Ireland, this year's Triple Crown winners, dominated every facet of play, including the penalty count, as the Irish forwards overpowered the tourists to allow flyhalf Ronan O'Gara to orchestrate the two tries to nil win.

The match got underway in atrocious conditions with gale force winds, rain and a chill factor of just six degrees celsius and it was the home team that adapted to the conditions the best.

A Stirling Mortlock penalty goal in the fourth minute opened the scoring, but from then on it was all Ireland. Running into the teeth of vicious wind, the home team kept the ball in hand in the first stanza and threatened the Australian line almost from the outset.

Ireland went desperately close to scoring the first try in the 12th minute when fullback Geordan Murphy was on the end of a backline movement inside the Wallabies 22. But Australian fullback Chris Latham produced a great diving tackle to bring down the flying No.15 just inches before the line.

With Ireland denied the try, the South African referee brought the play back for an Irish penalty, which O'Gara bounced off the right upright and over the crossbar to level the scores.

Ireland continued to attack and after peppering the Wallabies line with phase play, winger Denis Hickie, in the team for the injured Andrew Trimble, eventually got the try after catching a crossfield kick from O'Gara five out from the Australian try-line and jinking inside the cover defence to crash over the line.

O'Gara missed the conversion but in a worse result for Australia, flyhalf Stephen Larkham, who had been injured earlier when making a ball-and-all tackle, was forced from the field and was replaced by Mat Rogers.

Ireland landed a killer blow on the stroke of halftime when they won a lineout against the throw and launched an attack 35 metres out from the Australian line. O'Gara again found a gap in the backline and, with an overlap on the right wing, Murphy strolled over for Ireland's second try and a 15-3 half-time lead.

Mortlock and O'Gara traded penalties to start the second half before an off-the-ball altercation between Phil Waugh and Denis Leamy resulted in both players being sent to the sin bin, with Mat Rogers, the third man in, also given a 10 minute spell on the sideline.

Wallabies coach John Connolly emptied the bench in the second half giving Benn Robinson, George Smith, Stephen Moore, Scott Staniforth, Josh Valentine and Al Campbell a run but it was to no avail as the Irish forwards continued to dominate in the slippery conditions.

The rest of second half degraded into a messy affair as both teams looked exhausted and another O'Gara penalty was the only score in the last 30 minutes of play.

Hickie went close to scoring his second try late in the match but another great cover tackle from Latham denied the Irishman and the score remained 21-6.

Ireland 21
Tries: Denis Hickie, Geordan Murphy
Conversions: Ronan O'Gara
Penalty goals: O'Gara 3

Wallabies 6
Penalty Goals: Mortlock 2

Sportal