Danny Care's late sin-binning harmed English hopes in 2009 © Getty Images

Enlarge

Related Links

News: Hayes plays down historic landmark

News: Ireland appeal Flannery ban

News: Johnson in defiant mood

News: England keep faith in Wilkinson

News: England wait on Wilkinson fitness

News: Sexton wins Irish fly-half battle

News: Wilkinson shrugs off criticism

Matches: England 16 - 20 Ireland

Players/Officials: Ollie Campbell | Peter Cranmer | Mike Gibson | Paul Grayson | Shane Horgan | Ronan O'Gara | Henry Taylor | Rory Underwood | Jonny Wilkinson

Tournaments/Tours: Six Nations

Teams: England | Ireland

Ireland travel to face England at Twickenham on Saturday following their narrow victory at Croke Park last season. Danny Care and Phil Vickery saw yellow as Brian O'Driscoll inspired the home side to the third leg of their Grand Slam.

There have been 122 matches since 1875 in the second-oldest fixture on the international calendar. England lead by 70 wins to 44. The last of the eight drawn games was in 1968.

England's highest score to date is 50-18 at Twickenham in 2000. Their 46-6 win in Dublin in 1997 is the biggest winning margin of the matches. Ireland's best result is 43-13 at Croke Park in 2007.

England scored a record seven tries at a windy Lansdowne Road in their 36-14 victory in 1938. Their skipper that day, Peter Cranmer, was however relieved of the captaincy for the rest of the season. Ireland's best try total is five: in 1905 at Cork, and in freezing conditions in Dublin in 1947, when they won 22-0.

England's Paul Grayson set the record for most points in a match, scoring 23 at Twickenham in 1996. Ollie Campbell established the points record for Ireland by scoring 21 in Dublin in 1983 and Ronan O'Gara matched that achievement at Croke Park in 2007.

The only try hat-tricks scored in the series were by Henry Taylor for England at Manchester in 1881 and Chris Oti at Twickenham in 1988. A dozen Irishmen have scored two tries in a match - Shane Horgan's brace at Twickenham in 2006 being the most recent instance.

The overall record for scoring most tries in the fixture belongs to Rory Underwood, who scored seven for England between 1984 and 1996. Six Irishmen have scored three for Ireland.

Jonny Wilkinson is the leading overall scorer in the fixture with 86 for England in eight games between 1998 (when he made his test debut as an eighteen-year-old) and 2008. Ronan O'Gara holds the Irish record for the series with 84 points.

Mike Gibson, who played in 15 successive matches for Ireland (1964-78), set the record for most appearances in the games. Rory Underwood appeared 14 times for England.

Ireland-England Six Nations results:
2000 England 50-18 (Twickenham)
2001 Ireland 20-14 (Dublin)
2002 England 45-11 (Twickenham)
2003 England 42-6 (Dublin)
2004 Ireland 19-13 (Twickenham)
2005 Ireland 19-13 (Dublin)
2006 Ireland 28-24 (Twickenham)
2007 Ireland 43-13 (Dublin)
2008 England 33-10 (Twickenham)
2009 Ireland 14-13 (Dublin)