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Six Nations: France 19-24 Wales
By Dafydd Pritchard
Tomos Williams scored Wales' opening try on his first Six Nations appearance
Six Nations: France v Wales
France (16) 19
Tries: Picamoles, Huget Pens: Lopez 2 Drop-goal: Lopez
Wales (0) 24
Tries: T Williams, North 2 Cons: Anscombe 2, Biggar Pens: Biggar
Wales made a dramatic winning start to the Six Nations as they staged a second-half revival to beat France.
The hosts started superbly and surged into a 16-0 half-time lead with tries from Louis Picamoles and Yoann Huget.
After an error-strewn first 40 minutes, Wales were unrecognisable in the second as Tomos Williams and George North crossed to put them 17-16 ahead.
Lopez put France back in front but North intercepted a wild pass to sprint clear to seal Wales' 10th straight win.
The match-winning score came after a moment of madness from French lock Sebastien Vahaamahina, who undermined his side's earlier good work by throwing a recklessly high-risk miss-pass which North picked off and juggled before speeding to the line.
The British and Irish Lions wing had shown a similarly predatory instinct for his first try, pouncing on Huget's calamitous fumble on his own line.
It was fitting that Wales' triumph should come from their ability to seize on French mistakes, as this was a match littered with errors and defined by wildly fluctuating swings of momentum.
For Wales, it was also a result of huge relief after a first half which threatened to derail their Six Nations before it had begun in earnest.
A clean sweep of victories in the autumn series earlier this season had helped build a groundswell of optimism around Welsh rugby with this year's World Cup on the horizon.
Yet that sense of buoyancy threatened to be punctured by a limp first 40 minutes, ruthlessly exploited by an impressive French side.
But Wales' second-half resurgence turned the game on its head and secured a 10th successive win for the first time since 1999.
Wales' nightmare start
France's number eight Louis Picamoles' opening try was his first ever against Wales
Wales head coach Warren Gatland had declared in typically bullish fashion that he believed his side would go on to win the Six Nations if they triumphed in Paris.
The New Zealander had some reason to be optimistic, having led Wales to seven victories from their 13 meetings with France during his reign.
However, last year's defeat - a chaotic match which ended with 20 minutes of added time - meant Gatland had lost on three of his five visits to the Stade de France with Wales.
This, his final trip to the French capital as Wales coach, he hoped would be a different story - and it was, in as much as this was nothing like the tight contests these two sides have produced in recent years.
Instead, Wales were blown away by a French side playing their best rugby for an age.
Having handed France the initiative with Picamoles' sixth-minute try - well finished, albeit against less than fierce tackling - Wales faced torrential pressure in the early exchanges.
The visitors made matters worse with a raft of handling errors and missed tackles and, even when they fashioned a scoring opportunity, they squandered it.
Liam Williams, one of the few bright sparks for Wales in the first half with his menacing runs in open play, had supporting runners either side of him when he broke clear but, after ignoring them, he crossed the line only for his try to be disallowed by the television match official as replays showed him to have knocked on.
After Huget crossed for France's second try, Wales were staring at a heavy defeat but, after some wayward goal-kicking from Morgan Parra a half-time deficit of 16-0 felt like some form of mercy for Gatland's men.
More to come.
France: 15-Maxime Medard, 14-Damian Penaud, 13-Wesley Fofana, 12-Romain Ntamack, 11-Yoann Huget, 10-Camille Lopez, 9-Morgan Parra; 1-Jefferson Poirot, 2-Guilhem Guirado (capt), 3-Uini Atonio, 4-Sebastien Vahaamahina, 5-Paul Willemse, 6-Wenceslas Lauret, 7-Arthur Iturria, 8-Louis Picamoles
Replacements: 16-Julien Marchand, 17-Dany Priso, 18-Demba Bamba, 19-Felix Lambey, 20-Gregory Alldritt, 21-Baptiste Serin, 22-Gael Fickou, 23-Geoffrey Doumayrou
Wales: 15-Liam Williams, 14-George North, 13-Jonathan Davies, 12-Hadleigh Parkes, 11-Josh Adams, 10-Gareth Anscombe, 9-Tomos Williams; 1-Rob Evans, 2-Ken Owens, 3-Tomas Francis, 4-Alun Wyn Jones (capt), 5-Adam Beard, 6-Josh Navidi, 7-Justin Tipuric, 8-Ross Moriarty
Replacements: 16-Elliot Dee, 17-Wyn Jones, 18-Samson Lee, 19-Cory Hill, 20-Aaron Wainwright, 21-Gareth Davies, 22-Dan Biggar, 23-Owen Watkin
Match officials
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Touch judges: Matthew Carley (England) & Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (England)
Swami
By Dafydd Pritchard
Tomos Williams scored Wales' opening try on his first Six Nations appearance
Six Nations: France v Wales
France (16) 19
Tries: Picamoles, Huget Pens: Lopez 2 Drop-goal: Lopez
Wales (0) 24
Tries: T Williams, North 2 Cons: Anscombe 2, Biggar Pens: Biggar
Wales made a dramatic winning start to the Six Nations as they staged a second-half revival to beat France.
The hosts started superbly and surged into a 16-0 half-time lead with tries from Louis Picamoles and Yoann Huget.
After an error-strewn first 40 minutes, Wales were unrecognisable in the second as Tomos Williams and George North crossed to put them 17-16 ahead.
Lopez put France back in front but North intercepted a wild pass to sprint clear to seal Wales' 10th straight win.
The match-winning score came after a moment of madness from French lock Sebastien Vahaamahina, who undermined his side's earlier good work by throwing a recklessly high-risk miss-pass which North picked off and juggled before speeding to the line.
The British and Irish Lions wing had shown a similarly predatory instinct for his first try, pouncing on Huget's calamitous fumble on his own line.
It was fitting that Wales' triumph should come from their ability to seize on French mistakes, as this was a match littered with errors and defined by wildly fluctuating swings of momentum.
For Wales, it was also a result of huge relief after a first half which threatened to derail their Six Nations before it had begun in earnest.
A clean sweep of victories in the autumn series earlier this season had helped build a groundswell of optimism around Welsh rugby with this year's World Cup on the horizon.
Yet that sense of buoyancy threatened to be punctured by a limp first 40 minutes, ruthlessly exploited by an impressive French side.
But Wales' second-half resurgence turned the game on its head and secured a 10th successive win for the first time since 1999.
Wales' nightmare start
France's number eight Louis Picamoles' opening try was his first ever against Wales
Wales head coach Warren Gatland had declared in typically bullish fashion that he believed his side would go on to win the Six Nations if they triumphed in Paris.
The New Zealander had some reason to be optimistic, having led Wales to seven victories from their 13 meetings with France during his reign.
However, last year's defeat - a chaotic match which ended with 20 minutes of added time - meant Gatland had lost on three of his five visits to the Stade de France with Wales.
This, his final trip to the French capital as Wales coach, he hoped would be a different story - and it was, in as much as this was nothing like the tight contests these two sides have produced in recent years.
Instead, Wales were blown away by a French side playing their best rugby for an age.
Having handed France the initiative with Picamoles' sixth-minute try - well finished, albeit against less than fierce tackling - Wales faced torrential pressure in the early exchanges.
The visitors made matters worse with a raft of handling errors and missed tackles and, even when they fashioned a scoring opportunity, they squandered it.
Liam Williams, one of the few bright sparks for Wales in the first half with his menacing runs in open play, had supporting runners either side of him when he broke clear but, after ignoring them, he crossed the line only for his try to be disallowed by the television match official as replays showed him to have knocked on.
After Huget crossed for France's second try, Wales were staring at a heavy defeat but, after some wayward goal-kicking from Morgan Parra a half-time deficit of 16-0 felt like some form of mercy for Gatland's men.
More to come.
France: 15-Maxime Medard, 14-Damian Penaud, 13-Wesley Fofana, 12-Romain Ntamack, 11-Yoann Huget, 10-Camille Lopez, 9-Morgan Parra; 1-Jefferson Poirot, 2-Guilhem Guirado (capt), 3-Uini Atonio, 4-Sebastien Vahaamahina, 5-Paul Willemse, 6-Wenceslas Lauret, 7-Arthur Iturria, 8-Louis Picamoles
Replacements: 16-Julien Marchand, 17-Dany Priso, 18-Demba Bamba, 19-Felix Lambey, 20-Gregory Alldritt, 21-Baptiste Serin, 22-Gael Fickou, 23-Geoffrey Doumayrou
Wales: 15-Liam Williams, 14-George North, 13-Jonathan Davies, 12-Hadleigh Parkes, 11-Josh Adams, 10-Gareth Anscombe, 9-Tomos Williams; 1-Rob Evans, 2-Ken Owens, 3-Tomas Francis, 4-Alun Wyn Jones (capt), 5-Adam Beard, 6-Josh Navidi, 7-Justin Tipuric, 8-Ross Moriarty
Replacements: 16-Elliot Dee, 17-Wyn Jones, 18-Samson Lee, 19-Cory Hill, 20-Aaron Wainwright, 21-Gareth Davies, 22-Dan Biggar, 23-Owen Watkin
Match officials
Referee: Wayne Barnes (England)
Touch judges: Matthew Carley (England) & Brendon Pickerill (New Zealand)
TMO: Rowan Kitt (England)
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Telly Talk Supreme
Six Nations: Blair Kinghorn scores hat-trick as Scotland beat Italy
By Tom English
Six Nations: Blair Kinghorn hat-trick seals opening Scotland win v Italy
Six Nations: Scotland v Italy
Scotland (12) 33
Tries: Kinghorn (3), Hogg, Harris Cons: Laidlaw (3), Russell
Italy (3) 20
Tries: Palazzani, Padovani, Esposito Con: Allan Pen: Allan
Blair Kinghorn scored a hat-trick as Scotland beat Italy to record a seventh consecutive home Six Nations victory.
The hosts trailed to a Tommaso Allan penalty, but wing Kinghorn finished off two imaginative first-half moves as the hosts asserted their authority.
Stuart Hogg touched down a Finn Russell grubber, before Kinghorn jinked through for his sixth try in eight Tests.
Chris Harris crossed before Guglielmo Palazzani, Edoardo Padovani and Angelo Esposito scored late consolation tries.
It was a disappointing conclusion to a bonus-point win for Gregor Townsend's side, who played the last 10 minutes with 14 men after prop Simon Berghan was yellow carded.
But the victory still marks just the third time in 20 attempts that Scotland have won a Six Nations opener.
Scotland's dominance, if not their sharp decision-making, started early and never, ever let up. The hosts could have - and should have - scored twice in the opening five minutes, big and handsome overlaps being ignored and opportunities wasted as a result.
Greig Laidlaw missed the first one, opting to go himself instead of finding Jamie Ritchie outside him. Kinghorn wasted the second. The wing, who made amends in a thunderous way later on, had Stuart Hogg and Tommy Seymour with him and failed to spot either of them.
In the middle of all of this, Grant Gilchrist plonked the ball on the Italian line but got done for a double movement.
Bizarre, then, that Italy took the lead with an Allan penalty, but that was a short-lived lead. The mismatch played out soon enough.
For much of the day, Scotland used their kicking game to pin Italy back in their own 22, and then put fierce pressure on the visitors as they attempted to exit. At times, the variety in Scotland's attack bamboozled the visitors.
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'What a start' Kinghorn double gives Scotland lead
The rewards were initially slow to appear on the scoreboard, but Kinghorn got the process started in the 12th minute. Italy lost control of ruck ball and Scotland made them pay, Russell spotting Kinghorn alone on the left wing. The fly-half's cross-kick was precise and the wing darted over.
Scotland lost Sam Skinner straight away, Josh Strauss coming on in his place with Ryan Wilson moving to blind-side. Strauss showed up well.
A second score came at the beginning of the second quarter, a Tommaso Castello fumble near his own posts gifting the Scots a scrum. From there, it was all about the home team slicing through impetuous and porous Italian defence.
From right to left, Laidlaw shifted the point of the attack from the back of the scrum. Russell ran a wraparound play with Sam Johnson, who was terrific on his debut. Huw Jones' decoy run took away some Italian defenders, Russell took away another, Hogg took away three more when he got on the ball, and then got his pass way to Kinghorn.
The wing ran it in and Laidlaw converted and Scotland led 12-3. It stayed that way until half-time, which was a surprise given the one-sidedness of the game and the non-existence of the Italians as an attacking force.
Scots pour on pain, then switch off
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'A lovely little dink' - Hogg extends Scotland's lead
Scotland poured on the pain after the break. A set-play off a line-out and Seymour's scything break were the catalyst for the third try. With a penalty advantage, Russell grubbered for Hogg, who got there a millimetre ahead of Esposito. The conversion made it 19-3.
Kinghorn's hat-trick came soon after, Ritchie running a gorgeous line to send Italy scrambling again. Laidlaw fed it on to Kinghorn, who dummied his way through a wretchedly soft visiting defence. For a wing who probably would not have been in the team had it not been for Sean Maitland's injury, it was a hell of a moment and was Scotland's first Six Nations hat-trick.
You have got to go all the way back to March 1989 and Iwan Tukalo to find Scotland's last treble in this competition, back when there were just the five teams.
A coruscating Hogg break was the spark for Scotland's fifth try. Hogg took Italy to the cleaners and found support in Russell and Strauss who put Harris over. Game done at 33-3.
What happened next was a Scottish shambles and an Italian freak show. Scotland emptied the bench, Berghan got binned, and the wheels fell off in the most gobsmacking way.
Palazzani sniped in from close range in the 71st minute, Padovani ran in an easy second, and more chaos in Scotland's defence gave Esposito a third.
Nobody was home at the back for Scotland. Nobody was switched-on. Three Italian tries in seven minutes took some of the feel-good out of it for the home crowd, who were not quite sure what to do, or think, at the end.
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Six Nations 2019: Townsend 'very pleased' with Scotland's winning start
Line-ups
Scotland: Hogg; Seymour, Jones, Johnson, Kinghorn; Russell, Laidlaw; Dell, McInally, Nel, Toolis, Gilchrist, Skinner, Ritchie, Wilson.
Replacements: Kerr (for McInally, 63), Bhatti (for Dell, 58), Berghan (for Nel, 50), Graham (for Wilson, 72), Strauss (for Skinner, 13), Price (for Laidlaw, 58), Hastings (for Russell, 76), Harris for Jones, 58).
Italy: Hayward; Esposito, Morisi, Castello, Campagnaro; Allan, Palazzani; Lovotti, Ghiraldini, Ferrari, Sisi, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse.
Replacements: Bigi (for Ghiraldini, 59), Traore (for Lovotti, 51) Pasquali (for Ferrari, 52), Tuivaiti (for Negri, 58), Ruzza (for Budd, 51), Benvenuti (for Morisi, 78), McKinley (for Allan, 26-35, then 71), Padovani (for Castello, 48).
Match officials
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Touch judges: Mathieu Raynal (France) & Shuhei Kubo (Japan)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)
Swami
By Tom English
Six Nations: Blair Kinghorn hat-trick seals opening Scotland win v Italy
Six Nations: Scotland v Italy
Scotland (12) 33
Tries: Kinghorn (3), Hogg, Harris Cons: Laidlaw (3), Russell
Italy (3) 20
Tries: Palazzani, Padovani, Esposito Con: Allan Pen: Allan
Blair Kinghorn scored a hat-trick as Scotland beat Italy to record a seventh consecutive home Six Nations victory.
The hosts trailed to a Tommaso Allan penalty, but wing Kinghorn finished off two imaginative first-half moves as the hosts asserted their authority.
Stuart Hogg touched down a Finn Russell grubber, before Kinghorn jinked through for his sixth try in eight Tests.
Chris Harris crossed before Guglielmo Palazzani, Edoardo Padovani and Angelo Esposito scored late consolation tries.
It was a disappointing conclusion to a bonus-point win for Gregor Townsend's side, who played the last 10 minutes with 14 men after prop Simon Berghan was yellow carded.
But the victory still marks just the third time in 20 attempts that Scotland have won a Six Nations opener.
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Scotland's dominance, if not their sharp decision-making, started early and never, ever let up. The hosts could have - and should have - scored twice in the opening five minutes, big and handsome overlaps being ignored and opportunities wasted as a result.
Greig Laidlaw missed the first one, opting to go himself instead of finding Jamie Ritchie outside him. Kinghorn wasted the second. The wing, who made amends in a thunderous way later on, had Stuart Hogg and Tommy Seymour with him and failed to spot either of them.
In the middle of all of this, Grant Gilchrist plonked the ball on the Italian line but got done for a double movement.
Bizarre, then, that Italy took the lead with an Allan penalty, but that was a short-lived lead. The mismatch played out soon enough.
For much of the day, Scotland used their kicking game to pin Italy back in their own 22, and then put fierce pressure on the visitors as they attempted to exit. At times, the variety in Scotland's attack bamboozled the visitors.
Media playback is not supported on this device
'What a start' Kinghorn double gives Scotland lead
The rewards were initially slow to appear on the scoreboard, but Kinghorn got the process started in the 12th minute. Italy lost control of ruck ball and Scotland made them pay, Russell spotting Kinghorn alone on the left wing. The fly-half's cross-kick was precise and the wing darted over.
Scotland lost Sam Skinner straight away, Josh Strauss coming on in his place with Ryan Wilson moving to blind-side. Strauss showed up well.
A second score came at the beginning of the second quarter, a Tommaso Castello fumble near his own posts gifting the Scots a scrum. From there, it was all about the home team slicing through impetuous and porous Italian defence.
From right to left, Laidlaw shifted the point of the attack from the back of the scrum. Russell ran a wraparound play with Sam Johnson, who was terrific on his debut. Huw Jones' decoy run took away some Italian defenders, Russell took away another, Hogg took away three more when he got on the ball, and then got his pass way to Kinghorn.
