racing Metro lock - like trying to stop a steam train and over he goes. Big moment just before half-time.
36 mins: France secure possession from the line-out and it's choo-choo time, France with the rolling maul. Wales collapse it, and that's a France penalty from 50m inside the touch-line. Tough ask for the left-footed Parra and he's sliced it wide. 34 mins: Parra with the Garryowen, still too much kicking from France. Wales scrum and they get the shove on, only for the referee to ping them for illegal binding. Trinh-Duc finds the Welsh 22 with his kick. 32 mins: Harinordoquy with a hospital pass to Pierre and that's a Wales scrum. Paul James back on his feet but John Yapp is on his feet and warming up, so could replace him in the front row. Byrne with the quick line-out - with the right ball this time - but the ball dribbles into touch after Hook is scragged. Roberts into the line and here's Bradley Davies on the rumble. Roberts to Byrne who shows great hands to get the ball to Halfpenny - Halfpenny is under the sticks but for the tap-tackle from Trinh-Duc. The faintest of touches, France put in at the scrum. 28 mins: Dangerous tackle, Palisson ducking into a challenge, and Medard kicks clear. Servat swivels out of a ruck like a spinning top and feeds Harinordoquy inside. Medard pokes through and Byrne returns with interest. Too much kicking from both sides at the moment, not the greatest of spectacles. 26 mins: PENALTY France 6-3 Wales Parra with a penalty, Wales hands in the ruck I believe, and his aim is true. 24 mins: Hook gives it some hammer into touch, French pressure over. Bradley Davies mops up at the back of the line-out, Palisson under the high ball. Medard and Clerc combine down the right wing before the ball is swung left and Palisson offloads out of the back of his hand. France kick it way, though, only for Wales to make a hash of things, ropey old pass to ground. Stalemate at the moment... 21 mins: Pierre loses the ball at his own line-out and Ryan Jones gallops clear. Aggressive counter-rucking from France and here comes Clerc, steaming down the right flank. France go left and Marty takes on Paul James and is dragged down 10m short. Wales penalty, France going over the top... 19 mins: Big hit by Roberts on Marty, Trinh-Duc sticks it down Byrne's neck and the Wales full-back makes a right nause-up of his clearance kick, slicing straight into touch from outside his 22. 18 mins: Wales with plenty of pressure but they give away the penalty and Trinh-Duc hoofs it clear. Warburton is off with a knee injury, by the way, replaced by Jonathan Thomas. Traille makes ground in midfield before Parra fumbles at the back of a ruck. France eventually cough it up and here comes Paul James on the burst. George North gets his mitts on the ball out left but he's quickly snuffed out. Traille and Marty link well and here comes Servat on the rumble... 15 mins: Hook yanks his penalty attempt left of the posts. Ryan Jones under Trinh-Duc's 22 restart before Rees is bundled backwards. Phillips too slow with his pass and he's mangled by Dusautoir. Wales retain possession and Hook sticks it deep into the French 22. 11 mins: Phillips with the snipe and here comes Adam Jones down the short side - France off-side, Hook with another three-pointer from wide out left... 10 mins: Parra with the box kick and France turn it over. Full backline ready and waiting but Trinh-Duc opts for the boot. Rees finds Alun Wyn Jones at the line-out and Phillips gives it some welly. Trinh-Duc goes long, more leather from Phillips, and there's a game of rugby threatening to break out amid the party - full-on carnival band giving it bunches, lovely to hear. 7 mins: PENALTY France 3-3 Wales Parra tosses some grass in the air to test the wind before slotting the three-pointer from right of the posts. We're all square... 6 mins: Pierre with a clean take at the line-out and France get a rumble on. Stout defence from Wales on their own line but they give up a penalty for not rolling away. Thought they might go for a scrum there, but Parra will kick for goal... 4 mins: Trinh-Duc hoists one and the ball goes loose. Hook covers well but he's ushered into touch. Lee Byrne took a nasty tumble there, tilting in the air and landing on his back. He's back on his feet... 3 mins: PENALTY France 0-3 Wales Hook from wide out right and that's a peach, straight down the middle... 2 min: Warburton on the burst before Ryan Jones picks and goes... Alun Wyn Jones is on his shoulder - penalty, although maybe there was an advantage there... 