England Saxons bounce back to beat Ireland A

As Six Nations season approaches rapidly, the England Saxons hosted Ireland A at the Recreation Ground in Bath on Sunday. The Saxons avenged last years Churchill Cup loss with a 17-13 victory.

Shane Geraghty did his bit to make England boss Martin Johnson pencil him in as having what it takes to be part of the senior side over the next few months. He scored 12 points, including a try, and looks back to his best.

"I think my tackling has improved and my goal kicking got better as we went along.

"But it wasn't about making points for the England management - it was more about playing better than I did for Northampton against Munster last week," said Geraghty.

The more experienced Irish side would have hoped to continued their good run of form, but were denied by an England side that attacked well, then defended solidly when required to.

"As a team we have to be happy to win given their experience and the hiding we took last June, Geraghty added.

"This is a huge turnaround for us - especially considering Ireland added Peter Stringer and Paddy Wallace to their squad. Mentally we had unfinished business from the summer when we were outmuscled."

Both tries were classily done, with Geraghty scoring the one and David Strettle finishing after a nicely timed pass by Ben Youngs. For Ireland A it was Chris Henry who got them back in the match after a nice piece of play by Isaac Boss.


Time: 04:46

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