The wing ran it in and Laidlaw converted and Scotland led 12-3. It stayed that way until half-time, which was a surprise given the one-sidedness of the game and the non-existence of the Italians as an attacking force.
Scots pour on pain, then switch off
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'A lovely little dink' - Hogg extends Scotland's lead
Scotland poured on the pain after the break. A set-play off a line-out and Seymour's scything break were the catalyst for the third try. With a penalty advantage, Russell grubbered for Hogg, who got there a millimetre ahead of Esposito. The conversion made it 19-3.
Kinghorn's hat-trick came soon after, Ritchie running a gorgeous line to send Italy scrambling again. Laidlaw fed it on to Kinghorn, who dummied his way through a wretchedly soft visiting defence. For a wing who probably would not have been in the team had it not been for Sean Maitland's injury, it was a hell of a moment and was Scotland's first Six Nations hat-trick.
You have got to go all the way back to March 1989 and Iwan Tukalo to find Scotland's last treble in this competition, back when there were just the five teams.
A coruscating Hogg break was the spark for Scotland's fifth try. Hogg took Italy to the cleaners and found support in Russell and Strauss who put Harris over. Game done at 33-3.
What happened next was a Scottish shambles and an Italian freak show. Scotland emptied the bench, Berghan got binned, and the wheels fell off in the most gobsmacking way.
Palazzani sniped in from close range in the 71st minute, Padovani ran in an easy second, and more chaos in Scotland's defence gave Esposito a third.
Nobody was home at the back for Scotland. Nobody was switched-on. Three Italian tries in seven minutes took some of the feel-good out of it for the home crowd, who were not quite sure what to do, or think, at the end.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations 2019: Townsend 'very pleased' with Scotland's winning start
Line-ups
Scotland: Hogg; Seymour, Jones, Johnson, Kinghorn; Russell, Laidlaw; Dell, McInally, Nel, Toolis, Gilchrist, Skinner, Ritchie, Wilson.
Replacements: Kerr (for McInally, 63), Bhatti (for Dell, 58), Berghan (for Nel, 50), Graham (for Wilson, 72), Strauss (for Skinner, 13), Price (for Laidlaw, 58), Hastings (for Russell, 76), Harris for Jones, 58).
Italy: Hayward; Esposito, Morisi, Castello, Campagnaro; Allan, Palazzani; Lovotti, Ghiraldini, Ferrari, Sisi, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse.
Replacements: Bigi (for Ghiraldini, 59), Traore (for Lovotti, 51) Pasquali (for Ferrari, 52), Tuivaiti (for Negri, 58), Ruzza (for Budd, 51), Benvenuti (for Morisi, 78), McKinley (for Allan, 26-35, then 71), Padovani (for Castello, 48).
Match officials
Referee: Luke Pearce (England)
Touch judges: Mathieu Raynal (France) & Shuhei Kubo (Japan)
TMO: Simon McDowell (Ireland)
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Telly Talk Supreme
Six Nations: England beat Ireland 32-20 in Dublin
By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at the Aviva Stadium
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http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/rugby-union/47103166
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Farrell wins battle of fly-halves
Farrell led a brilliant defensive effort that subdued Ireland's attacking flair
It had been eight years since England's last Six Nations try in Dublin but they had to wait just 95 seconds more as Farrell struck first in his battle with opposite number Sexton.
After muscular carries into the Irish 22 from Tuilagi and Billy Vunipola England went left, and it was Farrell's fast, flat cut-out pass that put Daly in space to draw the last man and send May over in the corner.
Farrell landed the conversion from the touchline before Sexton's penalty brought a frantic contest back to 7-3, and on a freezing Dublin afternoon the men in green then turned up the heat.
England survived the sin-binning of 20-year-old flanker Tom Curry after his late hit on Keith Earls but could not hold out when Sexton kicked a penalty to the corner and Healy hammered over from a yard out.
But they struck back again when Daly's grubber kick through was juggled and spilt by Jacob Stockdale under pressure from Jack Nowell, Daly diving on the loose ball for the score and Farrell stroking over the conversion.
England's fly-half then struck a perfect penalty from out wide again after Mako Vunipola had been correctly denied a try for a double movement for a seven-point lead at the interval.
English defence proves critical
Prop Mako Vunipola led from the front with 23 tackles as England's pack stood up to Ireland's forwards
Ireland had not conceded as many first-half points in a Six Nations match in Dublin for 13 years, and had lost the last 20 games in which they were more than a point behind at half-time.
But after England failed to work a drop-goal after a long spell deep in Irish territory, Ulster's Stockdale hacked long, Kyle Sinckler was penalised for a late tackle on Garry Ringrose and Sexton reduced the margin to just four points.
With England lock Maro Itoje off injured the belief started to swell among the home support, the roars growing louder as Farrell missed a penalty - conceded by Sexton for hands in the ruck - that by his standards was straightforward.
Both sides freshened up their packs as the minutes ticked away and the tension grew.
And it was England who struck the pivotal blow with a fine move at pace from a scrum inside their own half.
Ben Youngs ran left, Slade threw a miss-pass out to May on the touchline and ran on to gather the winger's clever kick ahead to dive on the ball for England's third try.
Farrell again tugged the conversion wide but banged over a penalty moments later after replacement Courtney Lawes's big hit in midfield, and with the scoreboard showing 25-13 with less than 10 minutes left the choruses of England fans' anthem Swing Low began to sound.
Slade spotted Sexton's desperate pass in his own 22 and gathered brilliantly to slide over for his second try, and English celebrations could begin.
With only one more away match to come in this championship, a humdinger in Cardiff at the end of the month in round three, England at last have the momentum that had slipped away during a testing, turbulent 2018.
Man of the match: Mako Vunipola
Eddie Jones delighted with 'top of the class' Mako Vunipola
The beating heart of England's relentless defence, an all-encompassing performance from a prop whose absence through injury England had keenly felt.
What they said
Former England scrum-half Matt Dawson on BBC Radio 5 live: "If there was one team who was going to bloom in the last 20 minutes, you'd have thought it would be Ireland.
"But Ireland couldn't get out of their 22 and England capitalised. When you win in Dublin against the second-best team in the world, you are going to be flying for the rest of the tournament."
Former Ireland winger Denis Hickie: "I don't think Ireland have been overconfident. They will be very hard on themselves after that game.
"Ireland were favourites last year and won the Grand Slam then took that form into November. They just haven't played well enough today."
Six Nations 2019: England beat Ireland up - Schmidt
Line-ups
Ireland: Henshaw, Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale, Sexton, Murray, Healy, Best, Furlong, Toner, J. Ryan, O'Mahony, Van der Flier, Stander.
Replacements: Larmour for Earls (41), Carbery for Ringrose (73), Cooney for Murray (77), Kilcoyne for Healy (62), Cronin for Best (67), Porter for Furlong (62), Roux for Toner (57), O'Brien for Stander (65).
England: Daly, Nowell, Slade, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs, M. Vunipola, George, Sinckler, Itoje, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B. Vunipola.
Replacements: Ashton for Nowell (74), Ford for Tuilagi (77), Genge for M. Vunipola (77), Cowan-Dickie for George (77), Williams for Sinckler (65), Hughes for Itoje (54), Lawes for Kruis (53).
Not Used: Robson.
Sin-bin: Curry (13).
Swami
By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at the Aviva Stadium
- 1 hour ago
- From the section Rugby Union
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Reaction - Ireland v England live coverage
Farrell wins battle of fly-halves
Farrell led a brilliant defensive effort that subdued Ireland's attacking flair
It had been eight years since England's last Six Nations try in Dublin but they had to wait just 95 seconds more as Farrell struck first in his battle with opposite number Sexton.
After muscular carries into the Irish 22 from Tuilagi and Billy Vunipola England went left, and it was Farrell's fast, flat cut-out pass that put Daly in space to draw the last man and send May over in the corner.
Farrell landed the conversion from the touchline before Sexton's penalty brought a frantic contest back to 7-3, and on a freezing Dublin afternoon the men in green then turned up the heat.
England survived the sin-binning of 20-year-old flanker Tom Curry after his late hit on Keith Earls but could not hold out when Sexton kicked a penalty to the corner and Healy hammered over from a yard out.
But they struck back again when Daly's grubber kick through was juggled and spilt by Jacob Stockdale under pressure from Jack Nowell, Daly diving on the loose ball for the score and Farrell stroking over the conversion.
England's fly-half then struck a perfect penalty from out wide again after Mako Vunipola had been correctly denied a try for a double movement for a seven-point lead at the interval.
English defence proves critical
Prop Mako Vunipola led from the front with 23 tackles as England's pack stood up to Ireland's forwards
Ireland had not conceded as many first-half points in a Six Nations match in Dublin for 13 years, and had lost the last 20 games in which they were more than a point behind at half-time.
But after England failed to work a drop-goal after a long spell deep in Irish territory, Ulster's Stockdale hacked long, Kyle Sinckler was penalised for a late tackle on Garry Ringrose and Sexton reduced the margin to just four points.
With England lock Maro Itoje off injured the belief started to swell among the home support, the roars growing louder as Farrell missed a penalty - conceded by Sexton for hands in the ruck - that by his standards was straightforward.
Both sides freshened up their packs as the minutes ticked away and the tension grew.
And it was England who struck the pivotal blow with a fine move at pace from a scrum inside their own half.
Ben Youngs ran left, Slade threw a miss-pass out to May on the touchline and ran on to gather the winger's clever kick ahead to dive on the ball for England's third try.
Farrell again tugged the conversion wide but banged over a penalty moments later after replacement Courtney Lawes's big hit in midfield, and with the scoreboard showing 25-13 with less than 10 minutes left the choruses of England fans' anthem Swing Low began to sound.
Slade spotted Sexton's desperate pass in his own 22 and gathered brilliantly to slide over for his second try, and English celebrations could begin.
With only one more away match to come in this championship, a humdinger in Cardiff at the end of the month in round three, England at last have the momentum that had slipped away during a testing, turbulent 2018.
Man of the match: Mako Vunipola
Eddie Jones delighted with 'top of the class' Mako Vunipola
The beating heart of England's relentless defence, an all-encompassing performance from a prop whose absence through injury England had keenly felt.
What they said
Former England scrum-half Matt Dawson on BBC Radio 5 live: "If there was one team who was going to bloom in the last 20 minutes, you'd have thought it would be Ireland.
"But Ireland couldn't get out of their 22 and England capitalised. When you win in Dublin against the second-best team in the world, you are going to be flying for the rest of the tournament."
Former Ireland winger Denis Hickie: "I don't think Ireland have been overconfident. They will be very hard on themselves after that game.
"Ireland were favourites last year and won the Grand Slam then took that form into November. They just haven't played well enough today."
Six Nations 2019: England beat Ireland up - Schmidt
Line-ups
Ireland: Henshaw, Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale, Sexton, Murray, Healy, Best, Furlong, Toner, J. Ryan, O'Mahony, Van der Flier, Stander.
Replacements: Larmour for Earls (41), Carbery for Ringrose (73), Cooney for Murray (77), Kilcoyne for Healy (62), Cronin for Best (67), Porter for Furlong (62), Roux for Toner (57), O'Brien for Stander (65).
England: Daly, Nowell, Slade, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs, M. Vunipola, George, Sinckler, Itoje, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B. Vunipola.
Replacements: Ashton for Nowell (74), Ford for Tuilagi (77), Genge for M. Vunipola (77), Cowan-Dickie for George (77), Williams for Sinckler (65), Hughes for Itoje (54), Lawes for Kruis (53).
Not Used: Robson.
Sin-bin: Curry (13).
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Six Nations: Ireland defeat Scotland 22-13 at Murrayfield to get off the mark
By Tom English
We knew it was going to be attritional - and it was. We hoped it was going to an epic - and it was that, too. It was endlessly thunderous and endlessly fascinating. Scotland looking to put themselves in the hunt for the Six Nations championship for the first time against Ireland who were staying alive in defence of their title. Magnificent.
When Laidlaw put over a penalty to open the scoring it was the least the Scots deserved for an explosive beginning. When Ireland responded with a try from Murray it was a score that came against the run of play.
'That is brilliant' - Stockdale opens commanding Ireland lead
And it was hellish for the home side, a self-inflicted wound after Stockdale's kick ahead sparked bizarre confusion between Tommy Seymour and Sean Maitland. Seymour gathered it and threw a pass to his fellow wing that was too high and too ugly. Maitland got a hand to it but no more. When it went loose Murray pounced and scored.
Sexton missed a simple conversion, the first illustration, perhaps, that the physical pounding he'd been taking was having an impact. Sexton did not look himself out there.
Before the first quarter was over, Ireland had two huge moments. Firstly Hogg, a menace in the early exchanges, went off injured. Blair Kinghorn, the hat-trick hero of last week, came on for him. Next, they scored their second try.
Peter O'Mahony and Sexton worked a scissors play that put Stockdale away and the young wing had no bother executing it from there. Murray added the conversion and Ireland had a handsome 12-3 lead.
Scotland pretty much owned it for the rest of the half. Finn Russell orchestrated things wonderfully, his range of passing beautiful, his tactical kicking pin-sharp. He was a joy. In the physicality stakes, Scotland had some hardy boys to go toe-to-toe with Ireland's big men.
The entire home pack got on top of their opposite numbers for a spell and Scotland had chances. Josh Strauss, Jamie Ritchie and their switched-on brothers were immense. Sexton, battered and bruised, left the field after 24 minutes and soon the Scots were back in it.
Again, it was Russell who sparked it. He was still a mile from the Irish posts when intercepting Carbery and haring down field. For a second it looked like he might go all the way but Earls covered brilliantly and hauled him down. Russell stayed in the moment while on the floor, picking out Johnson's clever run. Johnson went over and Laidlaw converted and the gap reduced to two.
Six Nations: Was Hogg fouled before Ireland opener?
'Scotland had chances - and didn't take them'
Scotland had more chances - and didn't take them. More than 70% of the first half was played down Ireland's end of the pitch and the Scots couldn't bust the Irish defence. Just before the end of the half they were camped on Ireland's five-metre line for minutes on end, going through 25 phases and stretching Ireland almost to breaking point, but not quite.
You wondered then how significant that moment might prove at the end - and wondered once again after Ireland got their third try just before the hour. Rob Kearney provided the first thrust, then Carbery made amends for his earlier blunder by going through Allan Dell and Rob Harley and screamed away before flinging the try-making pass to Earls.
Carbery's conversion pushed the lead out to nine, Laidlaw's penalty brought it back to six but a penalty of his own from the Irish fly-half made it nine again.
The ferocity was uninterrupted, the tackle count on both sides stratospheric. Even with 10 minutes left to play, Scotland had made an astonishing 225 tackles and Ireland had 149. Dell, Grant Gilchrist, Jonny Gray, Ritchie and Strauss were in the mid-to-high 20s. Ireland's individual numbers weren't as eye-popping, but they were made to work like demons for everything they got.
They closed out the win, Scotland's pursuit of a losing bonus point crashing when they had an attacking line-out stolen from them, their third error out of touch. Ireland's defensive intensity snuffed them out. Joe Schmidt will be a relieved man. His counterpart, Gregor Townsend, will be deeply frustrated at missed chances and a missed opportunity.
Line-ups
Scotland: Hogg; Seymour, H Jones, Johnson, Maitland; Russell, Laidlaw; Dell, McInally, Berghan, Gilchrist, Gray, Wilson, Ritchie, Strauss.
Replacements: Kinghorn for Hogg (16), P. Horne for Johnson (64), Price for Laidlaw (69), Bhatti for Dell (69), Brown for McInally (64), Rae for Berghan (69).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, C Farrell, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best, Furlong, J Ryan, Roux, O'Mahony, O'Brien, Conan.
Replacements: Carbery for Sexton (23), (Larmour for Stockdale (72), Cooney for Murray (77), Kilcoyne for Healy (57), Cronin for Best (72), Porter for Furlong (68), Dillane for Roux (68), van der Flier for O'Brien (64).
Ref: Romain Poite (France).
Swami
By Tom English
We knew it was going to be attritional - and it was. We hoped it was going to an epic - and it was that, too. It was endlessly thunderous and endlessly fascinating. Scotland looking to put themselves in the hunt for the Six Nations championship for the first time against Ireland who were staying alive in defence of their title. Magnificent.
When Laidlaw put over a penalty to open the scoring it was the least the Scots deserved for an explosive beginning. When Ireland responded with a try from Murray it was a score that came against the run of play.
'That is brilliant' - Stockdale opens commanding Ireland lead
And it was hellish for the home side, a self-inflicted wound after Stockdale's kick ahead sparked bizarre confusion between Tommy Seymour and Sean Maitland. Seymour gathered it and threw a pass to his fellow wing that was too high and too ugly. Maitland got a hand to it but no more. When it went loose Murray pounced and scored.
Sexton missed a simple conversion, the first illustration, perhaps, that the physical pounding he'd been taking was having an impact. Sexton did not look himself out there.
Before the first quarter was over, Ireland had two huge moments. Firstly Hogg, a menace in the early exchanges, went off injured. Blair Kinghorn, the hat-trick hero of last week, came on for him. Next, they scored their second try.
Peter O'Mahony and Sexton worked a scissors play that put Stockdale away and the young wing had no bother executing it from there. Murray added the conversion and Ireland had a handsome 12-3 lead.
Scotland pretty much owned it for the rest of the half. Finn Russell orchestrated things wonderfully, his range of passing beautiful, his tactical kicking pin-sharp. He was a joy. In the physicality stakes, Scotland had some hardy boys to go toe-to-toe with Ireland's big men.
The entire home pack got on top of their opposite numbers for a spell and Scotland had chances. Josh Strauss, Jamie Ritchie and their switched-on brothers were immense. Sexton, battered and bruised, left the field after 24 minutes and soon the Scots were back in it.
