Gregor Townsend insisted Scotland have proved they are capable of being genuine Guinness Six Nations title contenders as he reflected on what might have been following a frustrating bottom half finish.

The Scots showed plenty of promise during an inconsistent campaign but slipped to fourth place in the final standings after being denied a first Triple Crown in 34 years by Saturday’s 17-13 loss to champions Ireland.

Defeat in Dublin was a third from five championship fixtures following a controversial round-two reverse to France and last weekend’s shock loss away to Italy.

Head coach Townsend, who faced questions about his future after a chastening experience in Rome, is adamant his side are making progress.

“We were in contention over the last couple of weeks, which hasn’t been the case before in championships,” said the 50-year-old, who masterminded wins over Wales and England.

“We would have been more in contention if we’d been awarded that try against France, so I think the evidence is there.

“We’re still searching, like any team, to back up performances.

“It is difficult during the Six Nations, every team has found that. And in particular this Six Nations with the competition and the quality of the teams we were up against, if you don’t get your performance spot on then you’re going to be really challenged to win that game.

“We have to be at our very best every time we play.”

Scotland have not won the championship since winning the final Five Nations in 1999.

Huw Jones’ late try offered hope of ending on a high but it proved to be a consolation as Ireland held on to retain their crown.

Co-captain Finn Russell, who kicked eight points at the Aviva Stadium, spoke of mental frailties undermining his country’s development following the largely positive performance.

While head coach Townsend hailed Scotland’s tenacious defensive display as their best in years, he concurred with the assessment of his influential fly-half.

“Yeah, I agree with him, it happens in every sport,” he said.

“The mental side is the same as the strategy, the same as the skill side, the physical side.

“Teams will have moments that go against them – every team in this championship will have had it – and it could be focus, it could be how quickly you reset.

“We’ve had chances to win all our games. The three games we lost were all within a score – that’s even more disappointing for us.

“We felt we should have won against France. We underperformed against Italy but we performed well (against Ireland) and we performed well in the two victories.

“Two wins is not what we set out to do or what we believe this team are capable of achieving.”

Andy Farrell believes falling short of back-to-back Grand Slams will be the “best thing” for the development of his triumphant Ireland squad after masterminding another title success.

Farrell’s men retained the Guinness Six Nations trophy on Saturday by beating Scotland 17-13 in Dublin to bounce back from having their 100 per cent record extinguished in agonising fashion against England.

Ireland’s current crop of stars are largely unfamiliar with losing thanks to a remarkable run of 33 wins from 37 Tests during the past three years.

Head coach Farrell feels last weekend’s 23-22 Twickenham defeat will ultimately prevent complacency creeping in moving towards a two-match summer series against world champions South Africa and autumn appointments with New Zealand, Argentina, Fiji and Australia.

“It was a fantastic campaign for this group and we’re continuing on from where we left off and trying to improve as a group,” he said.

“But we all know things change year on year as far as personnel’s concerned and injuries and whatnot, staff leaving, staff coming in, new staff.

“I reckon the loss last week will be the best thing for us as a group because some of these lads, subconsciously now, not through their own doing, they’ve been used to winning.

“For some of the lads who are not used to losing at all, they get to point where they’re turning up for games actually thinking, ‘we’re doing it’.

“You’re never, ‘doing it’. You’re never doing it in the Six Nations because things changes week to week and that Test match last week was a proper Test match in Twickenham.

“We’ll learn the lessons from that and that will be powerful for us going forward like this one (against Scotland) was.”

Tries from Dan Sheehan and Andrew Porter, plus seven points from Jack Crowley, put Ireland on course for championship glory at the Aviva Stadium before Huw Jones’ late consolation set up a nervy finale.

Farrell, who will miss next year’s Six Nations campaign as he takes a break to lead the British and Irish Lions’ 2025 tour of Australia, is “unbelievably proud” of his players’ achievements.

“I’ve no doubt that Scotland will be proud of their performance but ultimately we’re delighted,” he said.

“It’s about winning championships for us and that’s unbelievably pleasing because it’s so hard to do.