1 min: Right, we're under way - James Hook with the kick-off, low take by Parra. Wales get a boot on the ball at the ruck but Traille manages to mop things up... 1946: Adams Jones back in the pack for Craig Mitchell, who dislocated his shoulder in the win over the Irish. France have made five changes to the cowardly side beaten by Italy - Lievremont's words, not mine - David Marty and Damien Traille are in for Rougerie and Jauzion in the centres, Brive wing Alexis Palisson is preferred to Yoann Huget, Thomas Domingo takes over from Sylvain Marconnet at prop and number eight Imanol Harinordoquy replaces the hapless Sebastian Chabal. 1937: Young George North in for the injured Shane Williams today - exciting prospect from Scarlets, the 18-year-old bagged two tries on debut against South Africa. Apparently Wales defence coach Shaun Edwards hasn't travelled with the team - word is he's been disciplined after an incident following victory over Ireland. Head coach Warren Gatland keeping mum, I'm sure we'll find out more later... France: Medard, Clerc, Marty, Traille, Palisson, Trinh-Duc, Parra, Domingo, Servat, Mas, Pierre, Nallet, Dusautoir, Bonnaire, Harinordoquy. Replacements: Guirado, Ducalcon, Pape, Lapandry, Tomas, Estebanez, Huget. Wales: Byrne, Halfpenny, Roberts, J. Davies, North, Hook, Phillips, James, Rees, A. Jones, B. Davies, A. Jones, Lydiate, Warburton, R. Jones. Replacements: Hibbard, Yapp, Thomas, McCusker, Peel, S. Jones, Stoddart. Referee: Craig Joubert (South Africa) 1926: To the Stade de France, where Wales need to beat the French by 27 points to rob England of the championship. Good luck with that - France have won five of the last six meetings between the sides and are bidding for an eighth successive home win in the championship. Mind you, there are clearly problems in the French ranks - lose this and people will be calling for coach Lievremont's head. BBC Sport's Gareth Roberts in Paris: "If the Wales pack can perform at the scrum as ex-number eight Emyr Lewis did in forcing his way on to the train to Stade de France this evening, they will do well tonight." England manager Martin Johnson on BBC One: "We're desperately disappointed not to win but let's take it on the chin, they outplayed us. It was a horrible first half. Pressure is the name of the game and we had a few errors. They are a savvy side and everyone has a win and a loss in them. We got what we deserved throughout the tournament and it was no different today. We were always scrambling to stay in it, but we take it on the chin, we got beaten today. It's disappointing because we worked hard to get to where we wanted to get and we came up well short." 1905: Lots of video highlights on the BBC Sport website (for UK users only) plus interviews from Scotland's 21-8 win over Italy earlier in the day, which left Italy bottom of the table, and also Ireland's 24-8 win over England.
1900: Update from Paris - the match has been delayed until 1950 GMT because of the political situation in France where the President is due to address the nation about events in Libya. Ireland's man-of-the-match Jonathan Sexton on BBC One: "I was delighted to get the nod and it was a brilliant day for everyone involved. We desperately wanted to finish on a high. We've set a standard now and we hope to continue that to the World Cup. We said when we were losing we weren't that far away from where we wanted to be. We knew what we were doing wrong and we tried to ignore the criticism and we stuck together and got the performance we were looking for today."
Former England centre Jeremy Guscott on BBC One: Every team has to go through pain and hurt to make them better. It happened to us in 1990 but we won the Grand Slam three times after that and the same happened to Martin Johnson as a player. It doesn't always happen, but the disappointing thing for Johnson is why didn't his side perform." Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll on BBC One: "We knew it was in us but for some reason it didn't happen in our first four games. We played a smart game and they couldn't live with us. To score 24 points is impressive. This team hasn't become bad overnight, we won the Slam two years ago and we are delighted to round off with a resounding win. (On his 25th try) "Its great and I'm honoured. 78 years is a long time to hold a record and hopefully theres a bit more rugby and a couple more Slams in me yet."
