Reigning champions Ireland will look to secure a strong start under interim head coach Simon Easterby, while England aim to repeat their 2024 triumph when they secured a last-minute victory over the men in green at the Allianz Stadium.
Head-to-head
Ireland and England have met on 142 occasions, with England claiming 81 victories to Ireland’s 53 (and eight draws).
Recent history between these two sides has been closely contested. In their most recent encounter during the 2024 Six Nations, England emerged victorious in a dramatic finish in London, with Marcus Smith’s late drop goal denying Ireland a second successive Grand Slam. This was first time this fixture had been won by the team who trailed at the break since the 1996 Five Nations (England 28-15 Ireland).
However, prior to that, Ireland had dominated the encounter, winning four consecutive fixtures with commanding performances.
Ireland’s overall form at home is formidable, and the Aviva Stadium has often been a fortress for them.
Both teams stuttered in their Autumn Nations Series campaigns last year, but this match represents an opportunity to start 2025 with a major scalp.
Form Guide
The defending champions head into the tournament with high expectations but face questions about their consistency following a mixed Autumn Nations Series.
Simon Easterby’s side – on an interim basis, at least - suffered a disappointing defeat to New Zealand and laboured to narrow victories against Australia and Argentina, raising concerns about a potential decline in their dominance. Former England international Austin Healey said: “In the autumn I went to every one of those games and if I had been on the opposition facing them now in the next game, I wouldn’t have the same fear factor.”
Nevertheless, Ireland possesses an experienced squad, led by the talismanic Caelan Doris, and will be motivated to start their campaign with a statement win at home.
England’s fortunes have been on the rise under Steve Borthwick, who continues to reshape his squad. Last year’s Six Nations campaign showed moments of promise, but inconsistency proved their downfall. They ended 2024 on a high note, though, with a strong performance against Japan in the Autumn Nations Series.
Maro Itoje’s elevation to full-time captain will be a focal point for the visitors. His leadership, alongside the creativity of Marcus Smith at fly-half and the physicality of Ollie Chessum in the pack, will be pivotal as England seek to upset the champions in their own backyard. England’s squad has also been bolstered by the return of Alex Mitchell at scrum-half, adding further dynamism to their backline options.
Team News
Ireland
Tadhg Furlong has been ruled out of the opening week’s game after suffering a recurrence of a calf strain in training on Saturday and he has returned to Dublin for further assessment. Ireland will issue an update later in the week. Connacht’s Jack Aungier has been called up to the squad. Leinster trio Jack Boyle, James Lowe and Dan Sheehan linked up with the Ireland squad on Sunday morning, while Connacht scrum-half Caolin Blade will also arrive on Monday.
England
Maro Itoje takes over as captain from Jamie George, bringing his unique leadership style to a group looking to make a statement in Dublin. Scrum-half Alex Mitchell is set to be fit for England's Six Nations meeting with Ireland in Dublin on Saturday. England boss Borthwick was hit by a string of withdrawals at the start of last week, with Jamie George, Alex Coles, Alex Dombrandt and Jack van Poortvliet all dropping out of the squad.
Stats dive
Both teams have historically made a strong start in the Guinness Men’s Six Nations: each nation boasts a 72% win rate, winning 18 Round 1 fixtures, which is more than any other side in the Championship.
The Aviva Stadium has become a fortress for Ireland in recent years as they have lost just two of their last 29 home fixtures in the Guinness Men’s Six Nations (W25D2), a run stretching back to the end of the 2013 campaign. However, one of their two defeats in that run came against England in their opening game of the Championship in 2019 (also v France in 2021).
England have trailed at half time in each of their five matches in last year's Guinness Men’s Six Nations, the first time they've trailed at the break in every match of a campaign since the 1974 Five Nations. But they won three of those matches, and no side has ever recorded as many second-half comebacks in an edition of the Championship.
Both team like attack, with both making 48 attacking 22 entries n the 2024 Guinness Men’s Six Nations, the most of any side in last year’s championship, however, England scored the fewest points per entry of any team (2.1), while Ireland scored the second (2.8) behind Scotland (2.9).