“Everyone constantly talks about Grand Slams and we get carried away with it so much, back-to-back Grand Slams have never been done before, there’s obviously a good reason for that.

“But for us to be in a position to win back-to-back Six Nations is a nice feeling because it goes down in history for Irish rugby. We’re unbelievably proud of the group.”

Farrell may have to appoint a new captain when his squad reconvene to face the Springboks in July as current skipper Peter O’Mahony contemplates international retirement.

The Englishman is set for imminent talks with the veteran Munster flanker.

Asked if he will try to convince O’Mahony to continue, Farrell replied: “Whatever its right for him.

“I’ve been an unbelievably big fan of Pete all his career and we’ve a close enough relationship to be honest with one another.

“We’ve been talking about his career, certainly over when it’s getting to the end, for the last year. We’re realists as far as that’s concerned.

“I’ve no doubt we’ll chew the fat on all that over the coming days.”

Ireland became the first team since England in 2017 to win successive Guinness Six Nations titles as they dominated this season’s competition.

Although back-to-back Grand Slams eluded them following defeat against England at Twickenham, Ireland ended five points clear of a chasing pack led by France.

Here, the PA news agency selects its team of the tournament.

15: Hugo Keenan (Ireland)

Although the Ireland full-back missed two games because of injury, he was still a class apart in that position. A major attacking threat who also never flinched in defence.

14: Duhan van der Merwe (Scotland)

The Scotland wing claimed a stunning try hat-trick in his team’s Calcutta Cup victory over England. His five touchdowns overall left him one behind Scotland’s record Test try-scorer Stuart Hogg.

13: Juan Ignacio Brex (Italy)

Claimed successive player of the match awards in Italy’s victories over Scotland and Wales as he forged an outstanding centre pairing with Tommaso Menoncello for the resurgent Azzurri.

12: Bundee Aki (Ireland)

Another huge shift from one of Ireland’s most consistent players, who brought watertight defence and attacking power in abundance. An inspiration to those around him.

11: James Lowe (Ireland)

Arguably has the best all-round game as a wing in Britain and Ireland. An outstanding kicking game, brilliant positional work and try-scoring prowess make him the complete package. Topped the lists for most metres carried and metres gained.

10: Jack Crowley (Ireland)

It seemed that replacing retired fly-half Johnny Sexton would be Ireland’s biggest challenge this season, but 24-year-old Crowley stepped up in magnificent fashion, barely putting a foot wrong.

9: Jamison Gibson-Park (Ireland)

There is an effortless ease and quality about everything Ireland’s immaculate scrum-half does. He dictates the tempo, drives the forwards relentlessly and was once again hugely influential.

1: Andrew Porter (Ireland)

The tough-as-teak loosehead prop provided a strong scrummaging foundation, while his work around the pitch was of its usual high standard. Scored a try in title-clinching victory over Scotland.

2: Dan Sheehan (Ireland)

Ireland’s livewire hooker maintained top-end performance levels that have become his trademark. Scored five tries to finish as the tournament’s equal top try-scorer with Van der Merwe.

3: Uini Atonio (France)

It proved to be an erratic Six Nations campaign for France, which included a thrilling victory over England and home draw against Italy, but juggernaut prop Atonio made a consistent impact at scrum-time.

4: Maro Itoje (England)

Showcased all the experience gained from more than 80 England caps. The Saracens lock soared to exceptional heights during a memorable win against Ireland, and there are few who can match him when he is on his game.

5: Tadhg Beirne (Ireland)

The beating heart of Ireland’s pack, he was again to the fore in every aspect. A world-class forward with set-piece mastery, his work in disrupting opposition lineouts proved particularly impressive.

6: Caelan Doris (Ireland)

Has a commanding on-pitch presence as a natural leader in everything he does. A model of consistency, he is emerging as a major contender to captain the British and Irish Lions in Australia next year.

7: Tommy Reffell (Wales)

It was a Six Nations to forget for Wales, but their openside flanker provided some rare highlights. He was king of the breakdown, claiming 11 turnovers and equalling the tournament record.