Former England hooker Brian Moore on BBC One: "Ireland were better from first to last, no arguments from anyone in a white shirt. However England may still win the Championship as Wales need to beat France by 26 points in Paris." 1850: Wales can now win the Six Nations title if they win by 27 points in Paris. Can they do it? Will take one heck of an effort." 1845: England cannot have any excuses - they were second-best all over the park. Sexton excellent, Heaslip immense, old man O'Driscoll still a ruddy marvel. Quite simply England got blitzed, and Ireland were magnificent.
FULL-TIME: Eighty minutes up, Stringer kicks into touch, England's Grand Slam dreams fed into the mincer... 79 mins: Ireland still swarming, here comes O'Brien, bustling down the right flank. Off go Reddan and O'Connell and Rory Best and they're celebrating already, they know the job is done. Care with a tap and go but he's scragged by Bowe. England go right, Ashton comes barrelling back in field. Strettle hammered into the turf like a tent peg, which rather sums England's day up... 78 mins: Jonathan Sexton has been named man of the match. Foden brings it clear before England go right and Shaw takes it up. But it's another turnover and here comes Earls! Ashton with the cover tackle before Trimble makes the half-break, but is eventually snaffled... 76 mins: Wilkinson putting himself about a bit but this Ireland defence is just too good. England go left but there are only forwards there when some craft is badly needed - Croft knocks on, Johnson looks resigned up behind glass in the stands... 74 mins: O'Gara, 'The Finisher', with a heartbreaker of a kick deep into England territory. Care over his shoulder, Ireland throw with six to go. And there's one thing England fans didn't want to be hearing with six minutes to go, and that's a triumphant chorus of Fields of Athenry. 72 mins: O'Gara with a kick so cute you want to put a bonnet on it - England line-out in their own 22. D'Arcy knocks-on and England come clear. England penalty and it all kicks off - O'Gara and Ashton going at it. Call it handbags if you want, but handbags filled with rocks. The referee defuses things and Wilkinson kicks for touch. 70 mins: Care put in trouble by a tap-back at the line-out but Foden does well. Wilkinson punts clear but it's an Ireland throw on halfway. O'Gara replaces Sexton at fly-half for Ireland - the little smile says it all, Sexton knows he's been good today. The ball like a bar of soap, try clawing back a 16-point deficit in this... 68 mins: It's a case of 'Bubbles' for England fans, their dreams fading and dying before their eyes. That said, here comes a rumble from the pack... Heaslip steals it in front of his own posts and O'Driscoll skews his clearance into touch.
65 mins: England burgle a line-out before Bahanan trots clear... too lateral again and O'Driscoll shepherds him, rather forcefully, into touch... Strettle replaces Cueto on the wing for England. 64 mins: Poor decision-making by England - Foden brings the ball clear but doesn't pass it outside to Wood when perhaps he should have done. More trouble at the scrum, it's been a mess today. Down comes the rain, down goes the scrum, England going down... 61 mins: Off goes Mike Ross for Ireland, Tom Court comes into the front row. Ireland go early at the scrum, free-kick England. Shaw is upended but Croft comes away with it. Banahan with ball in hand, too rare a sight... Tom Wood goes a-thrusting, but for the most part it's too lateral by England. Easter makes some ground but this is stout Irish defence and they work the turnover... 57 mins: England showing more dash now - Cueto makes some yards but he's wrapped up by Healy. Wallace back on his feet, he's been all over the paddock today. Care knocks on - if he'd taken that he would have been away. Reddan goes blind and Bowe goes marching on. England committing numbers at the breakdown but Ireland still look to have the advantage. Nine phases, make that 10 as O'Connell goes on a rumble. England win it back but Croft can't find Care and the ball spills loose. 54 mins: That was careless from Reddan, it was his stray pass, but Wilkinson misses the extras by miles. Haven't seen Thompson move like that for years, looked like a rhino with a dart up his backside...