Again, it was Russell who sparked it. He was still a mile from the Irish posts when intercepting Carbery and haring down field. For a second it looked like he might go all the way but Earls covered brilliantly and hauled him down. Russell stayed in the moment while on the floor, picking out Johnson's clever run. Johnson went over and Laidlaw converted and the gap reduced to two.
Six Nations: Was Hogg fouled before Ireland opener?
'Scotland had chances - and didn't take them'
Scotland had more chances - and didn't take them. More than 70% of the first half was played down Ireland's end of the pitch and the Scots couldn't bust the Irish defence. Just before the end of the half they were camped on Ireland's five-metre line for minutes on end, going through 25 phases and stretching Ireland almost to breaking point, but not quite.
You wondered then how significant that moment might prove at the end - and wondered once again after Ireland got their third try just before the hour. Rob Kearney provided the first thrust, then Carbery made amends for his earlier blunder by going through Allan Dell and Rob Harley and screamed away before flinging the try-making pass to Earls.
Carbery's conversion pushed the lead out to nine, Laidlaw's penalty brought it back to six but a penalty of his own from the Irish fly-half made it nine again.
The ferocity was uninterrupted, the tackle count on both sides stratospheric. Even with 10 minutes left to play, Scotland had made an astonishing 225 tackles and Ireland had 149. Dell, Grant Gilchrist, Jonny Gray, Ritchie and Strauss were in the mid-to-high 20s. Ireland's individual numbers weren't as eye-popping, but they were made to work like demons for everything they got.
They closed out the win, Scotland's pursuit of a losing bonus point crashing when they had an attacking line-out stolen from them, their third error out of touch. Ireland's defensive intensity snuffed them out. Joe Schmidt will be a relieved man. His counterpart, Gregor Townsend, will be deeply frustrated at missed chances and a missed opportunity.
Line-ups
Scotland: Hogg; Seymour, H Jones, Johnson, Maitland; Russell, Laidlaw; Dell, McInally, Berghan, Gilchrist, Gray, Wilson, Ritchie, Strauss.
Replacements: Kinghorn for Hogg (16), P. Horne for Johnson (64), Price for Laidlaw (69), Bhatti for Dell (69), Brown for McInally (64), Rae for Berghan (69).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, C Farrell, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best, Furlong, J Ryan, Roux, O'Mahony, O'Brien, Conan.
Replacements: Carbery for Sexton (23), (Larmour for Stockdale (72), Cooney for Murray (77), Kilcoyne for Healy (57), Cronin for Best (72), Porter for Furlong (68), Dillane for Roux (68), van der Flier for O'Brien (64).
Ref: Romain Poite (France).
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Six Nations: Wales beat Italy 26-15 to equal record run of victories
By Gareth Griffiths
BBC Sport Wales at the Stadio Olimpico
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Gatland hopes Wales 'go under the radar' before England showdown
Former England scrum-half Matt Dawson had described Wales' alterations as risky, despite the opposition, although Gatland had made as many last year when Wales defeated Italy 38-14 in March to start the current run of wins.
Not many of the new Wales inclusions in this experimental side made compelling cases to start against Eddie Jones' side in two weeks, although Wasps flanker Thomas Young impressed on his Six Nations debut.
Centre Jonathan Davies captained Wales for the first time while flankers Young and Aaron Wainwright, wing Jonah Holmes and scrum-half Aled Davies all made their first Six Nations starts.
Josh Navidi was named man of the match after moving to number eight with Ross Moriarty dropping to the bench, alongside usual captain Alun Wyn Jones.
Italy have now lost a record 19 matches in this tournament with their last victory coming against Scotland in February 2015.
Six Nations: Beating Italy 'a lesson in how to win ugly' - Gatland
Seeking a first home win since beating Ireland six years ago, the hosts made a terrible start when hooker Elliot Dee forced a turnover penalty and Biggar opened the scoring after 62 seconds.
The fly-half added three more first-half penalties as Wales dominated the early scrums and enjoyed superior possession and territory.
But for all Wales' pressure, Italy scored the first try after capitalising on a sliced Adams kick. The decision to turn down a kick at goal and opt for an attacking line-out was justified when Steyn eventually burrowed over.
Tommaso Allan converted and Wales led only 12-7 at the interval.
Jones comes on to lift Wales' performance
Watkin scored Wales' second try late on in the game to ensure victory
With Italy's driving line-out proving their most effective weapon, Wales' discipline let them down at the start of the second half and Allan slotted over a penalty to reduce the gap further.
Wales' attack was ponderous and Gatland responded by sending on squad skipper Alun Wyn Jones alongside Dillon Lewis after 50 minutes.
But Biggar missed two kicks in the space of a couple of minutes as Wales failed to build any momentum.
The mediocrity finally lifted when scrum-half Aled Davies launched a break from a scrum down the right-hand side. When the ball was switched left, full-back Liam Williams sliced through the Italian defence to set up the try for Adams in one of the only cutting line breaks Wales produced.
Centre Davies thought he had scored Wales' second try after following up his own chip kick, but he fumbled the ball in the act of scoring.
The second score did come when centre Watkin dived on to a clever chipped Gareth Anscombe kick to score the visitors' second try.
Italy responded with an incisive Allan break to set up Padovani to score before Young was denied a deserved try with the final move of the match because of an earlier forward pass.
That summed up Wales' day - another chance gone astray because of poor execution.
A record-equalling win it might have been, but Wales will know they require a much improved performance if they are to beat England and become history-makers in two weeks.
Defeat England on that day at the Principality Stadium and this Rome trip will soon be forgotten.
Man of the match - Josh Navidi
Number eight Navidi was at the heart of all Wales' key moments
Line-ups
Italy: Hayward; Padovani, Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito; Allan, Palazzani; Quaglio, Ghiraldini, Ferrari, Sisi, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse
Replacements: McKinley for Allan (48), Gori for Palazzani (60), Traore for Quaglio (51), Bigi for Ghiraldini (60), Pasquali for Ferrari (60), Ruzza for Budd (52), Barbini for Negri (57)
Not Used: Benvenuti
Wales: L Williams; Holmes, J Davies, Watkin, Adams; Biggar, A Davies; Smith, Dee, Lee, Ball, Beard, Wainwright, Young, Navidi
Replacements: Amos for L. Williams (67), Anscombe for Biggar (55), G. Davies for A. Davies (63), W. Jones for Smith (63), Elias for Dee (67), Lewis for Lee (51), A. Jones for Ball (51), Moriarty for Navidi (67)
Ref: Mathieu Raynal (France)
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By Gareth Griffiths
BBC Sport Wales at the Stadio Olimpico
- 9 Feb
- From the section Welsh Rugby
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Gatland hopes Wales 'go under the radar' before England showdown
Former England scrum-half Matt Dawson had described Wales' alterations as risky, despite the opposition, although Gatland had made as many last year when Wales defeated Italy 38-14 in March to start the current run of wins.
Not many of the new Wales inclusions in this experimental side made compelling cases to start against Eddie Jones' side in two weeks, although Wasps flanker Thomas Young impressed on his Six Nations debut.
Centre Jonathan Davies captained Wales for the first time while flankers Young and Aaron Wainwright, wing Jonah Holmes and scrum-half Aled Davies all made their first Six Nations starts.
Josh Navidi was named man of the match after moving to number eight with Ross Moriarty dropping to the bench, alongside usual captain Alun Wyn Jones.
Italy have now lost a record 19 matches in this tournament with their last victory coming against Scotland in February 2015.
Six Nations: Beating Italy 'a lesson in how to win ugly' - Gatland
Seeking a first home win since beating Ireland six years ago, the hosts made a terrible start when hooker Elliot Dee forced a turnover penalty and Biggar opened the scoring after 62 seconds.
The fly-half added three more first-half penalties as Wales dominated the early scrums and enjoyed superior possession and territory.
But for all Wales' pressure, Italy scored the first try after capitalising on a sliced Adams kick. The decision to turn down a kick at goal and opt for an attacking line-out was justified when Steyn eventually burrowed over.
Tommaso Allan converted and Wales led only 12-7 at the interval.
Jones comes on to lift Wales' performance
Watkin scored Wales' second try late on in the game to ensure victory
With Italy's driving line-out proving their most effective weapon, Wales' discipline let them down at the start of the second half and Allan slotted over a penalty to reduce the gap further.
Wales' attack was ponderous and Gatland responded by sending on squad skipper Alun Wyn Jones alongside Dillon Lewis after 50 minutes.
But Biggar missed two kicks in the space of a couple of minutes as Wales failed to build any momentum.
The mediocrity finally lifted when scrum-half Aled Davies launched a break from a scrum down the right-hand side. When the ball was switched left, full-back Liam Williams sliced through the Italian defence to set up the try for Adams in one of the only cutting line breaks Wales produced.
Centre Davies thought he had scored Wales' second try after following up his own chip kick, but he fumbled the ball in the act of scoring.
The second score did come when centre Watkin dived on to a clever chipped Gareth Anscombe kick to score the visitors' second try.
Italy responded with an incisive Allan break to set up Padovani to score before Young was denied a deserved try with the final move of the match because of an earlier forward pass.
That summed up Wales' day - another chance gone astray because of poor execution.
A record-equalling win it might have been, but Wales will know they require a much improved performance if they are to beat England and become history-makers in two weeks.
Defeat England on that day at the Principality Stadium and this Rome trip will soon be forgotten.
Man of the match - Josh Navidi
Number eight Navidi was at the heart of all Wales' key moments
Line-ups
Italy: Hayward; Padovani, Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito; Allan, Palazzani; Quaglio, Ghiraldini, Ferrari, Sisi, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse
Replacements: McKinley for Allan (48), Gori for Palazzani (60), Traore for Quaglio (51), Bigi for Ghiraldini (60), Pasquali for Ferrari (60), Ruzza for Budd (52), Barbini for Negri (57)
Not Used: Benvenuti
Wales: L Williams; Holmes, J Davies, Watkin, Adams; Biggar, A Davies; Smith, Dee, Lee, Ball, Beard, Wainwright, Young, Navidi
Replacements: Amos for L. Williams (67), Anscombe for Biggar (55), G. Davies for A. Davies (63), W. Jones for Smith (63), Elias for Dee (67), Lewis for Lee (51), A. Jones for Ball (51), Moriarty for Navidi (67)
Ref: Mathieu Raynal (France)
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Telly Talk Supreme
England 44-8 France: Jonny May hat-trick inspires emphatic Six Nations victory
By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at Twickenham
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Six Nations 2019: England demolish France 44-8 at Twickenham - highlights
Six Nations Championship
England: (30) 44
Tries: May 3, Slade, penalty try, Farrell Con: Farrell 3 Pens: Farrell 2
France: (8) 8
Tries: Penaud Pens: Parra
England blew France away with a first-half hat-trick of tries from Jonny May to continue their fabulous start to the Six Nations.
May went over three times in the left-hand corner in the first 30 minutes as England's forwards steamrollered France and their backs' kicking game cut them apart.
Eddie Jones' men added two more in the second half, one through the relentless Owen Farrell and the other a penalty try after Chris Ashton had been brought down without the ball.
France had no answer to England's physicality, their back three turned inside out by the constant kicks rained in behind them, and their appalling run at Twickenham goes on.
England have now won 10 of their last 13 Six Nations matches against France, Les Bleus on a horrible run of eight defeats in their last nine with the two sides due to meet at the group stages of this autumn's World Cup.
With Italy and Scotland to come at home next month - one who have never won at this stadium, the other not in 36 years - the clash against Wales in Cardiff in a fortnight's time is shaping up to be the decisive match in this year's championship.
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England players delight at 'special day'
May Day comes early
England had scored early tries in each of their past five matches and they accelerated out of the blocks once again.
The men in white counter-attacked after a French knock-on, Daly cut a swathe through the scattered French rearguard and kicked ahead into acres of space for May to race clear and touch the loose ball down.
Farrell slid the conversion wide but banged over a penalty either side of a straightforward one for Morgan Parra for 11-3, and as a rain squall blew in on the cold wind, both sides looked to kick into space in their opponent's back field.
And it was May who struck again. Farrell's long miss-pass after a series of heavyweight drives at the French line left the winger one on one with Damian Penaud but standing still, yet he stepped his opposite number with insouciance to dance into the corner.
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Eddie Jones delighted England 'kept their focus' against France
With less than half an hour gone he had his hat-trick as England's thundering forwards left the French defensive line reeling before Ashton dabbed the ball into the empty spaces behind for May to sprint through and slide across the try-line.
Yoann Huget worked an opening down the England right for Penaud to dive into the corner, but it was the briefest of interruptions as yet another kick through put Ashton in the clear.
The 31-year-old was hauled down a metre from the line but prop Kyle Sinckler spun a scrum-half's pass out left for Henry Slade to step inside Guilhem Guirado.
England had their fourth try and a bonus-point before the half-time whistle had been blown, Farrell sliding over his conversion for 30-8 and the cavorting home crowd giving their side a standing ovation as they jogged for the dressing room.
England find consistency to bolster belief
It was to get worse for France. Slade picked off a loose pass on a rare French foray into England's 22, and when he kicked ahead for the galloping Ashton, Gael Fickou's desperate chase ended with him hauling down his opposite number without the ball.
Referee Nigel Owens ran to the posts to signal a penalty try and then sent Fickou to the sin-bin to compound the visitors' woes.
France were on the ropes and it was Farrell to land the next blow, following up his own kick after Ben Youngs took a quick penalty and May could not quite gather for yet another try.
There was a question of whether May had hooked an arm around Antoine Dupont as they fought for the loose ball, just as there had been about how likely Ashton would have been to score without Fickou's illegal intervention, but with a 34-point lead and more than a quarter of the contest still to come, England did not care.
Courtney Lawes brought another roar as he sent the giant Mathieu Bastareaud backwards in the tackle before the intensity dipped as Jones threw on his replacements.
Four years ago England stuck 55 points on France and yet later that year crashed out of the World Cup at the group stages.
But after backing up last week's impressive win over Ireland in Dublin with this performance, their supporters will be believing that this time around might be different.
Man of the Match - Jonny May
Leicester winger Jonny May has scored 22 tries in 42 international appearances for England
"Scoring tries is enjoyable and it's special at Twickenham to score for your country," May told Radio 5 live. "I really am just getting on the back of excellent work from everybody else, and what I'm doing is just as important as what everyone else is doing and it's just a cog in the wheel."
'Complete control from England' - analysis
Former England international and BBC Radio 5 live pundit Matt Dawson
"It was ominous for France even after a minute. England are better drilled than last year, I think they are doing things earlier in fewer phases and in better positions.
"England were brilliant but France kept going, they didn't throw the towel in. It was complete control from England for most of the 80 minutes though.
"The game in Cardiff has enormous consequences. Don't underestimate Wales, they don't need motivating. They will be fully pumped."
Line-ups
England: Daly; Ashton, Slade, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs; M Vunipola, George, Sinckler, Lawes, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B Vunipola
Replacements: Moon for M Vunipola (44), Launchbury for Kruis (47), Hughes for Curry (47), Nowell for Ashton (52), Cole for Sinckler (57), Cowan-Dickie for George (62), Ford for Tuilagi (62)
France: Huget; Penaud, Bastareaud, Doumayrou, Fickou; Lopez, Parra; Poirot, Guirado, Bamba, Vahaamhina, Lambey, Camara, Iturria, Picamoles
Replacements: Ramos for Huget (41), Ntamack for Penaud (47), Dupont for Parra (47), Aldegheri for Bamba (57), Willemse for Vahaamhina, Alldritt for Lambey (70)
Not used: Bourgarit, Priso
Ref: Nigel Owens (Wales)
Swami
By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at Twickenham
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Six Nations 2019: England demolish France 44-8 at Twickenham - highlights
Six Nations Championship
England: (30) 44
Tries: May 3, Slade, penalty try, Farrell Con: Farrell 3 Pens: Farrell 2
France: (8) 8
Tries: Penaud Pens: Parra
England blew France away with a first-half hat-trick of tries from Jonny May to continue their fabulous start to the Six Nations.
May went over three times in the left-hand corner in the first 30 minutes as England's forwards steamrollered France and their backs' kicking game cut them apart.
Eddie Jones' men added two more in the second half, one through the relentless Owen Farrell and the other a penalty try after Chris Ashton had been brought down without the ball.
France had no answer to England's physicality, their back three turned inside out by the constant kicks rained in behind them, and their appalling run at Twickenham goes on.
England have now won 10 of their last 13 Six Nations matches against France, Les Bleus on a horrible run of eight defeats in their last nine with the two sides due to meet at the group stages of this autumn's World Cup.
With Italy and Scotland to come at home next month - one who have never won at this stadium, the other not in 36 years - the clash against Wales in Cardiff in a fortnight's time is shaping up to be the decisive match in this year's championship.
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England players delight at 'special day'
May Day comes early
England had scored early tries in each of their past five matches and they accelerated out of the blocks once again.
The men in white counter-attacked after a French knock-on, Daly cut a swathe through the scattered French rearguard and kicked ahead into acres of space for May to race clear and touch the loose ball down.
Farrell slid the conversion wide but banged over a penalty either side of a straightforward one for Morgan Parra for 11-3, and as a rain squall blew in on the cold wind, both sides looked to kick into space in their opponent's back field.
And it was May who struck again. Farrell's long miss-pass after a series of heavyweight drives at the French line left the winger one on one with Damian Penaud but standing still, yet he stepped his opposite number with insouciance to dance into the corner.
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Eddie Jones delighted England 'kept their focus' against France
With less than half an hour gone he had his hat-trick as England's thundering forwards left the French defensive line reeling before Ashton dabbed the ball into the empty spaces behind for May to sprint through and slide across the try-line.
Yoann Huget worked an opening down the England right for Penaud to dive into the corner, but it was the briefest of interruptions as yet another kick through put Ashton in the clear.