8: Ben Earl (England)

Barely put a foot wrong. His 73 carries saw him top that category by a distance, and his standards never dropped. Made an extremely strong case to be named player of the tournament.

Roman Josi scored twice in the third period and Juuse Saros stopped 23 shots as the Nashville Predators extended their point streak to 14 games with a 4-1 victory over the Seattle Kraken on Saturday.

Filip Forsberg had a goal and an assist and Tommy Novak also scored for the Predators, who have gone 12-0-2 since their last regulation loss to Dallas on Feb. 15 to tighten their grip on the top wild card in the Western Conference.

The 14-game streak is tied for the second-longest in franchise history, matching a 14-game run during the 2015-16 season. Nashville earned points in 15 straight in the 2017-18 season, a stretch during which it went 14-0-1.

Andre Burakovsky had the lone goal for Seattle, which dropped its fourth straight (0-3-1) to fall further back in the playoff race.

Streaking Avs top Oilers in OT

Artturi Lehkonen scored with one second left in overtime and the Colorado Avalanche defeated the Edmonton Oilers 3-2 for their sixth straight victory.

Defenseman Sean Walker scored the other two goals to help the Avalanche improve to 10-2-1 in their last 13 games. They kept pace with Dallas, each with 91 points, to remain tied for the Central Division lead.

Nathan MacKinnon assisted on the winning goal to extend his point streak to 15 games. MacKinnon, who has 10 goals and 21 assists during his run, leads the NHL with 116 points.

Sam Carrick and Warren Foegele scored for the Oilers, who have points in nine of their last 10 contests (7-1-2).

Connor McDavid was held without a point to end his home point streak at 26 games.

Panarin stars in Rangers’ win

Artemi Panarin scored twice and added three assists to lead the New York Rangers to a 7-4 win over the sliding Pittsburgh Penguins.

Chris Kreider and K’Andre Miller each had a goal and two assists for the Rangers, who have won four of five to remain four points ahead of Carolina in the race for the Metropolitan Division title.

Panarin has seven goals and 14 assists in his last 14 games. He has 93 points on the season to become the first player in the franchise’s 97-year history with at least 90 points in three consecutive seasons.

Lars Eller and Bryan Rust had a goal and an assist apiece as the Penguins lost for the eighth time in 10 games and dropped seven points behind the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Stephen Curry scored 31 points in his return and the Golden State Warriors overcame LeBron James’ 40 points and 13 rebounds in a 128-121 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Saturday.

Curry was 12 of 24 from the field and had six rebounds and five assists in 31 minutes after missing three games due to a sprained right ankle.

Klay Thompson scored 26 points, Jonathan Kuminga had 23 and Draymond Green added six points, 12 rebounds and 13 assists after he missed the last game due to back soreness.

D’Angelo Russell tallied 23 points and 13 assists for the Lakers, who played the final three quarters without Anthony Davis, who suffered an eye injury.

Golden State inched ahead of Los Angeles by a percentage point into ninth place in the West after winning a game that dragged to the finish because of a pair of replay reviews and a malfunctioning clock.

Brunson’s big game lifts Knicks

Jalen Brunson scored 42 points for his second straight 40-plus effort and the New York Knicks pulled out a 98-91 win over the Sacramento Kings.

Brunson, who had 45 points in Thursday’s win at Portland, registered his seventh 40-point game of the season. He’s the first Knicks player to reach that total in consecutive games since Carmelo Anthony on Feb. 19 and 21, 2014.

Brunson joins Hall of Famers Bernard King and Patrick Ewing as the only other Knicks to score 40 in back-to-back games.

Domantas Sabonis had 21 points and 14 rebounds for his 49th straight double-double but Sacramento lost for the second time in six games.

Streaking Rockets down Cavaliers

Jalen Green had 26 points and 11 rebounds and Jabari Smith Jr. added 20 points to lead the Houston Rockets to their fifth straight win, 117-103 over the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Amen Thompson scored 18 points and Fred VanVleet contributed 13 points and 16 assists for the Rockets, who have won seven of eight to stay in contention for a play-in spot in the Western Conference.

