And so it is here it is, the lines have been drawn, the tickets have been sold, the teams have been announced and now, we wait, the quiet before the storm if you like. The Six Nations is upon us and this year’s renewal is being keenly anticipated throughout the contesting nations and the wider, global rugby audience. This tournament, certainly in rugby terms, has no equal. The southern hemisphere can bleat on about their Tri Nations (soon to be, god help us, the Rugby Championship when Argentina join this year) being a superior competition in playing terms, which it may well be, but for shear excitement, passion, history and atmosphere the Six Nations is like no other. The competition’s structure whereby teams play against the opposition at home on alternate years adds a unique dimension because if a defeat is dished out at home you must wait two years for a shot at redemption.
So how are the teams shaping up for this year’s competition?
Pretty well in fact, there seems to be no concensus amongst the mainstream media about who is actually the best team and which team is the most likely victor. Even the bookies can’t seem to decide, okay France are short odds at 5/4 but for me that doesn’t reflect the real situation, Wales are second favourites at 10/3 with Ireland and England at 4 and 5 to 1 respectively. For me, and yes I am biased, Ireland represent great value at that price. If Ireland put in a good performance and get a win this Sunday against the Welsh they will be well set up for a tilt at the title.
Wales and France will pose serious threats, the French in particular as they have the strength in depth to allow them to withstand all bar the most serious of injury crises. Any side which can start with a back three of Maxime Medard, Vincent Clerc and Julien Malzieu with Maxime Mermoz in reserve has to be taken seriously. This attacking threat is allied with a pack which, on it’s day, rivals the world best. Journalists have been raving about the Irish backrow but for me the French one is the best in the championship. The trio of Louis Picamoles, Julien Bonnaire and Thierry Dusautoir appears more balanced and sure if there’s a problem they only have Imanol Hari’flippin’nordoquy on the bench! Whatever way you look at it France will be in the shakeup come the business end of the championship.
The Welsh have the look of a side that is about to really gel, they had a relatively good World Cup where they played with a vigour and joie de vivre that the Wales sides of old would have been proud of. The influx of young players into the side has paid massive dividends. George North, Rhys Priestland, Toby Faletau, Dan Lydiate and Sam Warburton have grabbed their Test careers by the scruff of the neck and look set to be fixtures in the side for the next decade. In the recent past Welsh teams have arrived into the championship under clouds and then sprung into life after a good first result and have gone on to with Grand Slams, the expectation is completely different for this side. There is an expectancy now which this team won’t have had to deal with before and how they cope will decide if they can win the title or fall flat on their faces. If they win in Dublin this weekend then the rest of the team’s best be on their guard.
Ireland come into the championship in optimistic mood, even in the absence of the great one Mr. O’Driscoll. The provinces have been flying and confidence is high. However this is Ireland and this is Declan Kidney. Kidney has been living off the 2009 Grand Slam win, yes there were some good perfomances in the World Cup but last year’s six nations was a disaster. The win against the old enemy, England, at Lansdowne put a gloss on events which masks the true events. Make no mistake, if Ireland do not get at least four wins out of five then the knives will be out for the head coach. On a positive note, guys like Cian Healy, Paul O’Connell, Stephen Ferris and Andrew Trimble have been in great form and if the team get a good start against this weekend they can challenge for the title which really should be the very minimum this group of players deliver.
As for the other sides, England are going through a period of transition and much will depend on how well interim coach Stuart Lancaster can get his young and inexperienced players to adjust to the rigours of Test rugby. The tournament represents a real step up in class for a lot this England team, the Premiership lags behind the quality of the other club competitions in Europe, as evidenced by the poor showing of the main English clubs in the Heineken Cup, and it will be interesting to see if Lancaster can get these players to rise to the occasion of Test rugby. The Scots and Italians will spring a surprise or two and push the top teams all the way but in reality they will dog it out to see who gets the dreaded Wooden Spoon.
Post by Ross McGuinness
Follow me on twitter @rossmcguinness
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