Dan Parks has had to endure the slings and arrows of professional sport throughout his 51 caps for Scotland.

He has had his critics and his personal challenges but today it would take the most mean-spirited of individual not to salute his resilience after a match-winning display for Scotland in Dublin.

Some so-called supporters have vilified Parks throughout his tenure, but at Croke Park it was not simply that Parks – the 31-year-old Australian born stand-off who qualifies for Scotland through a maternal grandfather born in Kilbirnie, Ayrshire – landed another 18 points and so coolly notched the winning penalty from an acute angle adjacent to the left touchline that was significant.

It was again the control and variety and, don’t laugh here Dan, the pulverising tackle on Paul O’Connell, Ireland’s talisman in the second-row, that he brought to today’s final curtain at the home of the GAA.

Parks finished the 2010 RBS 6 Nations Championship with 57 points, 15 of them coming from drop-goals, another one added today for good measure, and what a beauty too, crowning a period of Scottish pressure with a first-half injury time strike ensuring that his team departed the field in the best of spirits.

Parks has now dropped nine goals for Scotland and kicked 25 penalties.  It was the 25th that broke a 12-year losing sequence in Dublin and ended Ireland’s hopes of a Triple Crown.

Here’s Parks' view of the decisive kick.

“I’d walked the stadium before the game when we first got to the ground and the breeze was going across the pitch – at each end it was going different ways.

“I’d had a penalty earlier in the second half just short of 50 metres and it moved to the right, though I thought it would have drifted left.

“When I lined up the final kick I thought I’d aim it to the left to account for the breeze.”

As Gregor Townsend, Scotland’s attack coach, said: “He showed real composure throughout the tournament.  On that kick he aimed the ball to the left of the posts to judge for the wind, which was amazing confidence.”

Parks, joked that he’s been the butt of jibes from team-mates about how obsessive he is that his Gilbert boots are kept clean.  He even takes them into the shower with him for that final bit of attention to ensure there’s no debris and on Saturday 20 March in Dublin that focus and attention to detail paid off.

Parks is a modest soul and, clutching his third RBS 6 Nations Championship Man of the Match medal in four outings, he reflected that his opposite number, Jonathan Sexton, deserved plaudits.

He explained that Sexton had arrived in the Scotland changing room post-match to present him with his Ireland jersey.  “He doesn’t have a Scotland jersey but he wanted me to take his shirt and wouldn’t swap.  He said ‘It’s your day’.”
On that, Ireland’s stand-off was right.