Caris LeVert scored 21 points and Donovan Mitchell added 13 in his second game back from a seven-game absence. Mitchell appeared to sustain a bloody nose in the second half and sat for much of the fourth quarter.

The Cavs dropped their third in four games and fell one game behind Milwaukee for second place in the Eastern Conference.  

Carlos Alcaraz ended Jannik Sinner’s winning run as he claimed a place in the BNP Paribas Open final 1-6 6-3 6-2.

Australian Open champion Sinner had won 16 straight matches to begin the year – and 19 in all stretching back to last season – but the number three seed had no answer to the Spaniard after winning the first set.

Defending Indian Wells champion Alcaraz was broken twice after a three-hour rain delay as Sinner raced to a 6-1 first set victory.

But having faced deuce on his opening service game of the second set, the Spaniard grabbed the initiative with an early break.

He saved break points in successive games and served out to level the match.

Alcaraz, who would have surrendered the world number two spot to Sinner with a defeat, again broke early in the deciding set.

He dropped just three points on his serve, rattling off five straight games to lead 5-1, clinching victory on his third match point in just over two hours.

“I stayed strong mentally,” said Alcaraz. “I think that’s a really important part in this game. You have to be strong mentally if you want to overcome these kind of matches, a set down against someone that’s playing an unbelievable game.

“I changed my style a little bit, I changed my game a little bit and I think it worked very well. I’m really happy to beat Jannik and be in the final again.”

The Pittsburgh Steelers are acquiring quarterback Justin Fields from the Chicago Bears for a sixth-round draft pick that could turn into a fourth-round selection based on playing time, according to multiple reports on Saturday.

Pittsburgh recently acquired veteran quarterback Russell Wilson from the Denver Broncos on Wednesday and traded 2022 first-round pick Kenny Pickett to the Philadelphia Eagles on Friday. Pickett expressed a desire to be traded after Wilson agreed to a one-year deal with the team.

With Wilson expected to be the starter, Fields will be relegated to a backup role where he can learn from the nine-time Pro Bowler.

Schefter reports that the pick could turn into a fourth rounder if Fields plays 51 percent of the snaps.

Fields had been the subject of trade rumours throughout the offseason, with the Bears holding the No. 1 overall pick in next month's draft. With USC QB Caleb Williams the expected selection, Fields figured to be on the move at some point.

Fields has made 38 starts and appeared in 40 games for Chicago since he was selected with the 11th overall pick in the 2021 draft. He completed 60.3 percent of his passes with 40 touchdowns and 30 interceptions and added 14 rushing scores.

Fields ran for 1,143 yards in 2022 while averaging 7.1 yards per carry.

Inconsistency was an issue for Fields during his time with the Bears, but he and the team ended last season on a high note with four wins in their final six games to finish 7-10. During that span, he completed 60 percent of his throws with four passing TDs, three interceptions and three rushing touchdowns.

Steve Borthwick praised England’s fighting spirit after seeing his team denied a precious Guinness Six Nations win against France by a final-minute Thomas Ramos penalty.

England appeared to have snatched victory with the second of two fightbacks when Tommy Freeman crossed in the right corner only for a no-arms tackle by Ben Earl in the closing seconds to enable Ramos to seal a 33-31 victory.

It ended an enthralling evening in Lyon that saw Borthwick’s side back up their stunning triumph over Ireland in every respect apart from the final result.

Borthwick stated after England lost to Scotland at Murrayfield in round three that the Red Rose jersey was weighing heavily on his players, but he saw the pressure lift at Groupama Stadium.

“My overriding emotion is immense pride in the players and gratitude to our supporters,” Borthwick said.

“The players have been incredible – they played really well and I’m really disappointed for them.

“I’ve talked about the weight of the shirt in the past but with the kind of support we’re getting, the England shirt is starting to feel a bit lighter, it’s helping these players grow.

“We didn’t get the result we wanted but you look at the players and the fight and intensity they had.

“I don’t think these guys are ever beaten and we weren’t beaten in this game, we just ran out of time. We saw the way they went back at it to try to find another score.

“We’ve taken on two teams in the top four of the world and we’ve shown how we can compete with them.