50 mins: TRY Ireland 24-8 England Here come the cavalry - Thompson in at hooker, Jones at prop, Wilkinson at fly-half. Another Ireland penalty, England going high, Sexton kicks for territory. Ireland make a hash of a back-move but win the ball back... O'Brien at the line-out - INTERCEPTION TRY FROM STEVE THOMPSON! 50 mins: England string some phases together and here comes Ashton! He's too quick for his supporting runners and ends up feeding D'Arcy inside. Ireland clear the decks... 48 mins: Sexton makes the extras from out wide and England are going to need a pretty big shovel to get out of this... Former England hooker Brian Moore on BBC One: "O'Driscoll over, game over. You can't really say that, but you can't see England coming back."
47 mins: TRY Ireland 22-3 England England make a mess of the line-out and here comes Healy on the barge. Ireland with numbers left! Looks like O'Callaghan's muffed the chance but there's your man O'Driscoll, mopping up and burrowing over in the corner - that's his 25th in the championship, more than anyone else... 45 mins: O'Connell can only palm the ball down to O'Brien and Ireland's sting is drawn - for now. Heaslip skips Hartley's tackle before Ireland get a scrum bang in front. England still without Youngs, although he's ready to rejoin the fray... England remove their number eight with one man down... Heaslip with the slip inside but England cover it. Ireland sweep left but that's solid defence from England, give them their due... Care is on for Youngs, England back to 15... 42 mins: England having to play catch-up here and that means taking silly risks - Banahan with the back-of-the-hand offload, it goes to ground and Bowe could have been in. Deacon with the line-out take and Foden with the box kick - not great, right down Bowe's neck. Ireland with numbers left, O'Driscoll with the runaround and Trimble with the grubber - Foden covers, Ireland line-out on the 5m... 41 mins: Would love to have been a fly on the wall in the England dressing room at the moment, although I'm not sure Henry V could turn this England performance around. The blast of war has blown in Ireland's ears, and it's they who are imitating the actions of the tiger... second half under way...
Former England centre Jeremy Guscott on BBC One: "England are aimless, rudderless and it's inexperience. The confidence is dipping slightly and Johnno has got a big job to pick these boys up."
Former England hooker Brian Moore on BBC One: "Ireland are walking off to a standing ovation and quite rightly so."
HALF-TIME: It's Foden in at scrum-half while Youngs heats the bench... Easter comes away with the ball and is happy to punt it into touch - not quite the ding-dong I'd expected, more of a dong as far as England are concerned, it's been all-Ireland... 39 mins: England are being fed into a threshing machine here - Trimble now comes haring down the left before Easter manages to hunt him down. Heaslip comes away from the scrum and feeds Wallace... he goes over but it's another forward pass, actually a knock-on from O'Connell... 37 mins: PENALTY Ireland 17-3 EnglandSexton sticks over his third penalty of the day, England look shellshocked...
35 mins: Ireland causing havoc in the England put-in, Easter had some mopping up to do there. Banahan read by O'Driscoll before Youngs puts in a box kick to no-one. Bit of ping-pong before Foden is wrapped up... David Wallace comes screaming out of the breakdown like a bat out of hell, and that pretty much sums up how this Irish side have been rolling. He's snaffled, but it just got worse for England - Youngs has been binned for throwing the ball away... 33 mins: Youngs with the up and under before Flood goes long, but to no effect. Youngs is wrapped up around the fringes before Shaw is hit by Trimble, England had an overlap there. England scrum, no-one seems to know why... 31 mins: PENALTY Ireland 14-3 England ... England are on the board, Flood straight through the middle... 30 mins: Sexton misses the extras. Earls under the restart and Ireland clear the decks. Banahan bounces off Trimble but there's not much incision in the England back-line. Ireland up fast in defence but they give away a penalty, players off-side at the maul. Flood with a settler from bang in front...