The 31-year-old was hauled down a metre from the line but prop Kyle Sinckler spun a scrum-half's pass out left for Henry Slade to step inside Guilhem Guirado.
England had their fourth try and a bonus-point before the half-time whistle had been blown, Farrell sliding over his conversion for 30-8 and the cavorting home crowd giving their side a standing ovation as they jogged for the dressing room.
England find consistency to bolster belief
It was to get worse for France. Slade picked off a loose pass on a rare French foray into England's 22, and when he kicked ahead for the galloping Ashton, Gael Fickou's desperate chase ended with him hauling down his opposite number without the ball.
Referee Nigel Owens ran to the posts to signal a penalty try and then sent Fickou to the sin-bin to compound the visitors' woes.
France were on the ropes and it was Farrell to land the next blow, following up his own kick after Ben Youngs took a quick penalty and May could not quite gather for yet another try.
There was a question of whether May had hooked an arm around Antoine Dupont as they fought for the loose ball, just as there had been about how likely Ashton would have been to score without Fickou's illegal intervention, but with a 34-point lead and more than a quarter of the contest still to come, England did not care.
Courtney Lawes brought another roar as he sent the giant Mathieu Bastareaud backwards in the tackle before the intensity dipped as Jones threw on his replacements.
Four years ago England stuck 55 points on France and yet later that year crashed out of the World Cup at the group stages.
But after backing up last week's impressive win over Ireland in Dublin with this performance, their supporters will be believing that this time around might be different.
Man of the Match - Jonny May
Leicester winger Jonny May has scored 22 tries in 42 international appearances for England
"Scoring tries is enjoyable and it's special at Twickenham to score for your country," May told Radio 5 live. "I really am just getting on the back of excellent work from everybody else, and what I'm doing is just as important as what everyone else is doing and it's just a cog in the wheel."
'Complete control from England' - analysis
Former England international and BBC Radio 5 live pundit Matt Dawson
"It was ominous for France even after a minute. England are better drilled than last year, I think they are doing things earlier in fewer phases and in better positions.
"England were brilliant but France kept going, they didn't throw the towel in. It was complete control from England for most of the 80 minutes though.
"The game in Cardiff has enormous consequences. Don't underestimate Wales, they don't need motivating. They will be fully pumped."
Line-ups
England: Daly; Ashton, Slade, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs; M Vunipola, George, Sinckler, Lawes, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B Vunipola
Replacements: Moon for M Vunipola (44), Launchbury for Kruis (47), Hughes for Curry (47), Nowell for Ashton (52), Cole for Sinckler (57), Cowan-Dickie for George (62), Ford for Tuilagi (62)
France: Huget; Penaud, Bastareaud, Doumayrou, Fickou; Lopez, Parra; Poirot, Guirado, Bamba, Vahaamhina, Lambey, Camara, Iturria, Picamoles
Replacements: Ramos for Huget (41), Ntamack for Penaud (47), Dupont for Parra (47), Aldegheri for Bamba (57), Willemse for Vahaamhina, Alldritt for Lambey (70)
Not used: Bourgarit, Priso
Ref: Nigel Owens (Wales)
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Six Nations: France 27-10 Scotland - Scots' 20-year wait for Paris win goes on
By Tom English
Six Nations 2019: France put four tries past Scotland to secure bonus-point win
Six Nations Championship
France (10) 27
Tries: Ntamack, Huget, Alldritt 2 Cons: Ramos, Belleau Pen: Ramos
Scotland (3) 10
Try: Price Con: Hastings Pen: Laidlaw
Scotland's 20-year wait for a victory in Paris goes on after France showed glimpses of their old flair to record a first win of this year's Six Nations.
Damian Penaud and Gael Fickou had first-half tries ruled out but Romain Ntamack finished a stunning counter-attack to put the hosts ahead.
Greig Laidlaw's penalty was the Scots' only response and Yoann Huget crossed barely a minute into the second half.
Gregory Alldritt plunged over twice late on either side of Ali Price's try.
But the replacement scrum-half's score was the smallest of consolations for Gregor Townsend's team, who were overpowered at times and hampered by poor decision-making at critical moments.
Now out of title contention, the Scots will lick their wounds before hosting Wales at Murrayfield in a fortnight, while France head to Dublin to face Ireland on 10 March.
Error-strewn Scots fortunate to stay in it
This was a meeting of the haunted French, a team with a miserable three wins from their last 19 Tests coming into this, and a depleted Scotland, shorn of so many game-breakers and without a win in Paris in 20 years.
That run stretches on - and it was pretty obvious from the early minutes that there was going to be no rare away win here for the Scots and no further misery for Jacques Brunel's team.
France had Scotland under the cosh from the opening minutes. It took them a while to put them away, but put them away they did. France are alive again, just.
For Scotland there was a repeat of the error-strewn second half against Ireland; the botched line-outs, the spillages, the chances passed up. They were fortunate to stay in it for as long as they did.
France had two tries ruled out in the opening half, the first after Thomas Ramos exploded out of defence and Huget's chip ahead was coughed up by Blair Kinghorn. Penaud went over but it was called back for a knock-on.
A breakthrough came France's way soon after. Pete Horne banged a kick downfield but the chasing Scottish army never got out of the blocks. Ramos, at times an exhilarating presence at 15, ran it back, stepped and then linked with Penaud who found Antoine Dupont.
Dupont was hauled down in the Scotland 22 by Nick Grigg, but the respite was brief. A quick recycle and Ntamack was over. Ramos converted and the Stade had the nerve-settling start they were dreaming about.
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'French rugby at its best' Ntamack opens scoring against Scotland
Scotland were pinned back constantly and fell 10-0 behind when Ramos rifled over a penalty that was the product of more harassment of the Scots. When they eventually lifted the siege, Laidlaw missed a sitter of a kick, then made amends to take it to 10-3.
The scoreboard was a nonsense. It bore no resemblance to the balance of play, but it offered Scotland encouragement. And there was more of it when Huget was sin-binned midway through the half. One penalty too many for the French - but it was a window of opportunity the visitors couldn't break through. They smashed away at the French line for an age but it was all too slow and all too ponderous and the moment passed.
They had to survive another disallowed try - Ntamack chipping sumptuously for Fickou only for an earlier knock-on to rule it out - but came again while Huget was still in the bin. They had a line-out in the French 22, a glorious platform, but had it stolen. Huget trotted back on, his 10 minutes costing his team precisely zero points.
Thrilling French turn it on again
For all that they were outplayed, and all their errors, a seven-point deficit at the break would have cheered Scotland. France have been desperately poor in the second half of Test matches, so hope remained. Scotland needed a blistering start to the new half, but instead it was the French who turned it on again.
Barely a minute in and the home side made it 15-3 with a gorgeous score that was by turns thrilling from a French perspective and nightmarish for Scotland. Penaud went roaring up the right and when it came back inside the mighty Mathieu Bastareaud chipped over the top and then ran on to gather.
Scotland were spread-eagled. Louis Picamoles carried France ever further and Fickou put Huget over in the corner for France's second try. Ramos missed his conversion.
The visitors had ball after that. Plenty of it. They had possession and territory. What they didn't have was composure or accuracy to take advantage of their line breaks and their overlaps. It was maddening - and familiar.
A third score arrived from France when their forward pack muscled Scotland over the line from a scrum. Replacement Alldritt was on the end of it. Another kick was missed - just as well France were not relying on the boot - but Scotland finally found their range when Price darted over for a try that was converted by Adam Hastings.
The target now for Scotland, with the clock in the red, was a losing bonus point. That was beyond them, too - undone by their own mistakes again. France drove on for a four-try bonus point. In the eighth minute of added time they had a five-metre scrum and Alldritt barged his way over again.
For France, this was a sign of pride and a competitive pulse at last. For Scotland, another loss on the road for a team sadly missing a battalion of men who might have made a difference.
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Alldritt try deep in added time earns France bonus point win
France: 15-Ramos, 14-Penaud, 13-Bastareaud, 12-Fickou, 11-Huget, 10-Ntamack, 9-Dupont; 1-Poirot, 2-Guirado (captain), 3-Bamba, 4-Vahaamahina, 5-Lambey, 6-Lauret, 7-Iturria, 8-Picamoles.
Replacements: 16-Chat (for Guirado, 70), 17-Falgoux (for Poirot, 70), 18-Aldegheri (for Bamba, 69), 19-Willemse (for Lambey, 65), 20-Alldritt (for Picamoles, 69), 21-Serin (for Dupont, 69), 22-Belleau (for Ntamack, 76), 23-Medard (for Ramos, 69)
Yellow card: Huget (27-37)
Scotland: 15-Kinghorn, 14-Seymour, 13-Grigg, 12-Johnson, 11-Maitland, 10-Horne, 9-Laidlaw (captain); 1-Dell, 2-McInally, 3-Berghan, 4-Gilchrist, 5-Gray, 6-Bradbury, 7-Ritchie 8-Strauss.
Replacements: 16-Brown (for McInally, 64), 17-Allan (for Dell, 64), 18-Fagerson (for Berghan, 64, 19-Toolis (for Gray, 55), 20-Graham (for Strauss, 64), 21-Price (for Laidlaw, 64), 22-Hastings (for Horne, 44, for Johnson 53), 23-Graham (for Maitland, 64).
Swami
By Tom English
Six Nations 2019: France put four tries past Scotland to secure bonus-point win
Six Nations Championship
France (10) 27
Tries: Ntamack, Huget, Alldritt 2 Cons: Ramos, Belleau Pen: Ramos
Scotland (3) 10
Try: Price Con: Hastings Pen: Laidlaw
Scotland's 20-year wait for a victory in Paris goes on after France showed glimpses of their old flair to record a first win of this year's Six Nations.
Damian Penaud and Gael Fickou had first-half tries ruled out but Romain Ntamack finished a stunning counter-attack to put the hosts ahead.
Greig Laidlaw's penalty was the Scots' only response and Yoann Huget crossed barely a minute into the second half.
Gregory Alldritt plunged over twice late on either side of Ali Price's try.
But the replacement scrum-half's score was the smallest of consolations for Gregor Townsend's team, who were overpowered at times and hampered by poor decision-making at critical moments.
Now out of title contention, the Scots will lick their wounds before hosting Wales at Murrayfield in a fortnight, while France head to Dublin to face Ireland on 10 March.
Error-strewn Scots fortunate to stay in it
This was a meeting of the haunted French, a team with a miserable three wins from their last 19 Tests coming into this, and a depleted Scotland, shorn of so many game-breakers and without a win in Paris in 20 years.
That run stretches on - and it was pretty obvious from the early minutes that there was going to be no rare away win here for the Scots and no further misery for Jacques Brunel's team.
France had Scotland under the cosh from the opening minutes. It took them a while to put them away, but put them away they did. France are alive again, just.
For Scotland there was a repeat of the error-strewn second half against Ireland; the botched line-outs, the spillages, the chances passed up. They were fortunate to stay in it for as long as they did.
France had two tries ruled out in the opening half, the first after Thomas Ramos exploded out of defence and Huget's chip ahead was coughed up by Blair Kinghorn. Penaud went over but it was called back for a knock-on.
A breakthrough came France's way soon after. Pete Horne banged a kick downfield but the chasing Scottish army never got out of the blocks. Ramos, at times an exhilarating presence at 15, ran it back, stepped and then linked with Penaud who found Antoine Dupont.
Dupont was hauled down in the Scotland 22 by Nick Grigg, but the respite was brief. A quick recycle and Ntamack was over. Ramos converted and the Stade had the nerve-settling start they were dreaming about.
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'French rugby at its best' Ntamack opens scoring against Scotland
Scotland were pinned back constantly and fell 10-0 behind when Ramos rifled over a penalty that was the product of more harassment of the Scots. When they eventually lifted the siege, Laidlaw missed a sitter of a kick, then made amends to take it to 10-3.
The scoreboard was a nonsense. It bore no resemblance to the balance of play, but it offered Scotland encouragement. And there was more of it when Huget was sin-binned midway through the half. One penalty too many for the French - but it was a window of opportunity the visitors couldn't break through. They smashed away at the French line for an age but it was all too slow and all too ponderous and the moment passed.
They had to survive another disallowed try - Ntamack chipping sumptuously for Fickou only for an earlier knock-on to rule it out - but came again while Huget was still in the bin. They had a line-out in the French 22, a glorious platform, but had it stolen. Huget trotted back on, his 10 minutes costing his team precisely zero points.
Thrilling French turn it on again
For all that they were outplayed, and all their errors, a seven-point deficit at the break would have cheered Scotland. France have been desperately poor in the second half of Test matches, so hope remained. Scotland needed a blistering start to the new half, but instead it was the French who turned it on again.
Barely a minute in and the home side made it 15-3 with a gorgeous score that was by turns thrilling from a French perspective and nightmarish for Scotland. Penaud went roaring up the right and when it came back inside the mighty Mathieu Bastareaud chipped over the top and then ran on to gather.
Scotland were spread-eagled. Louis Picamoles carried France ever further and Fickou put Huget over in the corner for France's second try. Ramos missed his conversion.
The visitors had ball after that. Plenty of it. They had possession and territory. What they didn't have was composure or accuracy to take advantage of their line breaks and their overlaps. It was maddening - and familiar.
A third score arrived from France when their forward pack muscled Scotland over the line from a scrum. Replacement Alldritt was on the end of it. Another kick was missed - just as well France were not relying on the boot - but Scotland finally found their range when Price darted over for a try that was converted by Adam Hastings.
The target now for Scotland, with the clock in the red, was a losing bonus point. That was beyond them, too - undone by their own mistakes again. France drove on for a four-try bonus point. In the eighth minute of added time they had a five-metre scrum and Alldritt barged his way over again.
For France, this was a sign of pride and a competitive pulse at last. For Scotland, another loss on the road for a team sadly missing a battalion of men who might have made a difference.
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Alldritt try deep in added time earns France bonus point win
France: 15-Ramos, 14-Penaud, 13-Bastareaud, 12-Fickou, 11-Huget, 10-Ntamack, 9-Dupont; 1-Poirot, 2-Guirado (captain), 3-Bamba, 4-Vahaamahina, 5-Lambey, 6-Lauret, 7-Iturria, 8-Picamoles.
Replacements: 16-Chat (for Guirado, 70), 17-Falgoux (for Poirot, 70), 18-Aldegheri (for Bamba, 69), 19-Willemse (for Lambey, 65), 20-Alldritt (for Picamoles, 69), 21-Serin (for Dupont, 69), 22-Belleau (for Ntamack, 76), 23-Medard (for Ramos, 69)
Yellow card: Huget (27-37)
Scotland: 15-Kinghorn, 14-Seymour, 13-Grigg, 12-Johnson, 11-Maitland, 10-Horne, 9-Laidlaw (captain); 1-Dell, 2-McInally, 3-Berghan, 4-Gilchrist, 5-Gray, 6-Bradbury, 7-Ritchie 8-Strauss.
Replacements: 16-Brown (for McInally, 64), 17-Allan (for Dell, 64), 18-Fagerson (for Berghan, 64, 19-Toolis (for Gray, 55), 20-Graham (for Strauss, 64), 21-Price (for Laidlaw, 64), 22-Hastings (for Horne, 44, for Johnson 53), 23-Graham (for Maitland, 64).
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Wales 21-13 England: Hosts fight back to seal record-breaking win in Cardiff
By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at Principality Stadium
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Reaction to Wales' victory in Cardiff
Curry and chips define first half
It was a frenetic start on an afternoon warm enough to be late April rather than February, both sides looking to kick, Kyle Sinckler charging into tackles with relish as the songs rolled down the stands.
Owen Farrell and Anscombe exchanged penalties and then England struck again, Curry picking and going off an unguarded ruck seven metres out as Justin Tipuric dallied with Ben Youngs.
Six Nations: Tom Curry bursts through to give England lead against Wales
Farrell's conversion from in front made it 10-3 and the home crowd fell uncharacteristically quiet, the score doubly chastening for Wales after Courtney Lawes had robbed the ball from an opposition maul.
When Anscombe's attempted cross-field kick was picked off by Henry Slade it took a desperate tackle from Adams to prevent a second try.
Wales were running against a white wall of defenders, Curry and Sinckler relentless, yet Anscombe almost profited when Jones' men lost a scrum against the head and his chip ahead left Youngs scrambling desperately under his own posts.
But it was England who ended the half in control, Jonny May kicking long down the left wing and bundling the covering Hadleigh Parkes into touch.
Jones' men set up a 12-man driving maul that rumbled to the Welsh five-metre line, but Farrell opted to cross-kick to Jack Nowell in the right-hand corner and George North managed to snuff the danger out.
Biggar drives great escape
Wales had struggled in the first half of their first two games, against France and Italy, but once again they dragged themselves into a contest they had struggled to dictate.
Anscombe banged over a penalty on the angle after May had been penalised for holding on and the margin was down to four points with more than a third of the contest to come.
Sinckler had played on the edge throughout but was penalised in the Welsh half for obstructing Anscombe and then again for a high tackle on Alun Wyn Jones in front of his own posts.
As the England tight-head was hauled off for Harry Williams, Anscombe knocked over the penalty for 10-9 and the home support was alive again.
It was Anscombe's last act, Biggar thrown on with 20 minutes left, but when Curry won a penalty as Parkes held on 25m out it was his opposite number Farrell with the three points.
Back came Wales. Drive upon drive hammered at the English defence, the big ball-carriers taking it up to within a few metres, the crowd baying as the red shirts got closer.
On the 35th phase the white line cracked. Hill battered through two men on a clever angle and reached out to nudge the ball on to the try-line, and Biggar's sweet kick from the right touchline made it 16-13.
And with England pinned back Adams soared above Elliot Daly to take the ball at the second attempt and flop into the corner.