“To be clear, we don’t just want to be competing, we want to win. We shown the team has step forward.”

The nature of France’s victory brought memories of last autumn’s Rugby World Cup flooding back for Jamie George, who recalled the similarity between Ramos’ penalty and Handre Pollard kicking South Africa to a last-gasp semi-final win from a similar position.

“That’s the way Test match rugby goes – we knew it’s going to be hostile and we knew France were coming out to give it a good crack. I thought it was a great Test match all in all,” England captain George said.

“Of course I’m gutted about the result. I feel like we deserved a lot of the game because of the way we attacked it game and went after it.

“There was a lot to be very pleased about and very proud of. Fair play to France for coming back and getting that penalty at the end and fair play to Ramos for knocking it over.

“There was a bit of deja vu from the Pollard penalty a few month ago. That’s always going to be tough to take but like Steve said there’s so much to be proud of over the last few weeks.

“We genuinely feel like this team is on and upward curve and we’re going somewhere.”

France finished second in the Six Nations and boss Fabien Galthie felt it helped make amends for their World Cup quarter-final exit.

“We are very happy, it was a tough game, it was a tough tournament. We paid for our mistakes, we learnt about our mistakes. We were resilient and solid,” Galthie said.

“This game looked like our quarter final against South Africa but at the end, the result is really different.

“And I think this game can help us to forget what happened during the World Cup.”

Xander Schauffele produced a superb display to overtake Wyndham Clark for the outright lead after the third round of the Players Championship at Sawgrass.

US Open champion Clark – who was four ahead of Schauffele and Canada’s Nick Taylor overnight at 14-under par – started his round by digging out of the rough to make a birdie.

However, Olympic champion Schauffele continued to chase him down, sinking a 14-foot birdie on the sixth to close within two shots which was down to just one stroke at the turn.

After Clark found the water off the 12th tee before saving par, Schauffele capitalised with yet another birdie and then made a 58-foot putt at the 14th which saw him take a one-shot lead.

Clark, though, landed a 30-foot birdie on the par-five 16th to level things up again before finding the water at the 17th and opting to take another off the tee rather than a drop, which saw him make a four and so give Schauffele a one-shot lead heading to the 18th.

Schauffele tapped in his par for a superb 65, while Schauffele was two under for the day with his 70 for a 17-under total.

Open champion Brian Harman built on a solid start to sign for a 64, the best score of the week so far, as he put himself in contention at 15 under.

Harman found the trees at the par-five ninth, which resulted in him making a six, but he then picked up successive birdies with another from 17 feet on the 14th closing the gap on the lead.

Rory McIlroy’s bid for a second Players Championship victory received a late rally with birdies on the final three holes to sign for a 69 and sit at nine-under overall.

The Northern Irishman, who had shared the first-round lead, went into the turn level, but made successive birdies from the 11th – only to then take a six on the 14th after finding the far greenside bunker.

However, three straight birdies from the 16th, when he played out from under the trees, gave the world number two some hope of making a late charge on Sunday.

World number one Scottie Scheffler continued to be troubled by a neck problem as he slipped down the leaderboard after a round of 68.

Scheffler – bidding to become the first player to successfully defend the Players Championship title in its 50-year history – came to Sawgrass on the back of an impressive five-shot win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

However, the American had needed treatment from a PGA Tour physio dudring his second round, and started Saturday with black tape on his neck.

A birdie at the par-five second was followed by a bogey at the fifth before Scheffler recovered another stroke on the next and headed into the turn at one under.

Scheffler found the water off the tee at the 12th, but recovered to save par and then made three birdies over the closing three holes to keep himself in the hunt at 12 under despite his fitness worries.

Taylor, meanwhile, plummeted down the leaderboard after a bogey on the fourth was followed by a six at the par-four sixth, another at the ninth and then 10th. Although he picked up a couple of shots from the next, yet another bogey on the 18th saw him finish with a four-over 76.

England’s Matt Fitzpatrick recovered from a double bogey on the fourth and another dropped shot two holes later to finish with four birdies on the back nine in his 68.

