Wallace wants action replay against Scots
David Wallace hopes history will repeat itself when his Test rebirth continues in Ireland’s RBS 6 Nations collision with Scotland.
Wallace has emerged from the international wilderness to nail down a regular spot in Eddie O’Sullivan’s side, starting all three of this season’s Six Nations matches.
The Munster flanker ran in the opening try as Ireland romped to a 31-5 victory over Wales yesterday, strengthening his control of the number seven jersey.
Next up on Ireland’s Six Nations hit list are Scotland, who travel to Lansdowne Road in little under two weeks time with the major scalps of England and France under their belts.
Wallace has fond memories of his last appearance against the Scots in 2004 after touching down on the day Ireland clinched their first Triple Crown since 1985.
Frank Hadden’s Scotland will be a different proposition this time around and Wallace is braced for a bruising encounter.
“My run in the team has done a lot for me. Your confidence can dip if you don’t get a regular run in the side,” he said.
“It’s great to get some consistency. This season is going well for me. Now I have to keep up the standard.
“I scored a try last time I played Scotland. It was a great day. I came in from the blue after watching Ireland’s previous games from home.
“I got my chance when Keith Gleeson was injured and it was brilliant to be part of that Triple Crown side. It would be great to do that again.
“Scotland played a really aggressive, in your face defence against England and deserved to win. It will be a tough match in two weeks.”
Wales made a blistering start with Ireland forced to repel waves of attacks and it was little surprise when winger Mark Jones touched down in the eighth minute.
But the departure of fly-half Stephen Jones with a dead leg in the 22nd minute - Gavin Henson came on as replacement and had a shocker – saw the pendulum swing in Ireland’s favour.
They crossed through Wallace, man of the match Shane Horgan and the impressive Peter Stringer to breath new life into their Six Nations title challenge.
“You have to be happy with a scoreline like 31-5 because Wales came over here as Grand Slam champions,” said Wallace.
“They came at us hard in the opening 20 minutes. They had a lot of possession and attacked us with pace and power, making a lot of inroads.
“Thankfully our defence was good and in the second half there was no go forward ball for them. It was a concern when we were under that much pressure.
“Games will usually swing one way or the other so you just have to ride out the storm. After that we were able to deal with their attack.
“It’s hard to know what turned the tide in our favour. Our defence really stepped up a gear after 15 minutes and maybe that was it. We put a lot of pressure on them.”
