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Player Ratings: Century gloom

Similar to last week Wales arrived late to the action and had to settle for a 27-37 defeat to Ireland in a thrilling Six Nations battle.

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Two tries by try machine Jacob Stockdale helped Ireland keep their Six Nations Grand Slam hopes alive, while Wales suffered their second consecutive defeat.

Wales' Leigh Halfpenny  gave Wales an early lead however the hosts hit back as a sublime long pass from Sexton picked out Stockdale and the wing went over in the corner.

At one point Ireland were 27-13 up and Wales coach Warren Gatland decided it was time to ring the changes taking off his entire hard-pressed front row.

Leezil rates the Welsh players!

15 Leigh Halfpenny

The fullback showed no signs of a foot infection, as the slot over a 43-metre kick and looked good with the ball in hand.

6/10

14 Liam Williams

Didn’t have much opportunity to run with the ball and didn’t try to get involved in the game. He also missed a few tackles and struggled under the high ball.

4/10

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13 Scott Williams

Not a first good touch. His passes inside his own 22 failed to find the hands of his support runners.  Delivered aimless desperate kicks in the first half but was constantly looking for work.

5/10

12 Hadleigh Parkes

Had a quiet game and wasn’t at his best form as a playmaker.

4/10

11 Steff Evans

He missed a few tackles, however with ball in hand he was a little bit better but far from spectacular.

5/10

10 Dan Biggar

Made a noteworthy return. First Kick-off just placed Ireland under pressure and handed Wales an opportunity to take an early lead. Workrate was good throughout the match and even produced some magic under the high ball before his exit.

6/10

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9 Gareth Davies

Was really quiet in the first 20 minutes but eventually, when he had an opportunity from five metres out he scored an easy try.  His box kicks got Wales inside crucial areas. Just some individual handling errors but an overall good game.

6/10

8 Ross Moriarty

Defensively good but with ball in hand was far from spectacular.  Made some noteworthy runs, but his work in defence made up for his performance.

6/0

7 Josh Navidi

One of the best Wales players on the park. Resume the role of leading the Welsh defensive line which placed Ireland’s attack under pressure. He was constantly looking for work.

8/10

6 Aaron Shingler

Overall good performance, despite conceding two crucial penalties. Defensively good. His performance with ball in hand was also impressive – made 22 metres –  his break set up Gareth Davis for the first try and he scored a try which surely made up for his early mistakes.

7/10

5 Alun Wyn Jones (captain)

Did not do much, but he was good defensively and made 14 tackles. Maybe its fatigue but his performance truly took a dip in the second half. Completely not up to his standards.  

5/10

4 Cory Hill

Good in defence but wasn’t as spectacular as last week’s performance.

5/10

3 Samson Lee

Unlike last week against England, struggled in the scrums. Was replaced in the second half.

5/10

2 Ken Owens  

Was far from impressive struggled against the Irish scrum and along with his pack was replaced in the second half.

5/10

1 Rob Evans

Conceded a sloppy penalty in the opening minutes of the match. Tried his best to get into the game but could not make a huge impact.

4/10

Replacements:

16 Elliot Dee ( On for Owens, 56th min)

Made a huge difference in the scrums when he came off the bench. Made some noteworthy runs with the ball.

5/10

17 Wyn Jones ( On for Evans, 56th min)

Just like last week, the replacement proved his value and he produced a much better performance than his counterpart.

5/0

18 Tomas Francis ( on for Lee, 56th min)  

Wasn’t that impressive and only managed to make one tackle.

4/10

19 Bradley Davies (on for Hill, 56th min)

Struggled to make an impact but looked for work which made his defence a little bit better.

4/10

20 Justin Tipuric ( On for Moriarty, 64th min)

Did not make a huge impact, struggled to get involved – a really quiet 16 minutes for him.

5/10

21 Aled Davies

Not used.

22 Gareth Anscombe (On for Biggar, 64th)

Eager to get involve and had three carries however he threw the last intercept pass.

4/10

23 George North ( On for L Williams, 64th min)

Tried to get involve and  made a valuable contribution with a good run out wide. Just needed more time to  made a impact.

5/10

By Leezil Hendricks

@rugby365com

 

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