Fitzpatrick is tied for fourth at 13 under alongside Maverick McNealy, who hit a second successive 68, while an eagle on 16 helped Sahith Theegala to a 67, which sees him one stroke back in a tie for sixth alongside Scheffler.

England finished third in the Guinness Six Nations after a monster Thomas Ramos penalty in the final minute sent them spinning to a heartbreaking 33-31 defeat at Groupama Stadium.

Steve Borthwick’s men have trailed at half-time of every match of the Championship and once more they faced an uphill battle, this time in the form of 16-6 deficit that included a try of the tournament contender for scrum-half Nolann Le Garrec.

But they turned the contest on its head by amassing 21 unanswered points through two Ollie Lawrence tries and a Marcus Smith touch down as their attack ran amok through the France midfield.

France regrouped to cross through Leo Barre and Gael Fickou but England were not done yet as Tommy Freeman stormed over in the right corner with five minutes remaining.

They appeared to have secured their fourth win of the Six Nations having staged multiple fightbacks but when they infringed just outside their half with seconds left, Ramos kept his nerve to hit the target.

Manu Tuilagi came on for what is likely to be his final England appearance and he could not have asked for a more dramatic send-off.

Ireland may already have clinched the title by toppling Scotland but if evidence was needed that this match still mattered it came when Ramos kicked off before the countdown had even begun.

Once the false start had been dealt with, England were greeted with waves of attacks and a challenging opening was compounded when George Furbank departed with a calf injury and was replaced by Smith.

George Ford drew first blood through a penalty and his side were successfully slowing down play to stem the blue tide but there was no stopping the stunning end to end move began by Fickou and finished by Le Garrec.

England were in danger of being swept aside as they scrambled furiously to stop a second long-range strike but a sizeable lead opened up when Ramos kicked his second penalty.

Wing Damian Penaud beat a host of tackles yet made no metres in a crabbing run but it resulted in another opportunity for Ramos and he found the posts once more.

England showed their mettle, however, when Lawrence ran through Fickou on the cusp of half-time for a vitally important try that reduced the interval deficit to 16-10.

And there was better to come as a sweeping move given impetus by big runs from Sam Underhill and Ben Earl ended with a second try for Lawrence.

In a remarkable turn of events, England were now breaking through the home defence at will as Underhill and Earl combined a second time to create the opening before Smith arrived to score.

France now found their second wind and when their opponents eventually ran out of bodies in defence, they crossed through Barre to make it a one-point game heading into the final quarter.

With control restored, the 2023 World Cup hosts conjured a third try by Fickou that was born out of Theo Dan’s line-out overthrow.

But there was yet another twist as England staged a well-constructed attack that led to an overlap, providing a simple run in for Freeman.

Yet, with the Test seemingly won, up stepped Ramos to decide otherwise.

Peter O’Mahony savoured the “best feeling in the world” as he left question marks hanging over his international future after leading Ireland to Guinness Six Nations glory.

Andy Farrell’s men ignited the St Patrick’s weekend party by retaining the title thanks to a a nervy 17-13 success over Scotland in Dublin.

Reports emerged before the game that captain O’Mahony was set to call time on his international career following a 105th and final outing in the green jersey.

The 34-year-old, who lifted the championship trophy with Tadhg Furlong, is “still loving” life at Test level but concedes he has a big decision to make.

“I won’t be making any decisions over the next few days,” he said. “But next week we’ll have to have a chat.

“I’m still loving it. This part of it is the best feeling in the world and that’s the part you chase.

“But you have to have a proper chat and be realistic.

“If it was my last one, it wasn’t a bad one to go out on. I can hang the jersey in a good place, if it was. But I’ll have that chat next week.

“It means the world to me (playing for Ireland).

“It’s a special thing to be picked for your country and you’ve got to treat it with the utmost respect.”

Tries from Dan Sheehan and Andrew Porter, plus seven points from Jack Crowley, helped Ireland bounce back from having their dream of back-to-back Grand Slams dashed by England last weekend.

Veteran Munster flanker O’Mahony overcame pre-match nerves to claim the fifth – and most satisfying – Six Nations title of a Test career which began in 2012.

