As Ireland romped to their eleventh straight win over Scotland at Murrayfield, the media analysts were left doing mental gymnastics that would make Einstein reach for a paracetamol. While the scoreboard showed Ireland, the match statistics suggested Scotland was playing like the 1995 All Blacks. Scotland recorded various dominant performance metrics: 58 per cent possession, 131 ball carries compared to Ireland’s 81, and 675 meters carried versus Ireland’s 459. Scotland also recorded superior numbers in tackle breaks (25 to 13), ruck success (105 to 66), and lineout efficiency (93 per cent versus 60 per cent). They even had fewer missed…

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