Johnny Sexton: A Grand Slam is better than the best day of my life | Steve Borthwick: Freddie Steward didn’t make a tackle

Ireland’s Johnny Sexton describes his team’s Grand Slam victory as “special, incredible, a dream come true” and “better than the best day of my life”; England’s Steve Borthwick inquired about the red card given to Freddie Steward, saying: ‘What was clear there, was that Freddie wasn’t trying to tackle’

Johnny Sexton said leading Ireland to a Six Nations major for the first time in Dublin was ‘better than the best day of my life’, while England manager Steve Borthwick questioned Freddie Steward’s red card saying: ‘He wasn’t trying to get involved. “

Former Ireland Grand Slam winners in 1948 (Belfast), 2009 (Cardiff) and 2018 (Twickenham) away from home, but tries from hooker Dan Sheehan (two), center Robbie Henshaw and substitute Rob Herring ensured he won the title. success.

Sexton also added nine points with the boot in his final Six Nations test, becoming the tournament’s leading run-scorer in the process.

“The atmosphere was unbelievable. Very special,” Sexton said at the post-match press conference after winning a medal.

Please use the Chrome browser for an easily accessible video player

Ireland coach Andy Farrell says he is happy to win a Grand Slam on home soil while England’s Steve Borthwick admits his team fell short

“We had probably a 98 per cent crowd, it was unbelievable. And the fair play for England the way they turned out. It says a lot about their captain and their coach.”

“They made it hard and we made it hard on ourselves. I’m sure we’ll take a lot to learn from it, but for now, we’ll only get to enjoy it for 48 hours.

“They definitely don’t come around often [days like this]. The fourth time ever shows just how hard it is. And this is very difficult because playing for your country means a lot.

“We won a major championship, it’s a pinch-your-own moment. You can’t really make it up. It’s the stuff of dreams.”

Sexton became the Six Nations’ leading point scorer of all time during the victory

“Growing up, all you wanted to do was play for Ireland and for me, I don’t know why, but I always wanted to captain Ireland.

“[Head coach Andy Farrell] I was asked, and it was probably the best day of my life, and getting this day, it’s even better.

“A great management team, a great group of players and I said in the dressing room there, this is not the end, there is a lot in this team.”

Irish coach Andy Farrell added, “It’s a strange feeling at this moment in time, I’m just glad the boys crossed the line because it meant so much to them. Especially being here at home, only the fourth” in Irish history.

Andy Farrell, the Ireland coach, said he was “incredibly proud” of his duties

“It’s a special occasion, especially with the weekend that it’s been. We felt a duty that we couldn’t let people down, and I would say there’s a sense of relief to get the job done.

“But I’m so proud. Grand slams don’t end on a night like this, they weren’t done over seven weeks but the entire time we were together.”

A hugely important moment came shortly before the break, as foul play by Steward – taking out Hugo Keenan with a tucked arm, making contact with the Irish full-back’s head – resulted in a red card as South African referee Jacco Pepper asserted he could not find relief.

As for Borthwick, the linebacker wasn’t seeking to interfere with the incident, though.

“If we’re talking about the height of the ball, we can have a conversation about the height of the ball, that’s fine,” Borthwick said.

“But what was clear there was that Freddie (the steward) wasn’t trying to intervene.

Referee Jacko Pepper sent Freddie Steward off for making contact with Hugo Keenan

“There will be disciplinary action, and it is not right for anyone and now I am going to bring up the particular incident.

“But it’s not about addressing height.

“Congratulations to this Irish team on winning a Grand Slam. You can see how they’ve built in this World Cup tournament, and they’ve done really well through these Six Nations.”

On the red card, England captain Owen Farrell added: “I was surprised if I’m being honest. But it’s not up to us, we don’t make the rules, we don’t put them in place.”

“We don’t hear the process the referee goes through, we just had to accept it.

“I thought the match was a great competition, a great test match and the way we coped after that red card was very good. We fought for each other.

“Unfortunately, we didn’t get to the right side of the score, which is always disappointing in an England shirt.”