He opted to share the trophy lift with Furlong following the death of the Leinster prop’s father James in December.

“It was a nice moment for him and his family and I thought it was appropriate –  he’s had a tough, tough few months,” said O’Mahony.

“I think this was probably the most special (of the five titles).

“We didn’t want to lose last week. But we knew we needed to get back on the horse and put in a better performance and coming back home, championship on the line, the whole lot, it was an important game for us.

“I felt the pressure, I felt the nerves and I knew it needed to be a big day for us.

“I was saying to Andy (Farrell) on the way in there, it was a tough week and it was probably one of the toughest days nerves-wise beforehand.

“It 100 per cent has to be up there with one of the most special days of my career, if not the most.”

Head coach Farrell, whose side led just 7-6 at half-time, said: “That was a proper Test match.

“Scotland are a great side. I thought they were tenacious, I thought they were tough.

“I actually thought we played bloody well. We came out of the blocks in the second half, that was magnificent – the power, the pace we put into the game.”

Finn Russell believes Scotland must improve significantly from a mental perspective after their quest for a first Triple Crown since 1990 fell short against “probably the best team in the world”.

Fly-half Russell was encouraged by his country’s dogged display at the Aviva Stadium but was left to rue frustrating inconsistency which resulted in three tournament defeats from five fixtures.

Asked if Scotland are progressing or regressing, the co-captain replied: “Today we are progressing.

“That mentality we had today and that cohesiveness, especially in defence, was brilliant.

“But throughout the campaign we need to get mentally stronger. We need to get better and put in performances week in, week out.

“We’ve had spells in this competition that we’ve been brilliant but at the same time we’ve had spells where we’ve allowed teams to get on the front foot and get momentum.

“We are progressing and it’s tough only winning two games and saying we’re progressing but this campaign will make us better come the summer, then November and next season’s Six Nations.

“From a personal opinion, I think mentally we need to get a lot better and not drift at moments in the game.

“We need to be in every moment of the game and that’s a big work on for us.

“Today, we were there for probably 90 per cent of the game, just a couple of moments that allowed Ireland into it. And, probably the best team in the world, you can’t do that over here.”

Wyndham Clark looked to maintain his slender lead over Xander Schauffele as moving day got into full swing at the third round of the Players Championship at Sawgrass.

The US Open champion – who was four ahead of Olympic champion Schauffele and Canada’s Nick Taylor overnight at 14-under par – started his round by digging out of the rough to make a birdie.

However, Schauffele continued to chase him down, sinking a 14-foot birdie on the sixth to close within two shots which was down to just one stroke at the turn.

Clark, though, promptly picked up another birdie on the seventh, only to drop it straight back on the next and went into the turn one under for the day.

World number one Scottie Scheffler was playing through the pain barrier, having received treatment from a PGA Tour physio during his second round, and started Saturday with black tape on his neck.

Scheffler is bidding to become the first player to successfully defend the Players Championship title in its 50-year history and came to Sawgrass on the back of an impressive five-shot win at the Arnold Palmer Invitational.

A birdie at the par-five second was followed by a bogey at the fifth before Scheffler recovered another stroke on the next and headed into the turn at one under, missing a birdie chance from six feet.

Schauffele, though, kept the pressure on as he sunk his to move within one at 14 under overall.

Rory McIlroy’s bid for a second Players Championship victory had been dented by a second round of 73 to drop eight shots off the pace, having shared the first-round lead following an opening 65.

The Northern Irishman started Saturday’s round brightly, picking up a birdie on the second only to then drop a shot straight away on the par-three third.

Although he made successive birdies from the 11th, a double bogey at the 14th saw his hopes fade further after finishing the far greenside bunker.

Taylor, meanwhile, dropped down the leaderboard after a bogey on the fourth was followed by a six at the par-four sixth and another at the ninth to go into the turn at four over for the day.

England’s Matt Fitzpatrick had started the day in a tie for third. He made a good start, picking up a birdie from two feet on the first hole but then suffered a double bogey on the fourth and dropped another stroke at both the sixth and ninth.