Wales: 15-L Williams; 14-North, 13-J Davies, 12-Parkes, 11-Adams; 10-Anscombe, 9-G Davies; 1-R Evans, 2-Owens, 3-Francis, 4-Hill, 5-AW Jones (capt), 6-Navidi, 7-Tipuric, 8-Moriarty.
Replacements: 16-Dee (for Owens, 77), 17-Smith (for Evans, 61), 18-Lewis (for Francis, 61), 19-Beard (for Hill, 71), 20-Wainwright (for Moriarty, 77), 21-A Davies (for G Davies, 77), 22-Biggar (for Anscombe, 61), 23-Watkin.
England: 15-Daly; 14-Nowell, 13-Slade, 12-Tuilagi, 11-May; 10-Farrell (capt), 9-Youngs; 1-Moon, 2-George, 3-Sinckler, 4-Lawes, 5-Kruis, 6-Wilson, 7-Curry, 8-B Vunipola.
Replacements: 16-Cowan-Dickie, 17-Genge (for Moon, 77), 18-Williams (for Sinckler, 57), 19-Launchbury (for Kruis, 64'), 20-Shields (for Lawes, 77), 21-Robson, 22-Ford, 23-Cokanasiga (for May, 70).
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By Tom Fordyce
Chief sports writer at Principality Stadium
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Reaction to Wales' victory in Cardiff
Curry and chips define first half
It was a frenetic start on an afternoon warm enough to be late April rather than February, both sides looking to kick, Kyle Sinckler charging into tackles with relish as the songs rolled down the stands.
Owen Farrell and Anscombe exchanged penalties and then England struck again, Curry picking and going off an unguarded ruck seven metres out as Justin Tipuric dallied with Ben Youngs.
Six Nations: Tom Curry bursts through to give England lead against Wales
Farrell's conversion from in front made it 10-3 and the home crowd fell uncharacteristically quiet, the score doubly chastening for Wales after Courtney Lawes had robbed the ball from an opposition maul.
When Anscombe's attempted cross-field kick was picked off by Henry Slade it took a desperate tackle from Adams to prevent a second try.
Wales were running against a white wall of defenders, Curry and Sinckler relentless, yet Anscombe almost profited when Jones' men lost a scrum against the head and his chip ahead left Youngs scrambling desperately under his own posts.
But it was England who ended the half in control, Jonny May kicking long down the left wing and bundling the covering Hadleigh Parkes into touch.
Jones' men set up a 12-man driving maul that rumbled to the Welsh five-metre line, but Farrell opted to cross-kick to Jack Nowell in the right-hand corner and George North managed to snuff the danger out.
Biggar drives great escape
Wales had struggled in the first half of their first two games, against France and Italy, but once again they dragged themselves into a contest they had struggled to dictate.
Anscombe banged over a penalty on the angle after May had been penalised for holding on and the margin was down to four points with more than a third of the contest to come.
Sinckler had played on the edge throughout but was penalised in the Welsh half for obstructing Anscombe and then again for a high tackle on Alun Wyn Jones in front of his own posts.
As the England tight-head was hauled off for Harry Williams, Anscombe knocked over the penalty for 10-9 and the home support was alive again.
It was Anscombe's last act, Biggar thrown on with 20 minutes left, but when Curry won a penalty as Parkes held on 25m out it was his opposite number Farrell with the three points.
Back came Wales. Drive upon drive hammered at the English defence, the big ball-carriers taking it up to within a few metres, the crowd baying as the red shirts got closer.
On the 35th phase the white line cracked. Hill battered through two men on a clever angle and reached out to nudge the ball on to the try-line, and Biggar's sweet kick from the right touchline made it 16-13.
And with England pinned back Adams soared above Elliot Daly to take the ball at the second attempt and flop into the corner.
Wales: 15-L Williams; 14-North, 13-J Davies, 12-Parkes, 11-Adams; 10-Anscombe, 9-G Davies; 1-R Evans, 2-Owens, 3-Francis, 4-Hill, 5-AW Jones (capt), 6-Navidi, 7-Tipuric, 8-Moriarty.
Replacements: 16-Dee (for Owens, 77), 17-Smith (for Evans, 61), 18-Lewis (for Francis, 61), 19-Beard (for Hill, 71), 20-Wainwright (for Moriarty, 77), 21-A Davies (for G Davies, 77), 22-Biggar (for Anscombe, 61), 23-Watkin.
England: 15-Daly; 14-Nowell, 13-Slade, 12-Tuilagi, 11-May; 10-Farrell (capt), 9-Youngs; 1-Moon, 2-George, 3-Sinckler, 4-Lawes, 5-Kruis, 6-Wilson, 7-Curry, 8-B Vunipola.
Replacements: 16-Cowan-Dickie, 17-Genge (for Moon, 77), 18-Williams (for Sinckler, 57), 19-Launchbury (for Kruis, 64'), 20-Shields (for Lawes, 77), 21-Robson, 22-Ford, 23-Cokanasiga (for May, 70).
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Six Nations: Ireland labour to 26-16 bonus-point victory over Italy
By Cian Murtagh
Keith Earls restored his side's lead in the second half as Ireland avoided a massive shock
Six Nations: Italy v Ireland
Italy: (16) 16
Tries: Padovani, Morisi Pens: Allan 2
Ireland: (12) 26
Tries: Roux, Stockdale, Earls, Murray Cons: Sexton, Murray 2
Ireland's defence of their Six Nations crown remains alive but only just after a laboured bonus-point win over Italy.
Quinn Roux, Jacob Stockdale, Keith Earls and Conor Murray scored the tries as the champions held on for victory.
Italy led at half-time with tries from Edoardo Padovani and Luca Morisi but were unable to score after the break.
Replacement Ian McKinley missed a stoppage-time penalty as Italy could not even salvage the losing bonus point their efforts deserved.
The win sends Ireland up to third place in the championship table but Joe Schmidt's side will now need a massive slice of luck to retain their title.
Italy's run of Six Nations defeats stretches to 20 but head coach Conor O'Shea will take encouragement from a superb first-half display that left Ireland rattled at the break.
Title defence in jeopardy
Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton stalked off the field in the dying minutes and swung a kick at a water bottle on a frustrating night for the holders.
Needing to win by a large margin to boost their title credentials, Ireland went in search of tries from the off but were ultimately undone by their own handling and line-out inaccuracies.
Italy threatened to produce a major scare as they came charging back from 3-12 behind to lead 16-12 at the break, but the tries by Earls and Murray at least insured the Grand Slam champions remain in contention with two rounds remaining.
Assured start by Ireland
A composed start by Ireland and some poor discipline by the home side produced an early try for the visitors as the game started along predicted lines.
Sexton kept the hosts pinned within their own half with a series of booming touch-finding kicks and the pressure eventually produced a try in the 12th minute.
The Irish attack steadily retained possession and forced their way up to the Italy posts before Roux muscled over for his first Six Nations try.
A jinking break by Earls almost delivered another try for replacement Andrew Conway just moments later before Tommaso Allan kicked Italy's first points.
From the restart, Ireland pushed further clear when Michele Campagnaro fumbled and Stockdale pounced without hesitation and flashed over for a lightning-quick score.
Tebaldi takes charge
Italy may have been without their captain Sergio Parisse but the returning Tito Tebaldi deputised as his side's main driving force and helped to wrestle away momentum from the visitors.
The Benetton scrum-half, who had almost scrambled over for a try before Allan's first penalty, took a quick tap-and-go that surprised the Irish defence and dashed upfield before chipping over the advancing Rob Kearney only for Jordi Murphy to rescue Ireland at the foot of his own posts.
Undaunted, Italy came again and when Ireland lost a line-out in their own half the hosts raided down the left through full-back Jayden Hayward before a delightful skip pass by Allan sent Padovani over for a superb score.
The crowd were now in full voice and they were rewarded just before half-time when Tebaldi plucked the ball from Conor Murray's grasp and powered into Irish territory.
The visitors desperately retreated to defend but Chris Farrell could not stop Morisi from barrelling over for a stunning score that sent the hosts into the dressing room with a four-point lead.
Murray rescues the day
Sexton could not get his kick-off to travel 10 metres at the start of the second half as the expected Irish fight back began with a whimper.
Hooker Sean Cronin was brought off shortly afterwards when another of his line-out throws went astray as the visitors' frustration continued to build.
Another relentless multi-phase attack was finally rewarded when Earls spotted a mismatch and danced inside Dean Budd and Tebaldi to regain Ireland's lead with Murray taking over the place-kicking duties to slot the conversion.
Earls almost cut through for another score on the hour when a trademark set-piece attack sent the Munster wing through a narrow gap but he could not find the supporting Stockdale with his offload.
Instead, Murray took the responsibility for the bonus-point try as the scrum-half cajoled his pack forwards in a powerful maul before scooping up the ball and dotting down for the try.
The champions still had 14 minutes remaining to try and chase points but instead it was Italy who came closest to scoring again only for Federico Ruzza to concede a penalty while camped on the Irish tryline.
'We had to get back to basics' - what they said
Ireland skipper Peter O'Mahony: "It certainly could have been better but we'll kick on now and look forward to France in a couple of weeks.
"At half-time we spoke about how we needed to make the ball stick a bit more, a little bit more accuracy. We were nearly trying too hard at times and forcing things so we just had to go back to the things that work so well for us and get back to basics a little."
Italy head coach Conor O'Shea: "We talked about trying to play with ambition and intensity which we did, but we gifted Stockdale a try. We lost players and had second rows playing in the back row. We have to create a consistency to get to where we want but hopefully people will see this is not an Italy side that is going to roll over.
Former Ireland fly-half Tony Ward on BBC Radio Ulster: "Mission accomplished and it's five points achieved, which is what Ireland set out to do, but that was not impressive. We have to forget about Cardiff for the moment and have to get ourselves right for that French game."
Former Ireland flanker Chris Henry on BBC Radio Ulster: "We know with the quality of players Ireland have, they should have had a more convincing win. Johnny Sexton was frustrated with his performance and Italy should be proud of their performance. There is a lot to work on ahead of what is a big game now against France."
Line-ups
Italy: Hayward, Padovani; Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito; Allan, Tebaldi; Lovotti, Ghiraldini (capt), Ferrari, Ruzza, Budd, Tuivaiti, Mbanda, Steyn
Replacements: Bigi, Traore (for Lovotti, 60), Pasquali (for Ferrari, 51), Sisi (for Tuivati, 51), Zanni (for Mbanda, 43), Palazzani, McKinley (for Allan, 73), Castello (for Campagnaro, 72).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, Farrell, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Kilcoyne, Cronin, Furlong, Dillane, Roux, O'Mahony (capt), O'Brien, Murphy
Replacements: Scannell (for Cronin, 47), McGrath (for Kilcoyne, 62), Ryan (for Furlong, 62), Henderson (for Roux, 57), Van der Flier (for O'Brien, 57), Cooney (for Murray, 70), Carty (for Sexton, 77), Conway (for Aki, 12).
Swami
By Cian Murtagh
Keith Earls restored his side's lead in the second half as Ireland avoided a massive shock
Six Nations: Italy v Ireland
Italy: (16) 16
Tries: Padovani, Morisi Pens: Allan 2
Ireland: (12) 26
Tries: Roux, Stockdale, Earls, Murray Cons: Sexton, Murray 2
Ireland's defence of their Six Nations crown remains alive but only just after a laboured bonus-point win over Italy.
Quinn Roux, Jacob Stockdale, Keith Earls and Conor Murray scored the tries as the champions held on for victory.
Italy led at half-time with tries from Edoardo Padovani and Luca Morisi but were unable to score after the break.
Replacement Ian McKinley missed a stoppage-time penalty as Italy could not even salvage the losing bonus point their efforts deserved.
The win sends Ireland up to third place in the championship table but Joe Schmidt's side will now need a massive slice of luck to retain their title.
Italy's run of Six Nations defeats stretches to 20 but head coach Conor O'Shea will take encouragement from a superb first-half display that left Ireland rattled at the break.
Title defence in jeopardy
Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton stalked off the field in the dying minutes and swung a kick at a water bottle on a frustrating night for the holders.
Needing to win by a large margin to boost their title credentials, Ireland went in search of tries from the off but were ultimately undone by their own handling and line-out inaccuracies.
Italy threatened to produce a major scare as they came charging back from 3-12 behind to lead 16-12 at the break, but the tries by Earls and Murray at least insured the Grand Slam champions remain in contention with two rounds remaining.
Assured start by Ireland
A composed start by Ireland and some poor discipline by the home side produced an early try for the visitors as the game started along predicted lines.
Sexton kept the hosts pinned within their own half with a series of booming touch-finding kicks and the pressure eventually produced a try in the 12th minute.
The Irish attack steadily retained possession and forced their way up to the Italy posts before Roux muscled over for his first Six Nations try.
A jinking break by Earls almost delivered another try for replacement Andrew Conway just moments later before Tommaso Allan kicked Italy's first points.
From the restart, Ireland pushed further clear when Michele Campagnaro fumbled and Stockdale pounced without hesitation and flashed over for a lightning-quick score.
Tebaldi takes charge
Italy may have been without their captain Sergio Parisse but the returning Tito Tebaldi deputised as his side's main driving force and helped to wrestle away momentum from the visitors.
The Benetton scrum-half, who had almost scrambled over for a try before Allan's first penalty, took a quick tap-and-go that surprised the Irish defence and dashed upfield before chipping over the advancing Rob Kearney only for Jordi Murphy to rescue Ireland at the foot of his own posts.
Undaunted, Italy came again and when Ireland lost a line-out in their own half the hosts raided down the left through full-back Jayden Hayward before a delightful skip pass by Allan sent Padovani over for a superb score.
The crowd were now in full voice and they were rewarded just before half-time when Tebaldi plucked the ball from Conor Murray's grasp and powered into Irish territory.
The visitors desperately retreated to defend but Chris Farrell could not stop Morisi from barrelling over for a stunning score that sent the hosts into the dressing room with a four-point lead.
Murray rescues the day
Sexton could not get his kick-off to travel 10 metres at the start of the second half as the expected Irish fight back began with a whimper.
Hooker Sean Cronin was brought off shortly afterwards when another of his line-out throws went astray as the visitors' frustration continued to build.
Another relentless multi-phase attack was finally rewarded when Earls spotted a mismatch and danced inside Dean Budd and Tebaldi to regain Ireland's lead with Murray taking over the place-kicking duties to slot the conversion.
Earls almost cut through for another score on the hour when a trademark set-piece attack sent the Munster wing through a narrow gap but he could not find the supporting Stockdale with his offload.
Instead, Murray took the responsibility for the bonus-point try as the scrum-half cajoled his pack forwards in a powerful maul before scooping up the ball and dotting down for the try.
The champions still had 14 minutes remaining to try and chase points but instead it was Italy who came closest to scoring again only for Federico Ruzza to concede a penalty while camped on the Irish tryline.
'We had to get back to basics' - what they said
Ireland skipper Peter O'Mahony: "It certainly could have been better but we'll kick on now and look forward to France in a couple of weeks.
"At half-time we spoke about how we needed to make the ball stick a bit more, a little bit more accuracy. We were nearly trying too hard at times and forcing things so we just had to go back to the things that work so well for us and get back to basics a little."
Italy head coach Conor O'Shea: "We talked about trying to play with ambition and intensity which we did, but we gifted Stockdale a try. We lost players and had second rows playing in the back row. We have to create a consistency to get to where we want but hopefully people will see this is not an Italy side that is going to roll over.
Former Ireland fly-half Tony Ward on BBC Radio Ulster: "Mission accomplished and it's five points achieved, which is what Ireland set out to do, but that was not impressive. We have to forget about Cardiff for the moment and have to get ourselves right for that French game."
Former Ireland flanker Chris Henry on BBC Radio Ulster: "We know with the quality of players Ireland have, they should have had a more convincing win. Johnny Sexton was frustrated with his performance and Italy should be proud of their performance. There is a lot to work on ahead of what is a big game now against France."
Line-ups
Italy: Hayward, Padovani; Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito; Allan, Tebaldi; Lovotti, Ghiraldini (capt), Ferrari, Ruzza, Budd, Tuivaiti, Mbanda, Steyn
Replacements: Bigi, Traore (for Lovotti, 60), Pasquali (for Ferrari, 51), Sisi (for Tuivati, 51), Zanni (for Mbanda, 43), Palazzani, McKinley (for Allan, 73), Castello (for Campagnaro, 72).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, Farrell, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Kilcoyne, Cronin, Furlong, Dillane, Roux, O'Mahony (capt), O'Brien, Murphy
Replacements: Scannell (for Cronin, 47), McGrath (for Kilcoyne, 62), Ryan (for Furlong, 62), Henderson (for Roux, 57), Van der Flier (for O'Brien, 57), Cooney (for Murray, 70), Carty (for Sexton, 77), Conway (for Aki, 12).
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Scotland 11-18 Wales: Six Nations title in sight for Gatland's men
By Tom English
BBC Scotland
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Reaction & as it happened
'Intensity & accuracy enough for Wales'
Wales didn't need to play cosmic rugby to establish their lead. Intensity and accuracy did the trick just as well against a Scottish team that was passive and error-strewn in the opening half - a side lacking in the fundamentals of aggression and concentration until they eventually found something later on and put the heat on the visitors.
It wasn't enough to derail Wales, who survived on the back of their defence on an afternoon that brought a valuable win on a highly imperfect day. Not that Welsh fans will care about the quality. The quantity was enough. Four wins from four games. One more and it's glory.
Scotland led through an early Finn Russell penalty but Wales dominated the rest of the first half. Wales struck their first blow and it was simple, oh so simple. The try-machine that is Adams was put away up his left wing, his finish being made a whole lot easier when Blair Kinghorn bought his shuffle and practically threw himself out of Adams' way.
