The opening weekend of a Six Nations campaign is all about starting fast and then sustaining that momentum. England were encouragingly quick out of the stalls but, not for the first time, were unable to kick on when it really counted. Instead it is the reigning champions, Ireland, who are up and running, courtesy of an uninterrupted blast of 22 second-half points that condemned Steve Borthwick’s side to a seventh defeat in their last nine Tests.

Talk about a game of two contrasting halves. Initially a bristling England were right up for it and led 10-5 at the interval. They reckoned without storming, game-turning tries from Bundee Aki, Tadhg Beirne and Dan Sheehan and a collective Irish power surge that allowed the hosts to weather a slightly sticky first 40 minutes and grasp a potentially vital try bonus point.

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Two late scores for Tom Curry and Tommy Freeman did at least earn England a losing bonus point, with the Harlequins wing Cadan Murley also claiming a try on his first international appearance. But this was a sporting movie that, in various forms, England fans are now used to watching. Rugby matches are played over 80 minutes and the final reel is becoming all too familiar.

Last-quarter weariness, questionable depth in certain positions. Brittle self-belief … the bottom line is that England’s bench is still not managing to ride to the team’s rescue in the way Ireland’s replacements, say, seem capable of doing. Unless that changes very soon, starting at home to France on Saturday, England are not going to be anywhere near the winners’ circle when the tournament concludes next month.

Under the new leadership of Maro Itoje, they had travelled over hoping for rather more on a cool, grey, expectant Dublin afternoon. And initially it did seem as if the afternoon might just yield something unexpected. No one was hungrier to make an early impression than the mustard-keen Curry twins and a serious amount of pressure was being heaped on the young Irish No 10 Sam Prendergast. Ben Curry was at the young fly-half constantly, disrupting Ireland’s kicking game and rushing the home conductor. And amid the swirling chaos it was England who struck first. Ollie Lawrence made inroads down the middle, Marcus Smith swung the ball to his left and Henry Slade put in a lovely deft left-foot grubber that sat up perfectly for Murley. Debut tries do not come much sweeter.

The former England head coach Stuart Lancaster has left Racing 92 with immediate effect. Lancaster’s 18-month spell with the Paris club has ended after they failed to qualify for the knockout phase of the Champions Cup, finishing second from bottom in their pool. They have also struggled domestically and sit 12th in the Top 14, just two points above the relegation zone. Owen Farrell joined the club last summer but has been affected by a groin injury, hampering his ability to contribute to their season. PA Media

The visitors were still ahead at the half-hour mark but that was largely thanks to Irish profligacy. Twice, with advantage being played deep in the English 22, the hosts failed to nail the opportunity and when Ronan Kelleher did finally crash over the score was ruled out because Beirne had illegally held back Itoje at the preceding ruck.

There was also a snap and crackle to England’s tackling and a determination to live up to the pre-match pledges to give it a real go with ball in hand. The aerial contest was also proving competitive and the stadium, already subdued, started to resemble a library on a public holiday.

The hush was abruptly broken, though, when Ireland did finally storm back into the visiting 22 and, with a warning having already been issued, Smith was sent to the sin-bin for clear offside as England desperately tried to snuff out the danger. Still, though, Ireland were having trouble hammering home the final nail and Prendergast was learning the hard way that Test rugby is a relentless education.

It was a major moment, then, when James Lowe, slightly isolated on the left, managed to force his way past Alex Mitchell’s tackle and threw an inside ball to the supporting Jamison Gibson-Park who cruised over to put the hosts on the board. Lowe and Gibson-Park both grew up in New Zealand but their contribution to Irish rugby continues to be highly significant.

It always felt like a contest, however, with further twists and turns to come. Another slicing linebreak, this time from Ben Earl, put England into another promising position and a penalty from the now-returned Smith gave his side a five-point half-time lead. For keen students of Anglo-Irish rugby history this was no minor detail: the last time the side leading at half-time in this fixture in Dublin lost the game, before this weekend, was in 1983.

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Sitting back and relying on lucky heather or four-leaf clovers, however, was not going to seal the deal for England. Now was the moment to show they could now pump up the volume and win the tight games they mostly lost last year. Ireland, though, were just getting started. Murley failed to gather a high ball and ended up in all kinds of strife in ‘coffin corner’, leading to a prolonged blockade in the English 22. Again England’s close-quarters resilience was outstanding and the Irish attack neither sharp nor precise enough until, at last, the stocky, powerful Aki skittled Smith and Mitchell down the left to drag Ireland level.

They were soon ahead for the first time, courtesy of a long Prendergast penalty after a slightly debatable lineout call had gone against Itoje. But who would deliver the killer thrust? Crucially England’s penalty count began to mount and Beirne’s 64th-minute score, swiftly followed by another stretching one for Sheehan, split open a contest that had previously felt in the balance.

It also tees up another intriguing weekend in round two. Wales’s travails in Paris do not bode well for their forthcoming trip to Rome while Ireland must now head to a suitably encouraged Scotland. And England? There is still much to solve if they want to pip France to the winning post this Saturday.