Ireland survived a major scare by holding on to scrape an unconvincing 20-13 Six Nations win over Italy in Dublin.
Andy Farrell’s side trailed 10-5 at half-time after Giacomo Nicotera’s try and five points from Paolo Garbisi stunned a sold-out Aviva Stadium crowd following Jamie Osborne’s opening score.
Jack Conan and championship debutant Robert Baloucoune restored order with second-half tries as the hosts ultimately bounced back from a humbling 36-14 round-one loss away to France.
Yet Ireland’s lack of conviction on an afternoon when Hollie Davidson made history as the first woman to referee a men’s Six Nations fixture did little to quell concerns they are a fading force.
First-choice fly-half Sam Prendergast endured an outing to forget, including missing two straightforward conversions, before replacement Jack Crowley slotted a conversion and a penalty to help prevent a shock.
Italy could easily have snatched a draw during a nervy finale before disjointed Ireland clung on for victory, albeit without bagging a bonus point.
Ireland’s punishing visit to Paris fuelled suggestions they are slipping into the shadows of the world’s top teams following autumn defeats to New Zealand and South Africa.
Head coach Farrell – perhaps with an eye on next week’s trip to England – responded by making six changes to his starting XV and demanding greater intent.
The hosts lacked cohesion for large parts of a fragmented opening period before full-back Osborne raced on to a superb Stuart McCloskey offload to score six minutes after Azzurri wing Louis Lynagh was sin-binned for a deliberate knock-on.
Prendergast’s shanked conversion did little to settle the nerves, with a subsequent Garbisi penalty swiftly cutting the visitors’ deficit to two points.
Italy, who upset Scotland last weekend, grew in confidence to become the dominant side.
Azzurri captain Michele Lamaro almost raced clear after a fine break from full-back Lorenzo Pani before hooker Nicotera powered over on the left in the aftermath of Ireland scrum half Craig Casey receiving a yellow card for head-on-head contact with Lorenzo Cannone which left him nursing a bloodied nose.
Garbisi’s successful conversion put Italy 10-5 ahead and only a huge turnover from McCloskey close to his own try line prevented Ireland being further behind at the break.
Farrell responded by introducing fit-again prop Tadhg Furlong for the second half. Back-rower Conan bulldozed over following a lineout within three minutes of the restart but another missed conversion from Prendergast left the scoreboard level as Italy continued to cause problems.
Ireland received a reprieve in the 52nd minute when Tommaso Menoncello set up Lynagh to dive over on the right but a video review showed his pass was clearly forward.
Italy were chasing a first Six Nations success in Dublin at the 14th time of asking. However, hopes of Gonzalo Quesada’s side making history faded during a crucial five-minute spell which swung the contest in Ireland’s favour.
Right winger Baloucoune burst on to a basketball-style pass from McCloskey to score before Crowley, who had replaced Prendergast amid cheers from the stands, added the extras and then slotted a penalty.
Another Garbisi penalty put Italy within a converted score of snatching a draw and only a series of last-ditch tackles spared Ireland’s blushes in a frantic conclusion
