Substitute Marcus Smith scored a last-minute drop goal as England beat Ireland 23-22 in their Six Nations clash at Twickenham on Saturday.
The shock result denied the Irishman a chance at back-to-back Grand Slam appearances, as his second-best performance in front of fans came from the Red Rose.
Tries from Ollie Lawrence, George Furbank and Ben Earl, as well as conversions from George Ford and Smith, the latter scoring a late drop goal, sealed the win.
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The Achilles' heel of failing to capitalize on the visiting 22 looked to be affecting England once again, with the 8-6 lead a poor reaction to 30 minutes of dominance that resulted in just one try from Lawrence. Ta.
But they rallied in the closing stages and looked to have given Ireland victory when they absorbed a 72nd-minute try from James Rowe, only to see Smith through in a desperate late attack.
England were dazzling from the start and the first try put Firbank's influence on full display, launching a counter-attack and contributing to the flash of the ball to Lawrence, who finished into the left corner.
The early scores inspired England to mount a full-fledged onslaught, with contributions from manager Ford, Earl, Ollie Chetham and Immanuel Fay-Waboso, making his full debut.
Bundy's Aki was Ireland's main weapon, landing on every carry, but as the White Shirts pressed again he swam against the current and Lawrence's second try was canceled out for a knock-on.
Gone were the devastating handling errors and turnovers that kept Scotland in the third round of the Calcutta Cup, replaced by players running hard into flat passes and opening holes in the opposition defence.
However, despite the hosts' superiority, Jack Crowley's consecutive penalties put them 9-8 up and Ireland launched their first sustained attack when the fly-half converted his fourth shot from the tee. decided.
England were guilty of inviting pressure when Ford missed a routine penalty and Firbank took a touch on the ball, but it was only in the 44th minute that their lines were breached for the first time, when the opposition conceded Henry Slade in front of goal. It was a killer instinct that utilized positioning. Blitz defense calls up a try for Lowe.
Firbank raced into the left-hand corner after some clever approach work from his teammate and hit back quickly, but suddenly the pendulum swung again.
When Ireland captain Peter O'Mahony was sent to the sin-bin for trying to get into a ruck, England seized the chance, smashing their way through Route 1 and smashing the green wall until Earl forced his way through.
Smith replaced Ford and Danny Care came on for his 100th cap, but the Harlequins fly-half was unable to stop Rowe's desperate late tackle attempt as Ireland edged back in front. Ta.
Elliot Daly missed with a long-range penalty shot, but there was still time for England to evoke a Six Nations victory, with Smith splitting the post after his team were beaten in a whitewash.
team
England: 15 George Furbank, 14 Immanuel Fay-Waboso, 13 Henry Slade, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 11 Tommy Freeman, 10 George Ford, 9 Alex Mitchell, 8 Ben Earl, 7 Sam Underhill, 6 Olly Chetham, 5 George Martin, 4 Maro Itoje, 3 Dan Cole, 2 Jamie George (c), 1 Ellis Genge
Replacement: 16 Theo Dunn, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stewart, 19 Chandler Cunningham-South, 20 Alex Dombrandt, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith, 23 Elliot Daly
Ireland: 15 Hugo Keenan, 14 Calvin Nash, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 12 Bundy Aki, 11 James Lowe, 10 Jack Crowley, 9 Jamison Gibson Park, 8 Sheeran Doris, 7 Josh van der Flier , 6 Peter O'Mahony (c), 5 Tajig Beirne, 4 Joe McCarthy, 3 Tajig Furlong, 2 Dan Sheehan, 1 Andrew Porter
Replacement: 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Ian Henderson, 20 Ryan Baird, 21 Jack Conan, 22 Conor Murray, 23 Ciaran Frawley
Referee: Nika Amashkeli (Georgia)
Assistant referee: Andrea Piardi (Italy), Craig Evans (Wales)
TMO: Ben Whitehouse (Wales)
read more: Steve Borthwick vs. Andy Farrell: England and Ireland managers clash in heated half-time battle