28 mins: TRY Ireland 14-0 England Shaw on for Palmer in the second row, not sure why... that's a shocker from Flood, hooking his penalty attempt left. Just another game? Don't think so fella... O'Connell and O'Callaghan double-thrust into England's 22 before England manage to hoick it clear, but back come Ireland through Heaslip and here comes Tommy Bowe! Try in the corner, England are taking one hell of a beating... 25 mins: Reddan clears Ireland's lines, his side are at full mast at the moment while England are hanging limp like a tattered old wind sock. England go left, Cueto to Deacon, not a great pass. Asthon blasts into the midfield before Corbisiero does some hard yards. Penalty for England, hands on the ground... 23 mins: PENALTY Ireland 9-0 England Reddan offloads to Trimble before D'Arcy bounces off a defender. Ireland go left and Heaslip manages to offload to Bowe... men over on the right but Earls goes when he should have given... Ireland shovel it left, however, and guess who's there to finish things off - Brian O'Driscoll, to become the leading try-scorer in Five/Six Nations history... hang on a minute, it's been called a forward pass... suspect call to be honest, but Ireland have a penalty bang in front, which Sexton slots... 20 mins: Not sure what Youngs was up to there - went right when there were only two white shirts out there and he's snagged by Wallace and pops the ball on. Another penalty against England, Youngs trying to knock the ball out of Reddan's hand. Not too clever this from England, Sexton gives it some hammer and England are back in their own backyard... 17 mins: England put some phases together but there's not much thrust - Haskell is mangled, the ball is held up and Ireland win another penalty. Haskell needed to go lower there. Rather crooked feed from Reddan, but isn't it always, before Ireland knock-on again - ropey pass, O'Brien can't snaffle it. 15 mins: PENALTY Ireland 6-0 England Unerring from Sexton, he swings over his second penalty from out left. England need to turn on the lights, they've been ambushed... 13 mins: Best wriggles through a maul before O'Brien takes up the reins... Ireland knock-on again, another promising position blown. Good shove by England but the ball comes lose and Trimble ends up with the ball. England badly need someone to put their foot on the ball, if you'll forgive me some football parlance. Ireland go left and Sexton is tackled high by Ashton. Bit of handbags off the ball at the ruck before Healy goes on the barge - England pinged for that high tackle, Sexton will go for goal from out wide... 11 mins: Tight and tense so far, England looking edgy. Palmer with the take at the line-out in halfway before Banahan comes crashing into midfield like a runaway barrel. England lose the ball again, however, and Ireland win a penalty for not rolling away, Palmer the guilty man. Sexton wraps a size 10 round the ball, Ireland line-out inside England's 22... 9 mins: England incontinent with errors so far - players ahead of the kicker at the restart, Ireland scrum. Another good shove from the Irish but there's a knock-on as it goes right, England put-in. What a surprise, collapsed scrum, Healy adjudged to be pulling it down. 6 mins: PENALTY Ireland 3-0 England No mistakes from Sexton, Ireland into an early lead courtesy of a penalty kick. 5 mins: Best finds his man at the line-out and England are pinged for off-side - up too quickly in the backs, Sexton has a shot at goal from just left of centre... 4 mins: England steal at the rear of the line-out but Ireland thrust back with Bowe. Sexton pokes through and that's a doozy, Ireland will have a chance to muss with the England line-out... Hartley goes long and Haskell takes, Ben Youngs with the clearance. Harem-scarem start... 