This is the best Scottish team I have faced – Sexton
PARIS, FRANCE - OCTOBER 31: Johnny Sexton of Ireland looks on during the 2020 Guinness Six Nations match between France and Ireland at Stade de France on October 31, 2020 in Paris, France. (Photo by Getty Images/Getty Images)
Johnny Sexton's travelling in the Six Nations started in Paris 13 years ago and it is set to end today at Murrayfield, a ground where he has never tasted defeat in the championship.
The 37-year old Ireland captain and outside-half has yet to say whether he will play on after the World Cup later this year, but it is expected that he will call time on a senior career that started when he came on as a replacement for Leinster against the Borders in the 2005-06 season.
Sexton's first match against Scotland started in defeat at Croke Park in 2010 and he was on the losing side at Murrayfield in a pre-World Cup encounter in 2011, but since then he has enjoyed 11 straight victories against the Scots.
He has scored 131 points against them and if he acquires seven this afternoon, he will set a new high against one country having notched 137 against Wales and he will equal Ronan O'Gara's record of 557 Six Nations points.
The title and Grand Slam are on the line for Ireland while Scotland are chasing a first triple crown since 1999 and Sexton reckons they have never posed a bigger threat in his playing career.
“I would say this is the best Scotland team I have ever played,” he said. “They have had some big wins in the last couple of years and they are building nicely. They have brought in a number of players and that had made them stronger.”
Sexton missed Ireland's defeats at Murrayfield in 2013 and 2017. His four visits to the ground in the Six Nations have been successful and a fifth would give Ireland a tilt at a second Grand Slam in five years, and his first as captain, against England at the Aviva Stadium on Saturday.
“It is a huge game for both sides,” said Sexton, who missed the victory over Italy in the last round through injury. “They are going for the triple crown and are still in the championship race and so are we.
“It is not about pressure but embracing it and realising that it is not always like this. A couple of years ago, we lost our first two games and were fighting for a bit of respect and pride.
“You have to cherish it because where else would you rather be? Fourth and playing for nothing? We are where we want to be and it is about driving home process, performance and the things that matter.”
Sexton said that the prospect of beating the record of his predecessor in Ireland's outside-half jersey was not costing him any sleep.
“It's not something I ever set out to do but it is there,” he said. “It is not going to add any pressure and I would rather not score another point and win the championship and the grand slam than get the record.
“It might be a bonus but it is not in my thoughts which are about making the team win. Ronan had an amazing career and just to be in that conversation is enough for me.”
Ireland make six changes to their starting XV. Sexton, Garry Ringrose and Tadhg Furlong return after recovering from injuries. Conor Murray, Dan Sheehan, Peter O'Mahony are also recalled.
