Caelan Doris hails invaluable momentum as Ireland bounce back to beat England

Caelan Doris says that Ireland have vital momentum in their Six Nations three-peat bid after overcoming old rivals England in their championship opener at the Aviva Stadium.

Ireland trailed 10-5 at the break but fought back with three second half tries to ensure a 27-22 victory.

The skipper hailed the victory - and the response to England's strong start - although admitted it was a "little bit disappointing" to concede two late tries to hand England a losing bonus point, as he admitted "small margins (can count) later in the tournament.

"But definitely overall a feeling of satisfaction," the Leinster star added. "Momentum is huge in this tournament and we're starting off with a win at home against England, who are a quality team.

"We saw what they were capable of in the first-half, we came out strong in the second-half. The first 20 to 30 minutes of the second-half is when we got the job done.

"There was a bit of a feeling towards the end of the first-half that when we were doing things our way, getting quicker ball, that holes were opening up and we were capable of scoring. That came to fruition in the second-half."

Doris said that there was nothing differently done at half-time as temporary head coach Simon Easterby and his management team spoke to the players.

"It was nothing crazy at half-time - we just do things our way, back to basics," he claimed.

"I feel there is still so much growth in this team. We had an unbelievable 10 days build-up. We showed what we were capable of but we can better again, the deeper we go into the tournament."

Ireland's hugely experienced bench played its part in the second half revival, with Dan Sheehan returning from an ACL to score on his comeback at provincial and Test level in the space of seven days.

"Yeah, unbelievable players coming in off the bench, and all brought energy - they added something and left their mark," Doris said.

"Dan Sheehan in particular, what a quality player. We have missed him over the last six months. He has been working so hard behind the scenes."

Get the latest sports headlines straight to your inbox by signing up for free email alerts.