3 mins: Hartley waves away the physio, he's rough and ready for the scrum. Good shove from Ireland, England pushed back five yards and the hosts win the penalty. Big early blow from the Irish front row, and Sexton taps and goes. Earls kicks and hares down the left flank but that's nice work from Foden at full-back. Still, Ireland throw on the 5m line... 1 min: Right, let's av it. England kick-off, Flood hoists one and Ireland ping the ball forward... England phases, Matt Banahan with an early carry. England go left and Ashton makes a half break before Hartley is held up - Ireland win the scrum... 1659: Plenty of England fans in by the sound of things, God Save the Queen rebounding round the ground. The roof comes off when it's Ireland's turn, however, and a few of their men look close to tears. England aren't going to be sticking 40 points on Ireland today, that's for sure, it's gonna be a real old ding-dong... Injured England skipper Lewis Moody: "This is exactly where we want to be, playing for a Grand Slam, and the boys are buzzing..." 1654: Quick correction - that should have read England have one win in seven since 2003, 33-10 in 2008. Players are out and about, time for some anthems. It's buzzing - I repeat, buzzing - at the Aviva. Here comes Ireland's head honcho, President Mary McAleese, we'll have a game in five minutes... 1649: Could be an interesting battle in midfield today - Bath tank Matt Banahan is in at outside centre for the injured Mike Tindall, but Brian O'Driscoll has fought and felled mightier giants before. England's young front row, meanwhile, will think they can take a few chunks out of their Irish counterparts. The scrum could be a key factor. 1644: If you've got any cash left after Cheltenham and fancy having a punt, Ireland are 13-8, England 4-7. The Irish really haven't gelled in this year's championship, but there's nothing like the opportunity to gob in England's chips to get the men in green going. Their back-row of O'Brien, Wallace and Heaslip will have been studying England's breakdown frailties against Scotland with some interest... 1638: Quick stat-attack: Ireland and England have met 123 times, with England leading by 70 wins to 45. However, England have managed only one win in their last seven matches against Ireland, in 2008. England are gunning for their 13th Grand Slam today... Ireland: Earls, Bowe, O'Driscoll, D'Arcy, Trimble, Sexton, Reddan, Healy, Best, Ross, O'Callaghan, O'Connell, O'Brien, D. Wallace, Heaslip. Replacements: Cronin, Court, Cullen, Leamy, Stringer, O'Gara, P. Wallace. England: Foden, Ashton, Banahan, Hape, Cueto, Flood, Youngs, Corbisiero, Hartley, Cole, Deacon, Palmer, Wood, Haskell, Easter. Replacements: Thompson, Doran-Jones, Shaw, Croft, Care, Wilkinson, Strettle. Referee: Bryce Lawrence (New Zealand) 1633: Hello there. Many thanks to James Standley, Benjamin Dirs in the seat for Ireland-England in Dublin. Quite a big one, this...
Man of the match Richie Gray on BBC One: "It means a lot really. It's been a really frustrating championship - we've played well in huge spells and not got the win before today. To get a couple of tries and a win is fantastic and gives us something to cheer. One of our key values is to inspire the nation so we needed to put on a good performance, and we did that. It was a fantastic team effort." Scotland coach Andy Robinson on BBC One: "We're delighted we got two tries in the second half because we had opened them up a few times in the first half. We kept our shape and Ruaridh Jackson and Richie Gray were phenomenal. Overall I'm disappointed - we came into the championship with huge hopes and thought we had the game to take teams on." 1616: Next up, Ireland host England as Martin Johnson's men chase their first Grand Slam since 2003. That match kicks off at 1500 GMT so you've got time to quickly walk the dog, put the kettle on and then settle back as captain Nick Easter and co take on Brian O'Driscoll's fired-up Irish side.