Gareth Anscombe put over the conversion and the Grand Slam-seekers were up and running. Even when Russell made it 7-6, the home respite was brief. Anscombe banged over a penalty of his own soon after, a prelude to Wales' second try.
The try that made it 15-6 was all about Welsh grunt through the phases. Methodical, patient, accurate - Wales just took their time, inched their way forward and waited for their moment, which duly came when Davies saw some space and finished smartly.
Anscombe missed the conversion, but there wasn't even the slightest suggestion that Scotland were going to make then regret it. The Scots had enough on their plate with their passiveness of their forwards and their startling error count, but then they started losing men through injury. Tommy Seymour exited, then Kinghorn.
'Scotland fail to execute again'
Darcy Graham scores for Scotland against Wales
One more try for Wales and this would probably have been over as a contest; Scotland had Adam Hastings to thank for stopping it when Adams bore down on the Scottish line. They survived, then the strangest thing happened - they stirred.
At the beginning of the second half, a huge surge downfield by Allan Dell seemed to galvanise Scotland. Much of the rest of the Test was played down the Wales end with the Scots hammering on their door and the Welsh refusing, in the most part, to let them in.
Home angst was high. Possession and territory was Scotland's in abundance but they found it ferociously hard to break Wales down. The visitors' defence was clinical and cynical. They hung on - and then they cracked. Russell was the architect of the breakthrough, slipping a gorgeous inside pass to Byron McGuigan, who found Hastings running free outside him. Hastings put Graham over in the corner.
A Scottish pulse at last. Townsend emptied his bench and that brought them more momentum. Hamish Watson was thunderous in contact and with ball in hand.
With 13 minutes left, and Wales beginning to look stressed, Watson busted through Ross Moriarty and Alun Wyn Jones and put Scotland on the front foot again. Once more, they couldn't execute. Wales scrambled like hell, defended with their lives and lifted the siege.
Anscombe made it 18-11 with the last kick, a blow that landed on Scotland's groin as much as it did on the scoreboard. Another defeat for the Scots - three in a row - but it's all about Wales now and their pursuit of their Grand Slam.
They were average, but average got the job done. Gatland won his 11th game from 11 attempts against Scotland. On Saturday, in Cardiff, he has a shot at an historic third Grand Slam.
Line-ups
Scotland: 15-Kinghorn; 14-Seymour, 13-Grigg, 12-P Horne, 11-Graham; 10-Russell, 9-Price; 1-Dell, 2-McInally (capt), 3-Nel, 4-Gilchrist, 5-J Gray, 6-Bradbury, 7-Ritchie, 8-Strauss.
Replacements: 16-Brown, 17-Reid, 18-Berghan, 19-Toolis, 20-Watson, 21-Laidlaw, 22-Hastings, 23-McGuigan.
Wales: 15-L Williams; 14-North, 13-J Davies, 12-Parkes, 11-Adams; 10-Anscombe, 9-G Davies; 1-R Evans, 2-Owens, 3-Francis, 4-Beard, 5-AW Jones (c), 6-Navidi, 7-Tipuric, 8-Moriarty.
Replacements: 16- Dee, 17-Smith, 18-Lewis, 19-Ball, 20-Wainwright, 21-A Davies, 22-Biggar, 23-Watkin.
Match officials
Referee: Pascal Gauzere (France)
Touch judges: Luke Pearce (England) & Alexandre Ruiz (France)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
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By Tom English
BBC Scotland
- 20 minutes ago
- From the section Rugby Union
- 38
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Reaction & as it happened
'Intensity & accuracy enough for Wales'
Wales didn't need to play cosmic rugby to establish their lead. Intensity and accuracy did the trick just as well against a Scottish team that was passive and error-strewn in the opening half - a side lacking in the fundamentals of aggression and concentration until they eventually found something later on and put the heat on the visitors.
It wasn't enough to derail Wales, who survived on the back of their defence on an afternoon that brought a valuable win on a highly imperfect day. Not that Welsh fans will care about the quality. The quantity was enough. Four wins from four games. One more and it's glory.
Scotland led through an early Finn Russell penalty but Wales dominated the rest of the first half. Wales struck their first blow and it was simple, oh so simple. The try-machine that is Adams was put away up his left wing, his finish being made a whole lot easier when Blair Kinghorn bought his shuffle and practically threw himself out of Adams' way.
Gareth Anscombe put over the conversion and the Grand Slam-seekers were up and running. Even when Russell made it 7-6, the home respite was brief. Anscombe banged over a penalty of his own soon after, a prelude to Wales' second try.
The try that made it 15-6 was all about Welsh grunt through the phases. Methodical, patient, accurate - Wales just took their time, inched their way forward and waited for their moment, which duly came when Davies saw some space and finished smartly.
Anscombe missed the conversion, but there wasn't even the slightest suggestion that Scotland were going to make then regret it. The Scots had enough on their plate with their passiveness of their forwards and their startling error count, but then they started losing men through injury. Tommy Seymour exited, then Kinghorn.
'Scotland fail to execute again'
Darcy Graham scores for Scotland against Wales
One more try for Wales and this would probably have been over as a contest; Scotland had Adam Hastings to thank for stopping it when Adams bore down on the Scottish line. They survived, then the strangest thing happened - they stirred.
At the beginning of the second half, a huge surge downfield by Allan Dell seemed to galvanise Scotland. Much of the rest of the Test was played down the Wales end with the Scots hammering on their door and the Welsh refusing, in the most part, to let them in.
Home angst was high. Possession and territory was Scotland's in abundance but they found it ferociously hard to break Wales down. The visitors' defence was clinical and cynical. They hung on - and then they cracked. Russell was the architect of the breakthrough, slipping a gorgeous inside pass to Byron McGuigan, who found Hastings running free outside him. Hastings put Graham over in the corner.
A Scottish pulse at last. Townsend emptied his bench and that brought them more momentum. Hamish Watson was thunderous in contact and with ball in hand.
With 13 minutes left, and Wales beginning to look stressed, Watson busted through Ross Moriarty and Alun Wyn Jones and put Scotland on the front foot again. Once more, they couldn't execute. Wales scrambled like hell, defended with their lives and lifted the siege.
Anscombe made it 18-11 with the last kick, a blow that landed on Scotland's groin as much as it did on the scoreboard. Another defeat for the Scots - three in a row - but it's all about Wales now and their pursuit of their Grand Slam.
They were average, but average got the job done. Gatland won his 11th game from 11 attempts against Scotland. On Saturday, in Cardiff, he has a shot at an historic third Grand Slam.
Line-ups
Scotland: 15-Kinghorn; 14-Seymour, 13-Grigg, 12-P Horne, 11-Graham; 10-Russell, 9-Price; 1-Dell, 2-McInally (capt), 3-Nel, 4-Gilchrist, 5-J Gray, 6-Bradbury, 7-Ritchie, 8-Strauss.
Replacements: 16-Brown, 17-Reid, 18-Berghan, 19-Toolis, 20-Watson, 21-Laidlaw, 22-Hastings, 23-McGuigan.
Wales: 15-L Williams; 14-North, 13-J Davies, 12-Parkes, 11-Adams; 10-Anscombe, 9-G Davies; 1-R Evans, 2-Owens, 3-Francis, 4-Beard, 5-AW Jones (c), 6-Navidi, 7-Tipuric, 8-Moriarty.
Replacements: 16- Dee, 17-Smith, 18-Lewis, 19-Ball, 20-Wainwright, 21-A Davies, 22-Biggar, 23-Watkin.
Match officials
Referee: Pascal Gauzere (France)
Touch judges: Luke Pearce (England) & Alexandre Ruiz (France)
TMO: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
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England 57-14 Italy: Eight-try England keep Six Nation title hopes alive
By Tom Fordyce
Six Nations 2019: England dominate Italy 57-14 at Twickenham
Six Nations: England v Italy
England (31) 57
Tries: George, May, Tuilagi 2, Shields 2, Kruis, Robson Pen: Farrell Cons: Farrell 4, Ford 3
Italy (7) 14
Tries: Allan, Morisi Cons: Allan 2
England's heavyweights battered sorry Italy into submission as they racked up eight tries to keep their title hopes alive.
Manu Tuilagi's brace either side of half-time capped a dominant performance from the centre as Eddie Jones' men kept their unblemished record against the Azzuri intact.
With winger Joe Cokanasiga rampant and flanker Brad Shields bagging two tries of his own, Italy had no answer to England's big ball carriers.
Tries for Tommaso Allen and Luca Morisi were scant consolation for Conor O'Shea's struggling team in a game that only seldom became a genuine contest.
It means England will go into the final weekend with a shot at winning the Six Nations Championship, although they will need Grand Slam-chasing Wales to lose to Ireland in Cardiff before beating Scotland to pull it off.
For Italy it was another chastening afternoon, their 25th defeat by England in 25 meetings and their hunt for a win in this tournament now stretching back four years.
Allen's try in the corner and conversion from out wide had levelled things up early after Jamie George rumbled over from a driving maul. But England's big men were only just getting started.
Cokanasiga had been running riot down the right wing, yet the second try came as Elliot Daly sliced through down the left to set Jonny May away, then Tuilagi crashed through Angelo Esposito on an outside break to canter 40 metres for his team's third.
It was Tuilagi's first try for England in five years, and it was his strength and footwork that burst open the visitors' defence once again before he found Shields galloping away on his inside.
With Italy first losing Wasps centre Michele Campagnaro to injury and then his replacement Tommaso Castello, and Owen Farrell five from five with the boot, England were 31-7 up with almost an hour still to play.
Only three times have England ever scored more first-half points in a Five or Six Nations game, a sorry statistic for the visitors in a week when relegation from this tournament was openly discussed once again.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations 2019: Eddie Jones looks ahead to crucial final fixture against Scotland
Half-century up as Italy crumble
It could have been far worse. Daly counter-attacked from deep before Cokanasiga smashed his way to within two metres of the try-line, and when Farrell switched the point of attack Tuliagi ran on to George's neat looped pass for his second.
But scoring points has not been the principal problem for this Italy side - they had bagged at least 15 points in their previous four games in the competition - and after a series of drives from the forwards, Allen's pass found Morisi in unguarded space on the left wing for another try.
As the atmosphere fell flat the game then became mired in mistakes, England's intensity and execution dropping away just as it had in the second half against France before they roused themselves once again.
England's sixth try came from another Italian error when George Kruis charged down full-back Jayden Hayward's clearing kick, replacement fly-half George Ford landing the conversion for 43-14.
Replacement scrum-half Dan Robson had to wait until the final quarter for his belated chance, but profited from another break from Daly and Cokanasiga as he ran a sweet supporting line to touch down unopposed.
Kruis then charged down scrum-half Tito Tebaldi in front of the Italian posts to gift Shields his second try of the afternoon.
Man of the match - Joe Cokanasiga
Joe Cokanasiga may not have joined the try-scoring party but the big winger did everything that Jones had hoped for, and almost certainly booked his place in England’s World Cup squad in the process.
Analysis
Former England fly-half Paul Grayson on BBC Radio 5 Live: "The vast majority of the stadium will be happy to see England win and not necessarily share the frustrations about Italy.
"There's been some excellent rugby from England, albeit against very ordinary opposition.
"Ellis Genge was really good. He was disciplined and carried the ball when it was his opportunity. His work-rate and positioning were really good so he's pushed himself forward.
"On the other side, Brad Shields has still got some work to do. He'll be desperate for a big international performance at some point."
Former World Cup-winning scrum-half Matt Dawson on BBC Radio 5 live: "There are plenty of big, powerful rugby players around the world but with Tuilagi, his ability to change direction gets him out of those half-tackles.
"You've got to hit him hard or he's going to get out. One hand on his hip is not going to bring Manu Tuilagi down."
Line-ups
England: Daly, Cokanasiga, Tuilagi, Te'o, May, Farrell (capt), Youngs; Genge, George, Sinckler, Launchbury, Kruis, Shields, Curry, Vunipola.
Replacements: Cowan-Dickie for George (59), Moon for Genge (59), Cole for Sinckler (56), Hughes for Launchbury (66), Wilson for Curry (56), Robson for Youngs (62), Ford for Farrell (62), Slade for Tuilagi (62).
Italy: Hayward, Padovani, Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito, Allan, Tebaldi; Lovotti, Bigi, Ferrari, Ruzza, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse (capt).
Replacements: Ghiraldini for Bigi (49), Traore for Lovotti (49), Pasquali, Sisi for Budd (49), Polledri for Negri Da Oleggio (49), Palazzani for Morisi (62), McKinley, Castello.
Swami
By Tom Fordyce
Six Nations 2019: England dominate Italy 57-14 at Twickenham
Six Nations: England v Italy
England (31) 57
Tries: George, May, Tuilagi 2, Shields 2, Kruis, Robson Pen: Farrell Cons: Farrell 4, Ford 3
Italy (7) 14
Tries: Allan, Morisi Cons: Allan 2
England's heavyweights battered sorry Italy into submission as they racked up eight tries to keep their title hopes alive.
Manu Tuilagi's brace either side of half-time capped a dominant performance from the centre as Eddie Jones' men kept their unblemished record against the Azzuri intact.
With winger Joe Cokanasiga rampant and flanker Brad Shields bagging two tries of his own, Italy had no answer to England's big ball carriers.
Tries for Tommaso Allen and Luca Morisi were scant consolation for Conor O'Shea's struggling team in a game that only seldom became a genuine contest.
It means England will go into the final weekend with a shot at winning the Six Nations Championship, although they will need Grand Slam-chasing Wales to lose to Ireland in Cardiff before beating Scotland to pull it off.
For Italy it was another chastening afternoon, their 25th defeat by England in 25 meetings and their hunt for a win in this tournament now stretching back four years.
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Allen's try in the corner and conversion from out wide had levelled things up early after Jamie George rumbled over from a driving maul. But England's big men were only just getting started.
Cokanasiga had been running riot down the right wing, yet the second try came as Elliot Daly sliced through down the left to set Jonny May away, then Tuilagi crashed through Angelo Esposito on an outside break to canter 40 metres for his team's third.
It was Tuilagi's first try for England in five years, and it was his strength and footwork that burst open the visitors' defence once again before he found Shields galloping away on his inside.
With Italy first losing Wasps centre Michele Campagnaro to injury and then his replacement Tommaso Castello, and Owen Farrell five from five with the boot, England were 31-7 up with almost an hour still to play.
Only three times have England ever scored more first-half points in a Five or Six Nations game, a sorry statistic for the visitors in a week when relegation from this tournament was openly discussed once again.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations 2019: Eddie Jones looks ahead to crucial final fixture against Scotland
Half-century up as Italy crumble
It could have been far worse. Daly counter-attacked from deep before Cokanasiga smashed his way to within two metres of the try-line, and when Farrell switched the point of attack Tuliagi ran on to George's neat looped pass for his second.
But scoring points has not been the principal problem for this Italy side - they had bagged at least 15 points in their previous four games in the competition - and after a series of drives from the forwards, Allen's pass found Morisi in unguarded space on the left wing for another try.
As the atmosphere fell flat the game then became mired in mistakes, England's intensity and execution dropping away just as it had in the second half against France before they roused themselves once again.
England's sixth try came from another Italian error when George Kruis charged down full-back Jayden Hayward's clearing kick, replacement fly-half George Ford landing the conversion for 43-14.
Replacement scrum-half Dan Robson had to wait until the final quarter for his belated chance, but profited from another break from Daly and Cokanasiga as he ran a sweet supporting line to touch down unopposed.
Kruis then charged down scrum-half Tito Tebaldi in front of the Italian posts to gift Shields his second try of the afternoon.
Man of the match - Joe Cokanasiga
Joe Cokanasiga may not have joined the try-scoring party but the big winger did everything that Jones had hoped for, and almost certainly booked his place in England’s World Cup squad in the process.
Analysis
Former England fly-half Paul Grayson on BBC Radio 5 Live: "The vast majority of the stadium will be happy to see England win and not necessarily share the frustrations about Italy.
"There's been some excellent rugby from England, albeit against very ordinary opposition.
"Ellis Genge was really good. He was disciplined and carried the ball when it was his opportunity. His work-rate and positioning were really good so he's pushed himself forward.
"On the other side, Brad Shields has still got some work to do. He'll be desperate for a big international performance at some point."
Former World Cup-winning scrum-half Matt Dawson on BBC Radio 5 live: "There are plenty of big, powerful rugby players around the world but with Tuilagi, his ability to change direction gets him out of those half-tackles.
"You've got to hit him hard or he's going to get out. One hand on his hip is not going to bring Manu Tuilagi down."
Line-ups
England: Daly, Cokanasiga, Tuilagi, Te'o, May, Farrell (capt), Youngs; Genge, George, Sinckler, Launchbury, Kruis, Shields, Curry, Vunipola.
Replacements: Cowan-Dickie for George (59), Moon for Genge (59), Cole for Sinckler (56), Hughes for Launchbury (66), Wilson for Curry (56), Robson for Youngs (62), Ford for Farrell (62), Slade for Tuilagi (62).
Italy: Hayward, Padovani, Campagnaro, Morisi, Esposito, Allan, Tebaldi; Lovotti, Bigi, Ferrari, Ruzza, Budd, Negri, Steyn, Parisse (capt).
Replacements: Ghiraldini for Bigi (49), Traore for Lovotti (49), Pasquali, Sisi for Budd (49), Polledri for Negri Da Oleggio (49), Palazzani for Morisi (62), McKinley, Castello.
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Telly Talk Supreme
Six Nations: Ireland beat France 26-14 to retain title hopes
By Cian Murtagh
Captain Rory Best gave Ireland the perfect start with a try in the corner
Six Nations: Ireland v France
Ireland: (19) 26
Tries: Best, Sexton, Conan, Earls Cons: Sexton 3
France: (0) 14
Tries: Huget, Chat Cons: Serin 2
Ireland reignited their Six Nations title defence with a bonus-point win over a dismal France side in Dublin.
