Fly-half Sexton lays down Ireland marker

Fly-half Jonathan Sexton sent an emphatic message to Ireland boss Declan Kidney after finishing with a 22-point haul in Leinster's 27-14 win over Scarlets.

Sexton scored a try, a conversion and five penalties and helped Leinster break clear of the Scarlets and record their eleventh straight victory at their Dublin base.

But fellow Ireland hopeful Sean O’Brien saw his night ended early through injury, hampering the No.8’s chances of being selected for Saturday’s Six Nations clash with England. .

The Scarlets will be disappointed with the result as they failed to make the most of some excellent try-scoring opportunities, the most noteworthy seeing Rob McCusker knock on after blocking Shaun Berne’s 70th-minute clearance.

Jonathan Davies and the fit-again Regan King started well for the visitors but Sexton converted a penalty to open the scoring.

Davies rumbled forward to set up Rhys Priestland for a levelling penalty and the Scarlets surged 8-3 ahead just a minute later.

Leinster were caught napping following a long range Scarlets break and hooker Ken Owens finished off in the left corner.

Priestland failed to add the extras and Leinster’s Nacewa crossed the line shortly after.

Sexton nailed the conversion from close to the touchline and swapped further penalties with Priestland as Leinster went in at the break 13-11 ahead.

Scarlets fly-half Priestland kicked his side back into the lead shortly after the break but Sexton added three well-struck penalties on 48, 57 and 67 minutes to turn the tide again.

Sexton then collected a pass from debutant Andrew Conway to score the clinching try, four minutes from time.

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Scrum-half Stringer sends reminder to Ireland boss Kidney

Veteran scrum-half Peter Stringer staked a strong claim for an international recall to Ireland's Six Nations team with an impressive performance in Munster's 16-12 Magners League win over Edinburgh.

The 32-year-old was instrumental in Ireland’s 2009 Six Nations grand slam, putting in a man-of-the-match performance to help his side come from behind to beat Scotland 22-15.

But this year Stringer has dropped down the pecking order with the emergence of Eoin Reddan, Tomas O’Leary and Isaac Boss.

And the 91-cap-man showed Ireland coach Declan Kidney what he is missing ahead of next weekend’s Six Nations clash with England at Twickenham with a masterful display.

Despite early injuries to Paul Warwick, Donnacha Ryan and Tommy O’Donnell, tries from fellow Ireland man Marcus Horan and young fly-half Scott Deasey helped Munster to the narrow win.

Kidney will have been impressed by the efforts of loose-head prop Horan and full-back Denis Hurley, both of whom were instrumental in the win.

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Kidney will bring Murphy into Ireland training

Ireland coach Declan Kidney admits Leicester full-back Geordan Murphy could be set for a surprise recall ahead of their Six Nations clash with England next Saturday.

Kidney will be without regular full-back Rob Kearney after he was ruled out for between three to five weeks with a knee injury sustained in their 33-10 defeat by France last Saturday.

The Leicester full-back has not featured for Ireland since making a substitute appearance in their Grand Slam securing win over Wales last March, but Kidney has refused to rule-out a recall.

He said: “We’ll definitely give Geordan a look and hopefully he will get a full game at the weekend.

“It was always our plan to bring him into training next week whether he had enough game time or not and you wouldn’t rule anyone out.”

The 31-year-old has had a frustrating season after being sidelined for several months with a dislocated shoulder suffered against Wasps in September.

But the former British Lion has come off the bench in recent weeks for the Tigers and looks to be in prime position to fill the void left by Kearney.

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Ireland fall to fifth in IRB Rankings

Ireland's defeat to France in Paris has seen him slip to fifth in the latest IRB World Rankings with Les Bleus leapfrogging them into fourth.

Tries from William Servat, Yannick Jauzion and Clement Poitrenaud, as well as 15 points added from the boot of Morgan Parra, lifted les Blues to 33-10 victory at the Stade de France.

And not only did the victory end Ireland’s hopes of back-to-back Grand Slams, it also meant they swapped places with France in the rankings.

France now take Ireland’s mantle of being the highest placed northern hemisphere nation in the rankings and have opened up a gap of over one rating point over Ireland.

Marc Lievremont's side now trail third place Australia by a similar margin, and are seven points adrift of the number one side New Zealand.

Ireland would have gone third with a first victory at the Stade de France since March 2000, but a first loss in 15 months means Declan Kidney's men now sit judy above England ahead of Saturday’s clash at Twickenham.

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Flannery banned for rest of Six Nations

Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery will miss the rest of the Six Nations Championship after receiving a six-week ban for his kick on Alexis Palisson last weekend.

The 31-year-old has been cited for the kick on Palisson, which forced the Frenchmen having to leave the field with a dead leg, despite referee Wayne Barnes only reversing a penalty decision for the incident at the itme.

The Munster player pleaded guilty at a disciplinary hearing in Dublin earlier today and admitted the offence deserved a red card.

He has subsequently been banned until March 29 which means missing Ireland’s remaining Six Nations games against England, Wales and Scotland although the incident was judged reckless rather than deliberate by the panel,

Flannery has the option to appeal the ban but the Irish Rugby Football Union has stated it will wait to review the written judgment before considering any further action.

Ulster hooker Rory Best looks set to fill the void left by Flannery after replacing him in the second-half of Ireland’s opening Six Nations games against Italy and France.

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Flannery faces anxious wait

Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery looks set to miss his side's crunch Six Nations clash with England at Twickenham after being cited at the weekend.

Flannery has been accused of an ‘alleged kick’ on France wing Alexis Palisson during Ireland’s 33-10 loss in Paris at the weekend.

The Munster hooker has yet to be given a case for his hearing but with Ireland due to play England at Twickenham on February 27 – a reprieve now looks unlikely.

The minimum sentence for the offence is four weeks, while the mid-range sanction is eight to 12-weks, meaning Flannery can expect a stint on the sidelines if found guilty.

Flannery's expected absence will open the door for Ulster captain Rory Best to come into the side.

Best had been expected to miss the entire season after undergoing surgery on a neck injury last summer but recently returned to club action.

Best replaced Flannery during the second half of Saturday's game in Paris, as he had done in Ireland's Six Nations opener against Italy in Dublin seven days earlier.

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Poor start cost us, says Kidney

Ireland head coach Declan Kidney believes his side paid the price for a poor start in their Six Nations game against France.

The defending Six Nations champions were hoping to gain only their third victory in Paris since 1952 but were unable to get the better of an inspired France side, eventually losing 33-10.

And while Kidney was far from happy with the performance of his team he admiited credit must go to the impressive hosts.

“We were always likely to lose if France got their tales up and we gave them a 14-point lead in the first half and afterwards they were able to just take the points as the came,” he said.

“We didn’t exploit the opportunities as well as we needed to have done. There is no need for complaints – the credit must go to France.

However, the coach does believe the sin-binning of Cian Healy proved a big factor in the loss.

“They scored ten points when we had a man in the bin so it was important,” he said.

“Leading up to the bin is what I will be taking a look at. It was one of those 50-50 games at that stage and then they got in behind us, a little tug of the jersey.

“You know these For Six Nations Premierevents pledges to provide the cheapest event tickets online.No commission, transaction charges or hidden booking fees. By law, we must charge VAT, but the price you see is the price you pay.We ensure their safe and prompt delivery to our customer.Buy Six Nations tickets with full trust! happen but I will be taking a good look at it.”