FULL-TIME: SCOTLAND 21-8: The final whistle goes to spark Scottish celebrations as they secure their first win of the championship and condemn Italy to the Wooden Spoon. It was a good performance from the Scots and an entertaining encounter to start a feast of Six Nations rugby on the BBC. 78 mins: Italy full-back Luke McLean launches a stunning counter-attack but just when it looks as though he might score a brilliant try Chris Paterson lassoes him with a superb covering tackle and McLean loses control of the ball. 75 mins: A promising Italy attack comes to an end because of crossing but Italy had a scrum advantage, which they fail to take advantage of as the otherwise superb Sergio Parisse throws a loose pass. Scotland number eight Kelly Bown is applauded off as he is replaced by Richie Vernon. 72 mins: Scotland turn the ball over at the breakdown and clear to touch. 71 mins: Italy win a ball against the head at a Scotland scrum and are awarded a penalty, which they kick deep into the Scottish 22. 69 mins: Chris Paterson knocks the penalty between the posts and the hosts are pulling away from Italy, who look as though they are losing their shape as defeat becomes increasingly inevitable. 68 mins: PENALTY: SCOTLAND 21-8 ITALY 67 mins: Mirco Bergamasco concedes a penalty as he charges illegally into a breakdown inside his own 22. 65 mins: Italy are on the attack but they lack the cutting edge to make much impression and a knock-on from scrum-half Fabio Semenzato halts their momentum. 62 mins: Scotland spring the giant figure of Nikki Walker through the midfield but desperate Italian defence leads to a turnover by Robert Barbieri and the visitors escape. 58 mins: Andrea Lo Cicero, Robert Barbieri and Luciano Orquera come on for Italy. 55 mins: It's raining Scottish tries at Murrayfield! Nikki Walker powers over to finish off a fine move in which he had earlier featured prominently. Chris Paterson strokes over the conversion and Scotland are surely on their way now. Paterson has now scored 400 points in the championship.
54 mins: TRY: SCOTLAND 18-8 ITALY 53 mins: Scotland bring on Alasdair Strokosch at blind-side flanker in place of Nathan Hines. 50 mins: Scotland are dominating possession in the second half but a promising attack comes to a halt courtesy of fine work at the breakdown by Italy winger Mirco Bergamasco. 47 mins: Scotland attack off a five metre scrum and after a sustained assault Nick De Luca squeezes over in the corner for Scotland's first try at Murrayfield since November 2009. Paterson misses the conversion.
46 mins: TRY: SCOTLAND 11-8 ITALY 43 mins: A terrible pass from Alberto Sgarbi gives Sean Lamont the chance to kick ahead and chase, but he is matched for pace by Italy hooker Leonardo Ghiraldini, who falls on the ball to save Italy. 41 mins: Back under way, with Italy countering through Luke McLean after Scotland kick deep into the visitors' half. Scotland centre Max Evans on BBC One: "It's been very frustrating and Scotland will be very disappointed. There were a few missed tackles, they've not really held the possession and they've not really got the position in the field. And they'll be disappointed not to get a try when camped on Italy's line. Not scoring tries is almost like missing short putts in golf - it gets in your in head and you keep missing them. Italy would have come here with huge confidence after their win against France and they'll be feeling positive at half-time. It's a big challenge for Scotland."
HALF-TIME: Scotland 6-8 Italy Chris Paterson fails for the first time in 10 attempts in this year's championship as he badly misses a penalty attempt right on the stroke of half-time. 39 min: Scotland launch a threatening attack but Chris Paterson cannot hold onto Sean Lamont's pass as the full-back hits the line. 35 min: Scotland butcher Italy at a scrum but the visitors are awarded the put-in once again. When the Italians finally get the ball away John Barclay wins a penalty at the breakdown. From Scotland's resulting attack Sean Lamont is penalised for crossing as Simon Danielli tries to burst through the Italy defence. 32 min: Mirco Bergamasco slots a simple penalty to put Italy back in front, but the visitors suffer a blow as try scorer Andrea Masi limps off to be replaced by Luke McLean. 31 min: PENALTY: SCOTLAND 6-8 ITALY 30 min: A sustained Italy attack is rewarded with a penalty as Simon Danielli fails to roll away from the tackle area quickly enough. 28 min: Amazingly Scotland have not scored a try at Murrayfield since November 2009. They are showing plenty of adventure but just cannot cross the whitewash. When Italy get into the Scottish half the hosts drag down a maul and the visitors earn a line-out deep in Scottish territory. 24 min: Azzurri flanker Paul Derbyshire, Italy born and raised despite his English name, breaks free down the Scotland right but the hosts manage to scramble back, turn over possession and clear. 22 min: It has been a very entertaining opening quarter in Edinburgh. Scotland are looking threatening out wide whenever they move the ball but Italy are also giving it a crack through their backs. 19 min: Chris Paterson makes no mistake from the kicking tee but Scotland suffer a blow as Joe Ansbro, who made a lively start, is taken off with a knee injury and replaced by Nick De Luca. 18 min: PENALTY: SCOTLAND 6-5 ITALY 16 min: Scotland's attacking endeavour is rewarded with a penalty and Chris Paterson lines it up. 15min: Sean Lamont and Joe Ansbro both make superb breaks before Simon Danielli is held up inches short of the line for Scotland. 11 min: Andrea Masi follows up his try against France last week by scything between Joe Ansbro and Nikki Walker and racing over for his 13th try for the Azzurri. Mirco Bergamasco scuffs the attempted conversion and it hits the post.