The holders rediscovered the form that had deserted them in the opening rounds of the championship to stay in the title battle ahead of their Cardiff showdown with Grand Slam-seeking Wales.
Captain Rory Best set the tone with an early try while Johnny Sexton, Jack Conan and Keith Earls also crossed.
Yoann Huget and Camille Chat scored late consolation tries for France.
Those scores failed to mask another disappointing French performance but they will hurt Ireland's points differential going into the final week.
Jacques Brunel's side travelled to Dublin with renewed confidence from their impressive win against Scotland but they had no answer to Ireland's combination of power and accuracy.
The only disappointment for head coach Joe Schmidt in his final Six Nations home match was that his side could not convert their dominance into more scores as they remain behind Wales and England in the race for this year's championship title.
Wales will receive a three-point bonus if they beat Ireland to clinch the Grand Slam, thus ensuring they will be crowned Six Nations champions
Forward power
Ireland made six changes to the forward pack that started against Italy in round three, and the return of front-line players such as Best, James Ryan and Iain Henderson had the desired effect.
The green set-piece was utterly dominant and their line-out maul repeatedly earned penalties to keep France trapped inside their own 22 and unable to escape.
Best's early score was an indication of what was to come as Jordan Larmour's fiendishly clever kick gave his pack a toehold and the Irish maul did the rest - dragging their captain over at the second opportunity.
France almost responded but Damien Penaud was called back for knocking-on while trying to catch a crossfield kick, and the ball barely left French territory for the rest of the opening half.
Bonus point the target
Ireland repeatedly turned down kickable penalties as they hunted down a bonus point and their unrelenting pressure was eventually rewarded.
Another dominant line-out gave Sexton the space for a loop around Ringrose and the Irish fly-half skated through a ragged defensive line for an excellent try.
Cian Healy and Ringrose both had tries disallowed either side of that Sexton score, but Ireland were undaunted as they showcased their open-play attack to get a third try before the break.
Ringrose and then Sexton cleverly switched back against the grain before Tadhg Furlong bolted through a gap and Conan muscled through two tacklers to apply the finish.
Schmidt's Six Nations finale
Keith Earls overtook Denis Hickie (29) to become Ireland's joint second highest try-scorer of all time alongside Tommy Bowe (30) - only Brian O'Driscoll (46) has scored more
Schmidt will sign off as a Six Nations head coach by trying to deny Wales a Grand Slam next week, but he will be most relieved by his side's timely return to form.
The bonus-point score arrived through a trademark Schmidt move as Earls peeled off the front of a line-out before bursting into life when CJ Stander broke free from a maul and delivered a clever inside pass for his Munster team-mate to storm over in the 56th minute.
Schmidt responded by replacing Sexton, Best, Furlong, Henderson and Conor Murray with more than one eye towards the trip to Cardiff next week, but it also robbed the team of crucial momentum.
A series of scrums on the French line produced a yellow card for Dorian Aldegheri but failed to earn another score, and it was the visitors that finished on the front foot.
Huget profited from a galloping break by Gregory Allritt before Chat was bundled over in stoppage time to put a gloss on the final score.
Ireland and Schmidt will not care as they roll on towards Cardiff.
Final round of fixtures: Saturday, 16 March (all times GMT)
Kick-off Match BBC coverage
12:30 Italy v France Live scores
14:45 Wales v Ireland Watch on BBC One & listen on BBC Radio 5 Live
17:00 England v Scotland Listen on BBC Radio 5 Live
Man of the match - Garry Ringrose
The centre demonstrated Ringrose's importance to the Irish backline with an all-action performance on his return from injury
The Leinster man was outstanding in attack - setting-up Sexton for his score and nearly crossing for another - and tigerish in defence as Ireland rediscovered their best form.
Line-ups
Ireland: Larmour, Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best (capt), Furlong, Henderson, Ryan, O'Mahony, Van der Flier, Stander.
Replacements: Scannell (for Best, 57), Kilcoyne (for Healy, 50), Ryan (for Furlong, 57), Dillane (for Henderson, 57), Conan (for Van der Flier, 24), Cooney (for Murray, 56), Carty (for Sexton, 57), Conway (for Earls, 75).
France: Ramos, Penaud, Bastareaud, Fickou, Huget; Ntamack, Dupont; Poirot, Guirado (capt), Bamba, Vahaamahina, Lambey, Lauret, Iturria, Picamoles.
Replacements: Chat (for Guirado, 71), Falgoux (for Poirot, 16), Aldegheri (for Bamba, 62), Willemse (for Lambey, 62), Alldritt (for Lauret, 11), Serin (for Dupont, 71), Belleau (for Ntamack, 75), Medard (for Ramos, 62).
Sin-bin: Aldegheri (68).
Swami
By Cian Murtagh
Captain Rory Best gave Ireland the perfect start with a try in the corner
Six Nations: Ireland v France
Ireland: (19) 26
Tries: Best, Sexton, Conan, Earls Cons: Sexton 3
France: (0) 14
Tries: Huget, Chat Cons: Serin 2
Ireland reignited their Six Nations title defence with a bonus-point win over a dismal France side in Dublin.
The holders rediscovered the form that had deserted them in the opening rounds of the championship to stay in the title battle ahead of their Cardiff showdown with Grand Slam-seeking Wales.
Captain Rory Best set the tone with an early try while Johnny Sexton, Jack Conan and Keith Earls also crossed.
Yoann Huget and Camille Chat scored late consolation tries for France.
Those scores failed to mask another disappointing French performance but they will hurt Ireland's points differential going into the final week.
Jacques Brunel's side travelled to Dublin with renewed confidence from their impressive win against Scotland but they had no answer to Ireland's combination of power and accuracy.
The only disappointment for head coach Joe Schmidt in his final Six Nations home match was that his side could not convert their dominance into more scores as they remain behind Wales and England in the race for this year's championship title.
Wales will receive a three-point bonus if they beat Ireland to clinch the Grand Slam, thus ensuring they will be crowned Six Nations champions
Forward power
Ireland made six changes to the forward pack that started against Italy in round three, and the return of front-line players such as Best, James Ryan and Iain Henderson had the desired effect.
The green set-piece was utterly dominant and their line-out maul repeatedly earned penalties to keep France trapped inside their own 22 and unable to escape.
Best's early score was an indication of what was to come as Jordan Larmour's fiendishly clever kick gave his pack a toehold and the Irish maul did the rest - dragging their captain over at the second opportunity.
France almost responded but Damien Penaud was called back for knocking-on while trying to catch a crossfield kick, and the ball barely left French territory for the rest of the opening half.
Bonus point the target
Ireland repeatedly turned down kickable penalties as they hunted down a bonus point and their unrelenting pressure was eventually rewarded.
Another dominant line-out gave Sexton the space for a loop around Ringrose and the Irish fly-half skated through a ragged defensive line for an excellent try.
Cian Healy and Ringrose both had tries disallowed either side of that Sexton score, but Ireland were undaunted as they showcased their open-play attack to get a third try before the break.
Ringrose and then Sexton cleverly switched back against the grain before Tadhg Furlong bolted through a gap and Conan muscled through two tacklers to apply the finish.
Schmidt's Six Nations finale
Keith Earls overtook Denis Hickie (29) to become Ireland's joint second highest try-scorer of all time alongside Tommy Bowe (30) - only Brian O'Driscoll (46) has scored more
Schmidt will sign off as a Six Nations head coach by trying to deny Wales a Grand Slam next week, but he will be most relieved by his side's timely return to form.
The bonus-point score arrived through a trademark Schmidt move as Earls peeled off the front of a line-out before bursting into life when CJ Stander broke free from a maul and delivered a clever inside pass for his Munster team-mate to storm over in the 56th minute.
Schmidt responded by replacing Sexton, Best, Furlong, Henderson and Conor Murray with more than one eye towards the trip to Cardiff next week, but it also robbed the team of crucial momentum.
A series of scrums on the French line produced a yellow card for Dorian Aldegheri but failed to earn another score, and it was the visitors that finished on the front foot.
Huget profited from a galloping break by Gregory Allritt before Chat was bundled over in stoppage time to put a gloss on the final score.
Ireland and Schmidt will not care as they roll on towards Cardiff.
Final round of fixtures: Saturday, 16 March (all times GMT)
Kick-off Match BBC coverage
12:30 Italy v France Live scores
14:45 Wales v Ireland Watch on BBC One & listen on BBC Radio 5 Live
17:00 England v Scotland Listen on BBC Radio 5 Live
Man of the match - Garry Ringrose
The centre demonstrated Ringrose's importance to the Irish backline with an all-action performance on his return from injury
The Leinster man was outstanding in attack - setting-up Sexton for his score and nearly crossing for another - and tigerish in defence as Ireland rediscovered their best form.
Line-ups
Ireland: Larmour, Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best (capt), Furlong, Henderson, Ryan, O'Mahony, Van der Flier, Stander.
Replacements: Scannell (for Best, 57), Kilcoyne (for Healy, 50), Ryan (for Furlong, 57), Dillane (for Henderson, 57), Conan (for Van der Flier, 24), Cooney (for Murray, 56), Carty (for Sexton, 57), Conway (for Earls, 75).
France: Ramos, Penaud, Bastareaud, Fickou, Huget; Ntamack, Dupont; Poirot, Guirado (capt), Bamba, Vahaamahina, Lambey, Lauret, Iturria, Picamoles.
Replacements: Chat (for Guirado, 71), Falgoux (for Poirot, 16), Aldegheri (for Bamba, 62), Willemse (for Lambey, 62), Alldritt (for Lauret, 11), Serin (for Dupont, 71), Belleau (for Ntamack, 75), Medard (for Ramos, 62).
Sin-bin: Aldegheri (68).
Swami
Swami
Telly Talk Supreme
Italy 14-25 France: France hold on as hosts rue missed chances
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Six Nations 2019: Italy 14-25 France highlights
Six Nations: Italy v France
Italy (6) 14
Try: Tebaldi Pens: Allan 3
France (10) 25
Tries: Dupont, Huget, Penaud Pen: Ntamack Cons: Ntamack 2 Drop-goal: Ntamack
Italy agonisingly missed out on a rare Six Nations win as France ended their disappointing campaign with victory.
Antoine Dupont and Yoann Huget scored to give France control but Italy had enough chances in Rome to end their 21-game winless run in the championship.
Tito Tebaldi scored in the 54th minute and, when a converted try would have put Italy in front late on, Marco Zanon lost the ball when over the tryline.
Damian Penaud then sealed France's win by going over in the 78th minute.
It was Penaud who had moments earlier denied Zanon with a brilliant last-ditch tackle at the end of a period of sustained Italian pressure in the final 10 minutes, with France playing with 14 men because of Camille Chat's yellow card.
Italy had also missed chances in the first half with Zanon again being denied a try on debut.
He looked certain to score after running onto a clever kick through but the ball hit a post and deflected away from him.
The play was then taken back for an earlier penalty but Italy knocked the ball on within yards of the tryline in their next attack.
France offered little going forward for the majority of the game but the win does at least see them end the campaign, which has included defeats by Wales, England and Ireland, with a second win.
It sees them move above Scotland into fourth in the table while Italy will finish bottom.
Scotland can move back above France by beating England at Twickenham at 17:00 GMT.
Italy: Hayward, Padovani, Zanon, Morisi, Esposito, Allan, Tebaldi, Lovotti, Ghiraldini, Pasquali, Sisi, Ruzza, Steyn, Polledri, Parisse.
Replacements: Traore for Lovotti (67), Ferrari for Pasquali (45), Zanni for Sisi (59), Negri for Steyn (63), Sperandio for Esposito (67).
France: Medard, Penaud, Bastareaud, Fofana, Huget, Ntamack, Dupont, Falgoux, Guirado, Bamba, Lambey, Willemse, Alldritt, Camara, Picamoles.
Replacements: Chat for Guirado (18), Priso for Falgoux (64), Aldegheri for Camara (74), Gabrillagues for Willemse (59), Iturria for Alldritt (59), Serin for Dupont (55), Lopez, for Ntamack (79), Ramos for Huget (68).
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Six Nations 2019: Italy 14-25 France highlights
Six Nations: Italy v France
Italy (6) 14
Try: Tebaldi Pens: Allan 3
France (10) 25
Tries: Dupont, Huget, Penaud Pen: Ntamack Cons: Ntamack 2 Drop-goal: Ntamack
Italy agonisingly missed out on a rare Six Nations win as France ended their disappointing campaign with victory.
Antoine Dupont and Yoann Huget scored to give France control but Italy had enough chances in Rome to end their 21-game winless run in the championship.
Tito Tebaldi scored in the 54th minute and, when a converted try would have put Italy in front late on, Marco Zanon lost the ball when over the tryline.
Damian Penaud then sealed France's win by going over in the 78th minute.
It was Penaud who had moments earlier denied Zanon with a brilliant last-ditch tackle at the end of a period of sustained Italian pressure in the final 10 minutes, with France playing with 14 men because of Camille Chat's yellow card.
Italy had also missed chances in the first half with Zanon again being denied a try on debut.
He looked certain to score after running onto a clever kick through but the ball hit a post and deflected away from him.
The play was then taken back for an earlier penalty but Italy knocked the ball on within yards of the tryline in their next attack.
France offered little going forward for the majority of the game but the win does at least see them end the campaign, which has included defeats by Wales, England and Ireland, with a second win.
It sees them move above Scotland into fourth in the table while Italy will finish bottom.
Scotland can move back above France by beating England at Twickenham at 17:00 GMT.
Italy: Hayward, Padovani, Zanon, Morisi, Esposito, Allan, Tebaldi, Lovotti, Ghiraldini, Pasquali, Sisi, Ruzza, Steyn, Polledri, Parisse.
Replacements: Traore for Lovotti (67), Ferrari for Pasquali (45), Zanni for Sisi (59), Negri for Steyn (63), Sperandio for Esposito (67).
France: Medard, Penaud, Bastareaud, Fofana, Huget, Ntamack, Dupont, Falgoux, Guirado, Bamba, Lambey, Willemse, Alldritt, Camara, Picamoles.
Replacements: Chat for Guirado (18), Priso for Falgoux (64), Aldegheri for Camara (74), Gabrillagues for Willemse (59), Iturria for Alldritt (59), Serin for Dupont (55), Lopez, for Ntamack (79), Ramos for Huget (68).
Swami
Swami
Telly Talk Supreme
Wales 25-7 Ireland: Wales win Six Nations Grand Slam
By Tom Fordyce
Six Nations 2019: Wales beat Ireland to complete Six Nations Grand Slam
Six Nations: Wales v Ireland
Wales (16) 25
Try: Parkes Con: Anscombe Pens: Anscombe 6
Ireland (0) 7
Try: Larmour Con: Carty
Wales are celebrating a third Grand Slam in 11 years after they put Ireland to the sword in ruthless fashion to storm to the Six Nations title.
After Hadleigh Parkes' early try, Gareth Anscombe added a conversion and three penalties for a 16-0 half-lead as Ireland's indiscipline cost them dear.
And the fly-half added three more in an equally one-sided second period, Ireland looking nothing like the second-ranked team in world rugby, Jordan Larmour's late try no sort of consolation.
Seldom in this championship have Wales been spectacular in attack but their defence has been remorseless and their fortitude under pressure remarkable, and the celebrations will go long into a sodden Cardiff night.
It means Warren Gatland, in his 50th and final Six Nations match in charge, becomes the first coach in Five or Six Nations history to win three Slams, his team's record-breaking winning run now stretching to 14 games.
For Ireland the tournament ended as it began, with a chastening defeat that leaves significant questions hanging over their World Cup ambitions.
Anscombe pulls strings as Wales start superbly
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations: Parkes try gives Wales crucial early lead
In an atmosphere of feverish excitement Wales exploded from the blocks, bundling Jacob Stockdale into touch from the kick-off and setting up a driving maul from the line-out before Anscombe's cute chip was gathered by Parkes for the centre to tumble over the line.
It took a last-ditch tackle in the left-hand corner from Parkes to stop Stockdale striking back immediately after Johnny Sexton's cross-kick, although Wales then lost George North to injury, Anscombe moving to full-back, Dan Biggar coming in at fly-half and Liam Williams switching to the right wing.
Ireland were being starved of possession and territory, shipping too many soft penalties, Anscombe landing one from way out wide for 10-0 with 20 minutes gone.
As the rain swept in Joe Schmidt's men finally built a period of pressure but struggled to convert it into points.
First Sexton kicked a penalty to the corner but the subsequent driving maul was disrupted by formidable Welsh defence, and another prime attacking opportunity was tossed away when CJ Stander tried to take a quick tap and go from a scrum free-kick 10 metres out and instead kicked it straight into a team-mate.
Anscombe drilled over a second penalty of his own from 40 metres and added another with the clock red to make it 16-0 at the interval, the capacity crowd in full cry, the Slam in their sights.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations 2019: Wales lift trophy after completing Grand Slam
Party starts early as Ireland capitulate
Ireland needed to score first in the second period but Cian Healy entered a ruck from the side and Anscombe made no mistake from the tee, Ireland's woes summed up by Sexton putting the re-start dead.
The penalties kept coming. Stander failed to roll away from a ruck, Anscombe landed his 17th point.
When Ireland did threaten the Welsh line through a series of powerful drives from their forwards, the ball was thrown into touch by Sexton when it finally went wide.
*Wales get three extra bonus points for winning all five of their games
So comfortable and one-sided was it that the victory songs were ringing round the three tiers of the steep-sided stadium with half an hour still to play.
The tension that so many had expected was totally absent, an Ireland team who had beaten world champions New Zealand in the autumn and won a Slam of their own at Twickenham a year ago utterly unrecognisable.
Anscombe's sixth penalty added salt to the wounds as the rain became torrential, the only question whether the visitors would be kept scoreless.
