Ireland v England: A history of five Grand Slam showdowns

• Published date: 18 March 2023

Throughout his tenure as Ireland head coach, but especially since last summer's tour to New Zealand, Farrell has extolled the virtues of embracing adversity and not looking for excuses when faced with challenging circumstances

He's fostered a culture that enabled an historic first victory in New Zealand and Test series win against the All Blacks, a drawn series with the Maori All Blacks, a clean sweep in November and, despite missing several frontline players at various stages through injury, an unbeaten run to this stage of the Six Nations Championship, where Ireland stands on the threshold of a fourth Grand Slam.

For the sixth time since the inaugural Six Nations in 2000 England and Ireland meet with a Grand Slam at stake for one or other country; only once, in 2003, were both teams chasing a clean sweep of victories in the tournament. On that occasion England administered a hefty 42-6...