Open champion Brian Harman was enjoying a solid round to move into contention, having built on being two under through the first four holes.

Harman found the trees at the par-five ninth, which resulted in him making a six, but he then picked up successive birdies to sit at five under for the day through 11 holes.

Sweden’s Ludvig Aberg climbed up the leaderboard after a five-under 67, which could have been lower but for a bogey on the first and last holes, while Doug Ghim was also in the clubhouse at nine under after his 66.

Americans Sam Burns and Adam Schenk had been among the biggest movers of the early starters to both sit at eight under.

Burns – who just survived the cut – carded a seven-under-par 65, which saw him land a 38-foot birdie putt on the 17th, while Schenk hit a 66, including an eagle on the 16th.

Rickie Fowler finished at four over after a round of 76 saw him drop down the leaderboard – the American having shouted at a fan on the 16th tee for apparently disturbing his swing with noise of their camera clicking.

Ireland retained the Guinness Six Nations title following victory over Scotland in Dublin.

Here, the PA news agency looks at their route to another championship triumph.

France 17 Ireland 38 – February 2

Ireland emphatically dismissed any notion of a World Cup hangover by romping to a record win away to the pre-tournament favourites. Andy Farrell’s men took advantage of the absence of France talisman Antoine Dupont with a devastating display in Marseille, aided by Les Bleus losing lock Paul Willemse to a first-half red card. Tries from Jamison Gibson-Park and Tadhg Beirne helped subdue the home crowd before second-half scores from Calvin Nash, Dan Sheehan and Ronan Kelleher completed a stunning success at Stade Velodrome. Damian Penaud and Paul Gabrillagues touched down to give France hope of a fightback. But the hosts could not contain Ireland’s physicality, spearheaded by impressive tournament debutant Joe McCarthy.

Ireland 36 Italy 0 – February 11

The Azzurri arrived in Dublin buoyed by an encouraging three-point defeat to England before becoming the first team to be nilled by Ireland in the championship since the English in the 1987 Five Nations. Jack Crowley’s maiden senior try set a much-changed team captained by Caelan Doris on course for a routine success. Hooker Sheehan registered two of five further tries to take his tournament tally to three, while Jack Conan, James Lowe and Nash were also on the scoresheet. Ireland’s display could certainly have been more ruthless but it was more than enough to dispatch outclassed opposition who offered little attacking threat.

Ireland 31 Wales 7 – February 24

Ireland’s ominous march towards the title continued as they equalled England’s championship record of 11 consecutive wins. Tries from Sheehan and Lowe rewarded the home team’s first-half dominance in Dublin. A youthful Wales side avoided embarrassment at the Aviva Stadium thanks to a positive second-half spell which brought a penalty try and a yellow card for Beirne. But a first Test try for stand-in Ireland full-back Ciaran Frawley broke their resolve before Beirne atoned for his earlier error by securing the bonus point at the death on an afternoon when flawless fly-half Crowley, who has filled the void left by the retired Johnny Sexton, kicked 11 points.

England 23 Ireland 22 – March 9

Ireland’s dream of successive Grand Slams was extinguished by a dramatic late twist at Twickenham. The visitors were second best in south-west London but were seconds away from remaining on course for another clean sweep when Marcus Smith kicked a decisive drop goal in the final act of a thrilling affair to reward England’s standout performance of the Steve Borthwick era. Ireland had been overwhelming favourites for victory and led thanks to two tries from Lowe and four Crowley penalties. However, Ollie Lawrence, George Furbank and Ben Earl crossed for England, who pulled off an upset in memorable fashion to take the title race to the final weekend.

Ireland 17 Scotland 13  – March 16

Farrell’s hosts were well below their free-flowing best in Dublin but avoided any major ‘Super Saturday’ drama to retain the championship title. Andrew Porter’s second-half try fatally broke the resistance of the stubborn Scots to ignite the St Patrick’s weekend celebrations and satisfy an expectant capacity crowd at the Aviva Stadium. Hooker Sheehan set Ireland on course for glory – and a 10th successive win over Scotland – with an opportunistic first-half score, while Crowley kicked seven points.