Superlative defence on the Welsh line kept them at bay until replacement Larmour's try deep into the final moments, but nothing could dampen the mood as the final whistle sounded.
Man of the match - Alun Wyn Jones (Wales)
In the critical first 40 minutes the Welsh captain beat more defenders and made more metres and carries than any other man on the pitch, and while Anscombe kicked the points, Jones - as he was throughout the championship - was totemic, a multiple Slam winner in his finest hour.
Gatland's fine record - the best stats
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations: Warren Gatland proud as Wales create history
Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones, speaking to BBC One: "Anything can happen when you work hard and you're a proud nation and we've shown that.
"Warren's the man at the top and we've been under pressure but he's always been unwavering. He's got a bit left on his contract but I'm sure we'll miss him when he's eventually gone.
"At times we've been unconvincing so we like to think there's still potential in us. We're well aware we've just put a big target on our backs before the World Cup."
The match was Warren Gatland's 50th and final Six Nations match in charge of Wales
Wales coach Warren Gatland, speaking to BBC One: "It was a fantastic performance, we didn't look too tired did we?
"We spoke beforehand about the players playing for themselves, their families and the fans and being able to create a bit of history. You can never take that away from them now.
"I said if we won the first game against France we've got a good chance of winning the whole thing. If that creates that bit of belief in the players then maybe something like this can happen."
Ireland captain Rory Best, speaking to BBC One: "Wales had a cracking start. They built into the game. They're a very determined side and hard to beat here.
"We couldn't get a footing in the game. Our set-piece wasn't up to the standard that we expect. They put a lot of pressure on us and we struggled to respond.
"It's been a very competitive Six Nations. We have to go and address why we lost. We've been inconsistent this championship and we'll have to dust ourselves off and finish the calendar year strong.
"We can talk about the aftermath of this later on but you have to give credit to Wales - they're deserved Grand Slam winners."
Wales: L Williams; North, J Davies, Parkes, Adams; Anscombe, G Davies; Evans, Owens, Francis, Beard, Jones (capt), Navidi, Tipuric, Moriarty.
Replacements: Dee for Owens (60), Smith for Evans (53), Lewis for Francis (53), Ball for Beard (70), Wainwright for Moriarty (70), A Davies for G Davies (56), Biggar for North (8), Watkin for Parkes (70).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best (capt), Furlong, Beirne, Ryan, O'Mahony, O'Brien, Stander.
Replacements: Scannell for Best (64), Kilcoyne for Healy (58), Porter for Furlong (64), Roux for Beirne (58), Conan for O'Brien (51), Marmion for Murray (70), Carty for Sexton (72), Larmour for Kearney (64).
Swami
By Tom Fordyce
Six Nations 2019: Wales beat Ireland to complete Six Nations Grand Slam
Six Nations: Wales v Ireland
Wales (16) 25
Try: Parkes Con: Anscombe Pens: Anscombe 6
Ireland (0) 7
Try: Larmour Con: Carty
Wales are celebrating a third Grand Slam in 11 years after they put Ireland to the sword in ruthless fashion to storm to the Six Nations title.
After Hadleigh Parkes' early try, Gareth Anscombe added a conversion and three penalties for a 16-0 half-lead as Ireland's indiscipline cost them dear.
And the fly-half added three more in an equally one-sided second period, Ireland looking nothing like the second-ranked team in world rugby, Jordan Larmour's late try no sort of consolation.
Seldom in this championship have Wales been spectacular in attack but their defence has been remorseless and their fortitude under pressure remarkable, and the celebrations will go long into a sodden Cardiff night.
It means Warren Gatland, in his 50th and final Six Nations match in charge, becomes the first coach in Five or Six Nations history to win three Slams, his team's record-breaking winning run now stretching to 14 games.
For Ireland the tournament ended as it began, with a chastening defeat that leaves significant questions hanging over their World Cup ambitions.
Anscombe pulls strings as Wales start superbly
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations: Parkes try gives Wales crucial early lead
In an atmosphere of feverish excitement Wales exploded from the blocks, bundling Jacob Stockdale into touch from the kick-off and setting up a driving maul from the line-out before Anscombe's cute chip was gathered by Parkes for the centre to tumble over the line.
It took a last-ditch tackle in the left-hand corner from Parkes to stop Stockdale striking back immediately after Johnny Sexton's cross-kick, although Wales then lost George North to injury, Anscombe moving to full-back, Dan Biggar coming in at fly-half and Liam Williams switching to the right wing.
Ireland were being starved of possession and territory, shipping too many soft penalties, Anscombe landing one from way out wide for 10-0 with 20 minutes gone.
As the rain swept in Joe Schmidt's men finally built a period of pressure but struggled to convert it into points.
First Sexton kicked a penalty to the corner but the subsequent driving maul was disrupted by formidable Welsh defence, and another prime attacking opportunity was tossed away when CJ Stander tried to take a quick tap and go from a scrum free-kick 10 metres out and instead kicked it straight into a team-mate.
Anscombe drilled over a second penalty of his own from 40 metres and added another with the clock red to make it 16-0 at the interval, the capacity crowd in full cry, the Slam in their sights.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations 2019: Wales lift trophy after completing Grand Slam
Party starts early as Ireland capitulate
Ireland needed to score first in the second period but Cian Healy entered a ruck from the side and Anscombe made no mistake from the tee, Ireland's woes summed up by Sexton putting the re-start dead.
The penalties kept coming. Stander failed to roll away from a ruck, Anscombe landed his 17th point.
When Ireland did threaten the Welsh line through a series of powerful drives from their forwards, the ball was thrown into touch by Sexton when it finally went wide.
*Wales get three extra bonus points for winning all five of their games
So comfortable and one-sided was it that the victory songs were ringing round the three tiers of the steep-sided stadium with half an hour still to play.
The tension that so many had expected was totally absent, an Ireland team who had beaten world champions New Zealand in the autumn and won a Slam of their own at Twickenham a year ago utterly unrecognisable.
Anscombe's sixth penalty added salt to the wounds as the rain became torrential, the only question whether the visitors would be kept scoreless.
Superlative defence on the Welsh line kept them at bay until replacement Larmour's try deep into the final moments, but nothing could dampen the mood as the final whistle sounded.
Man of the match - Alun Wyn Jones (Wales)
In the critical first 40 minutes the Welsh captain beat more defenders and made more metres and carries than any other man on the pitch, and while Anscombe kicked the points, Jones - as he was throughout the championship - was totemic, a multiple Slam winner in his finest hour.
Gatland's fine record - the best stats
- Warren Gatland has become the first coach to win three Grand Slams in Five/Six Nations history following 2008 and 2012.
- Gatland has won 43 Six Nations matches, 13 more than anyone else.
- Wales have won their last 14 Test matches, England are the only European tier one side to have won more consecutive matches in all competitions (W18 - 2015-17, W14 - 2002-03).
- Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones equalled prop Gethin Jenkins' combined appearance record for Wales and the British and Irish Lions of 134 Tests.
Media playback is not supported on this device
Six Nations: Warren Gatland proud as Wales create history
Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones, speaking to BBC One: "Anything can happen when you work hard and you're a proud nation and we've shown that.
"Warren's the man at the top and we've been under pressure but he's always been unwavering. He's got a bit left on his contract but I'm sure we'll miss him when he's eventually gone.
"At times we've been unconvincing so we like to think there's still potential in us. We're well aware we've just put a big target on our backs before the World Cup."
The match was Warren Gatland's 50th and final Six Nations match in charge of Wales
Wales coach Warren Gatland, speaking to BBC One: "It was a fantastic performance, we didn't look too tired did we?
"We spoke beforehand about the players playing for themselves, their families and the fans and being able to create a bit of history. You can never take that away from them now.
"I said if we won the first game against France we've got a good chance of winning the whole thing. If that creates that bit of belief in the players then maybe something like this can happen."
Ireland captain Rory Best, speaking to BBC One: "Wales had a cracking start. They built into the game. They're a very determined side and hard to beat here.
"We couldn't get a footing in the game. Our set-piece wasn't up to the standard that we expect. They put a lot of pressure on us and we struggled to respond.
"It's been a very competitive Six Nations. We have to go and address why we lost. We've been inconsistent this championship and we'll have to dust ourselves off and finish the calendar year strong.
"We can talk about the aftermath of this later on but you have to give credit to Wales - they're deserved Grand Slam winners."
Wales: L Williams; North, J Davies, Parkes, Adams; Anscombe, G Davies; Evans, Owens, Francis, Beard, Jones (capt), Navidi, Tipuric, Moriarty.
Replacements: Dee for Owens (60), Smith for Evans (53), Lewis for Francis (53), Ball for Beard (70), Wainwright for Moriarty (70), A Davies for G Davies (56), Biggar for North (8), Watkin for Parkes (70).
Ireland: Kearney; Earls, Ringrose, Aki, Stockdale; Sexton, Murray; Healy, Best (capt), Furlong, Beirne, Ryan, O'Mahony, O'Brien, Stander.
Replacements: Scannell for Best (64), Kilcoyne for Healy (58), Porter for Furlong (64), Roux for Beirne (58), Conan for O'Brien (51), Marmion for Murray (70), Carty for Sexton (72), Larmour for Kearney (64).
Swami
Swami
Telly Talk Supreme
England and Scotland draw astonishing Test 38-38 in Six Nations
By Mike Henson
BBC Sport
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Scotland celebrated Johnson's late try, only to denied victory with the clock in the red as the match ended as the highest-scoring draw in Test history
Six Nations: England v Scotland
England (31) 38
Tries: Nowell, Curry, Launchbury, May, Ford Cons: Farrell 4 Ford Pen: Farrell
Scotland (7) 38
Tries: McInally, Graham 2, Bradbury, Russell, Johnson Cons: Russell 2, Laidlaw 2
England and Scotland fought out an astonishing draw in the most dramatic match in their 148 year-rivalry.
England, whose title hopes were ended by Wales' win over Ireland, raced into a 31-point lead in as many minutes.
But Stuart McInally broke clear before Darcy Graham (twice), Magnus Bradbury and Finn Russell crossed in a second-half blitz that made it 31-31.
Sam Johnson scored a seemingly decisive try late on, only for England's George Ford to go in for the game's 11th try.
Despite the extraordinary drama, both sides looked deflated on the final whistle.
Scotland had to come to terms with being denied the greatest comeback in top-level international history - and an end to a 36-year Twickenham hoodoo - by the final play of the game.
Six Nations: England lacked discipline in second half - Eddie Jones
England, with coach Eddie Jones looking on furiously from above, had saved themselves from an embarrassing defeat, but will face a brutal inquest into their second-half display and further questions over their concentration and consistency in big matches, less than six months before the World Cup.
England run rampant
Jonny May's try seemed to have England on course to match the joint-record 40-point winning margin they racked up in the 2017 fixture
A first try after 66 seconds. A bonus point inside 29 minutes. England's biggest half-time lead ever against Scotland.
In the first 40 minutes, there was a chasm-like disparity between the international game's oldest adversaries.
Wing Jack Nowell started England's onslaught as he stepped inside the cover to score in the second minute.
A clever short line-out was then driven over for Tom Curry's score and Ellis Genge, on for the injured Ben Moon in the fourth minute, sprung fellow prop Kyle Sinckler through a gap in the build-up to Joe Launchbury diving in.
When Henry Slade flicked a pass out the back of his hand for Jonny May to stroll in, it felt like there was an element of showboating in England's performance.
Jones had said before the match that it was a chance to "show that we're the best team in the Six Nations" and with nine tries more than anyone else in the championship at that point, it seemed his side were making the statement he wanted as they took a 31-0 lead.
Scotland surge back
Scotland and their captain Stuart McInally retain the Calcutta Cup courtesy of last year's 25-13 win at Murrayfield
What followed was six unanswered Scotland tries that shocked an unsuspecting Twickenham.
Flanker-turned-hooker Stuart McInally's charge-down and charge home from 55 metres out gave the visitors something before the break.
At that stage, it had seemed little more than a consolation.
But, in the second half, Scotland made light of the weight of history and an injury-ravaged squad as their backline suddenly realised their potential for dazzling, defence-shredding play.
In the space of 13 surreal minutes, Graham jinked over following quicksilver interplay, Ali Price's chip paved the way for Bradbury's score, a looping miss-pass from Russell sprang Graham and finally Russell snaffled an interception from opposite number Farrell to level the scores.
A reeling England seemed to regain their balance only for Johnson to barrel over in the 76th minute. On the brink of a victory for the ages and with the clock in the red though, they could not hold out.
It was a performance that showed the best and worst of Gregor Townsend's side with their lack of forward heft and basic errors perfectly counter-balanced by their flashes of attacking brilliance.
England: Daly, Nowell, Ashton, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs, Moon, George, Sinckler, Launchbury, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B. Vunipola.
Replacements: Genge for Moon (4), Te'o for Tuilagi (77), Ford for Farrell (70), Spencer for Youngs (74), Cowan-Dickie for George (74), Cole for Sinckler (51), Hughes for Launchbury (74), Shields for Wilson (62).
Scotland: Maitland, D. Graham, Grigg, Johnson, McGuigan, Russell, Price, Dell, McInally, Nel, Toolis, Gilchrist, Skinner, Watson, Bradbury.
Replacements: Hastings for Maitland (68), Harris for Grigg (57), Laidlaw for Price (57), Reid for Dell (45), Brown for McInally (57), Berghan for Nel (61), Gray for Gilchrist (57), Strauss for Skinner (57).
Swami
By Mike Henson
BBC Sport
- 22 minutes ago
- From the section Rugby Union
- 492
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Scotland celebrated Johnson's late try, only to denied victory with the clock in the red as the match ended as the highest-scoring draw in Test history
Six Nations: England v Scotland
England (31) 38
Tries: Nowell, Curry, Launchbury, May, Ford Cons: Farrell 4 Ford Pen: Farrell
Scotland (7) 38
Tries: McInally, Graham 2, Bradbury, Russell, Johnson Cons: Russell 2, Laidlaw 2
England and Scotland fought out an astonishing draw in the most dramatic match in their 148 year-rivalry.
England, whose title hopes were ended by Wales' win over Ireland, raced into a 31-point lead in as many minutes.
But Stuart McInally broke clear before Darcy Graham (twice), Magnus Bradbury and Finn Russell crossed in a second-half blitz that made it 31-31.
Sam Johnson scored a seemingly decisive try late on, only for England's George Ford to go in for the game's 11th try.
Despite the extraordinary drama, both sides looked deflated on the final whistle.
Scotland had to come to terms with being denied the greatest comeback in top-level international history - and an end to a 36-year Twickenham hoodoo - by the final play of the game.
Six Nations: England lacked discipline in second half - Eddie Jones
England, with coach Eddie Jones looking on furiously from above, had saved themselves from an embarrassing defeat, but will face a brutal inquest into their second-half display and further questions over their concentration and consistency in big matches, less than six months before the World Cup.
England run rampant
Jonny May's try seemed to have England on course to match the joint-record 40-point winning margin they racked up in the 2017 fixture
A first try after 66 seconds. A bonus point inside 29 minutes. England's biggest half-time lead ever against Scotland.
In the first 40 minutes, there was a chasm-like disparity between the international game's oldest adversaries.
Wing Jack Nowell started England's onslaught as he stepped inside the cover to score in the second minute.
A clever short line-out was then driven over for Tom Curry's score and Ellis Genge, on for the injured Ben Moon in the fourth minute, sprung fellow prop Kyle Sinckler through a gap in the build-up to Joe Launchbury diving in.
When Henry Slade flicked a pass out the back of his hand for Jonny May to stroll in, it felt like there was an element of showboating in England's performance.
Jones had said before the match that it was a chance to "show that we're the best team in the Six Nations" and with nine tries more than anyone else in the championship at that point, it seemed his side were making the statement he wanted as they took a 31-0 lead.
Scotland surge back
Scotland and their captain Stuart McInally retain the Calcutta Cup courtesy of last year's 25-13 win at Murrayfield
What followed was six unanswered Scotland tries that shocked an unsuspecting Twickenham.
Flanker-turned-hooker Stuart McInally's charge-down and charge home from 55 metres out gave the visitors something before the break.
At that stage, it had seemed little more than a consolation.
But, in the second half, Scotland made light of the weight of history and an injury-ravaged squad as their backline suddenly realised their potential for dazzling, defence-shredding play.
In the space of 13 surreal minutes, Graham jinked over following quicksilver interplay, Ali Price's chip paved the way for Bradbury's score, a looping miss-pass from Russell sprang Graham and finally Russell snaffled an interception from opposite number Farrell to level the scores.
A reeling England seemed to regain their balance only for Johnson to barrel over in the 76th minute. On the brink of a victory for the ages and with the clock in the red though, they could not hold out.
It was a performance that showed the best and worst of Gregor Townsend's side with their lack of forward heft and basic errors perfectly counter-balanced by their flashes of attacking brilliance.
England: Daly, Nowell, Ashton, Tuilagi, May, Farrell, Youngs, Moon, George, Sinckler, Launchbury, Kruis, Wilson, Curry, B. Vunipola.
Replacements: Genge for Moon (4), Te'o for Tuilagi (77), Ford for Farrell (70), Spencer for Youngs (74), Cowan-Dickie for George (74), Cole for Sinckler (51), Hughes for Launchbury (74), Shields for Wilson (62).
Scotland: Maitland, D. Graham, Grigg, Johnson, McGuigan, Russell, Price, Dell, McInally, Nel, Toolis, Gilchrist, Skinner, Watson, Bradbury.
Replacements: Hastings for Maitland (68), Harris for Grigg (57), Laidlaw for Price (57), Reid for Dell (45), Brown for McInally (57), Berghan for Nel (61), Gray for Gilchrist (57), Strauss for Skinner (57).
Swami