10 min: TRY: SCOTLAND 3-5 ITALY 9 min: Mirco Bergamasco, Italy's hero with six kicks out of eight last week, misses the chance to level the scores. 7 min: Italy earn a penalty after Scotland enter a ruck from the side. 5 min: The prolific Chris Paterson slots a fairly simple penalty to give Scotland fitting reward for a lively start. 4 min: PENALTY: SCOTLAND 3-0 ITALY 1 min: Scotland centre Sean Lamont breaks clear through the middle and when Scotland switch play, Al Kellock powers to within five yards of the line. Advantage is awarded as the Italian tackler does not release. 1431: We're under way as Ruaridh Jackson kicks off and Italy clear their lines.1430: The anthems have been sung, the blood is suitably stirred and we're seconds away from kick-off in Edinburgh. 1428: Scotland coach Andy Robinson: "We're disappointed to be in this position but I've been pleased with the attitude and the way we've gone out and tried to play. Italy are pretty physical so we have to be able to play through that physicality and play an offloading game." Italy coach Nick Mallett: "We had a proper celebration after last week's win over France but by Monday lunchtime we had gone through the tape and we're focused on Scotland now. It's so important to play well away from home, away from our supporters, we need to do that to be a force in the future." 1423: But before England take centre stage against Ireland, it's all about Scotland against Italy, which kicks off in 10 minutes' time. Whoever loses will finish bottom, a fate which has befallen Italy five times in the previous six years, a run interrupted only by Scotland in 2007. 1419: Andy Nicol on BBC One: "Scotland struggled in the line-out and the scrum against England. They have got to get those areas right today against Italy." 1419: But before England take centre stage against Ireland, it's all about Scotland against Italy, which kicks off in 10 minutes' time. Whoever loses will finish bottom, a fate which has befallen Italy five times in the previous six years, a run interrupted only by Scotland in 2007. 1413: Jeremy Guscott on BBC One: "England have got to try and block out everything that's happened to date and take the Ireland match for what it is. They need to combine what they did against Wales, when they were efficient, Italy, where they played with freedom, and France, where they got the job done. England have to be canny, play for position and territory get Toby Flood getting the scoreboard ticking over. And they must be wary of Brian O'Driscoll - he's a big game player, the man for the big occasion. He'll do something, whether it be good or bad, to decide the game." For a fuller take on what he expects in Dublin,
read Jerry's thoughts here.
1408: It's not all doom and gloom for the Scots. They may be facing up to finishing bottom of the pile for the first time since 2007, but they have played well at times during this Six Nations, and pushed unbeaten England all the way last time out. They also have a very good home record against the Azzurri, having beaten them seven times out of eight at Murrayfield. 1402: The big story of the weekend is England's quest for a first Grand Slam since 2003, but Scotland will be looking to avoid some unwelcome history of their own, namely a first whitewash in seven years. Italy's stirring victory over France means they go into the game on two points, while Scotland have yet to get off the mark this championship. 1350: Welcome to the final weekend of the 2011 Six Nations. We kick off with the Wooden Spoon decider as bottom side Scotland try to avoid a whitewash as they host Italy. Then follows England bidding for a Grand Slam as they travel to Dublin to face Ireland, before Wales journey to Paris to tackle France. The rugby marathon gets under way at 1430 GMT, how do you expect the day to pan out?
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