Cipriani inspires England to 33-10 victory

By Mitch Phillips

LONDON (Reuters) - Flyhalf Danny Cipriani inspired England to their most enterprising display of the 2008 Six Nations on Saturday when they beat Ireland 33-10, their first victory over the Irish in five attempts.

After a generally disappointing campaign, England finished on a positive note as their backs, galvanised by 20-year-old flyhalf Cipriani in his first start, showed plenty of ambition to complement a terrific all-round defensive display.

"I thoroughly enjoyed it," Cipriani said. "It have may have been my first game but I have played it a million times in my head," he told BBC television.

"When the forwards play like they did, it's easy for a 10."

Paul Sackey, Mathew Tait and Jamie Noon scored well-worked tries while Cipriani, in for Jonny Wilkinson, landed all seven of his goal kicks for an 18-point haul.

The victory was all the more impressive coming after Ireland had raced into a 10-0 lead inside six minutes.

"We did owe (a good performance) to Brian as a team, we haven't always done as well as we could have. Our forwards were awesome," added Cipriani, who was dropped from the team beaten by Scotland last week for disciplinary reasons.

England ended with six points from three wins to finish second in the standings behind champions Wales -- their best performance since their 2003 grand slam season.