Six Nation 2015- Round 2

After the 6 Nations struggled to find its usual firework display last week, round two threw up a chance for teams to redeem themselves after a poor weekend and put up another World Cup practice for Ireland and France. The clash in Dublin was a brutal event, substituting attacking flair for brutal collisions, as Sexton made his return to the pitch. Wales made the trip up to Murrayfield to face a Scotland team that had begun to show major promise and attacking intent. First on the weekend was a strong England team at home to the perennial last placers Italy, a stuttering performance from the home team was enough in the end.

Joseph is turning into a continued threat

After last weeks stand out performance England faced an easy second game against the Italians, however England showed a lack of cohesion in a game that should have been a walk over. After losing fullback Mike Brown early on to concussion protocols and major back-line re-shuffle could be responsible for the unconvincing display.
Yet again Jonathan Joseph shone in the thirteen shirt (although he did play wing for the majority of the game), scoring two tries of extreme quality. His "ball in two hands" running style keeps defenders guessing and allows him to use his excellent feet ansudden acceleration to carve the defence apart. George Ford provided some inspired moments while Cipriani announced his return to the international set up with a try. Defensively England were a worry, as they missed a lot of tackles in a game when a clean tryline should have been not just demanded but expected.

However credit should be given to the Italians for their attacking enterprise and confidence with ball in hand, Sergio Parisse once again led from the front but it was Luca Morisi at outside centre that was the real star. Slicing apart the England line twice, leading to two fantastic tries. Italy may not be title contenders but they have now got an attack, and still hold a large power in deciding the title.






Champions elect Ireland, returned to the Aviva Stadium to face a French team which despite the skill of some of their backs have forsaken all pretence of "French Flair" in favour of a battering ram game plan of physical and bone juddering collisions.

The collisions were brutal in Dublin

Bastareaud lead the charge for the men in blue, as he looked to run over the returning Sexton. But Sexton returned the favour with a couple of brave tackles, showing no fear of the concussion which had kept him out since the Autumn Internationals. The French physicality had pulled them through against Scotland last week, however against a team coached by Joe Schmidt it was proven largely ineffective as brains overcame brawn. Jonathan Sexton ran the show, with a practically perfect kicking display (only one mistake), intelligent game management and was bordering on reckless in defence. Sean O'Brien proved destructive at the breakdown, and Robbie Henshaw is fast proving himself to be one of the best centres in the Six Nations. Sad news to hear that Jamies Heaslip is set to miss the remainder of the competition with broken vertebrae after a terrible collision to his back from Pascal Pape, the
citing commissioner is yet to determine the length of a ban. France as a whole seemed to be frustrated by Ireland's defence and kicking plan, unable to break down Ireland really, and couldn't get their deadly driving maul working against the Irish pack. In the end Ireland's victory didn't look troubled, the drive and willpower of the team as a whole puts them in good standing to claim the title. France meanwhile look lost in the wilderness with no real game-plan, no confidence in their attacking ability, and a coach who can't quite decide if a mobile pack or a scrummaging pack is best.




Lastly Scotland hosted Wales, after their almost game in Paris last week. In that game Scotland showed serious attacking intent with their adventurous backs. At the beginning of the game, they continued to show this, turning the Welsh over they shifted the ball out and scored the opening try. However as the game wore on Scotland seemed to turn back the years and resort to the traditional "white line fever" of old. Some of this could be attri

Laidlaw left ruing his decisions?

buted to the decisions of captain Laidlaw turning down plenty of kickable penalties in attempt to score for the Murrayfield crowd. Wales meanwhile resorted to type, with Alun Wyn Jones claiming lineout possession to feed the hard charging Jamie Roberts. It yielded results as Wales managed to maintain possession for multiple phases and show something of their true potential. There are still problems with Welsh machine: the lineout has begun to seriously shake, Alex Cuthbert seems to have lost all the threat he used to pose, and the scrum has suffered in the absence of a true quality tight head. There were some positives to take, the try line defence was back to the typical Shaun Edwards ferocity and Liam Williams turned the Wales attack into something a little different. But the biggest change in Wales has been Leigh Halfpenny, the fullback who has so often be famed for his defensive capabilities has begun to look to attack more, joining the line and returning kicks with ball in hand
instead of kicking it back. Speaking of kicking, the Welsh kicking struggles last week were but a faint memory, as Halfpenny, Roberts and Biggar chased and recovered kick after kick in a relentless aerial assault. Meanwhile Finn Russell has a day to forget with the boot as twice he missed pressure relieving kicks to touch and allow Wales to counter. Neither team has really shown like they are going to compete for the title, but both have started to hint at possible glory and success.






Team of the Weekend
15 - Leigh Halfpenny
14 - Jonathan Joseph
13 - Luca Morisi
12 - Alex Dunbar
11 - Liam Williams
10 - Jonny Sexton
9 - Conor Murray
1 - Jack McGrath
2 - Benjamin Kayser
3 - Uini Atonio
4 - Paul O'Connoll
5 - Alun Wyn Jones
6 - Peter O'Mahoney
7 - Sam Warburton
8 - Sergio Parisse

Six Nations 2015 - Round 1

Widely regarded as the greatest annual international tournament in global rugby, the first week wasn't exactly a fire cracker. It started off in a freezing Cardiff as England slowly but surely strangled the life out of the Welsh, then championship favourites Ireland methodically won in Rome even if it lacked the flair that could have been. Finally Scotland showed some serious attacking threat, but couldn't pull a complete job over France as Camille Lopez punished Scotland's indiscretion.

George Ford punished Wales all day

England showed real promise as a World Cup contender as they went to the Millennium Stadium, missing a roster of first choice players they picked on form instead. It paid off, England have now built serious strength in depth across the park, and players like George Ford and James Haskell have really secured first choice slots with tremendous displays against a much favoured Wales. Gatland's
team looked flat and one dimensional during the whole game, it worked for roughly ten minutes as they built a ten point lead, until England begun preventing any gain-line advancement by the "big carriers" Wales is so famed for. The kicking strategy went out the window, and the try line defence was a shadow of its majestic self.  Changes need to be introduced, whether it is by player alterations or a tactic change is yet to be seen, but Wales need to learn a different way of playing when the gain-line battle is not being won.

O'Brien came close to returning

Ireland went through the drill against Italy, secure the lion's share of possession, build a lead over the first half, and then break away with a quick try scoring session later in the second. It wasn't a win filled with excitement or endeavour but it was a clean and crisp win, without looking uncomfortable at any point. The loss of Sean O'Brien at the 11th hour probably meant the pack didn't quite have the ball carrying ability they expected but still proved effective at ball retention. The missing Jonny Sexton showed even against Italy, as they decision making and execution of Ian Keatley was sub-par at times. Sexton combines the game control of Keatley and the gain line

Ireland need Sexton back soon

attacking art of Madigan, it's the reason he's the best fly-half in the game at the minute. Italy never really expressed themselves in the game, they had moments where they showed some outlet and had a try disallowed after multiple phases. Italy are still a banana-skin team for every team in the competition especially in Rome, but don't pose much real threat if dealt with properly.

Fofana was ineffective

France won, that they managed to do, but very little else. They only really threatened the Scottish line a couple of times and both of those came from mistakes, and yet even then they made big mistakes in the red-zone. The infamous "French flair" has gone, replaced with a bulldozing effort as they rely on their forwards to win penalties in order to win the game. Even with the dazzling lights of Fofana, Thomas and Huget in the back-line nothing really happened out-wide for them. Despite the win, I still don't see France offering much resistance for the title. Scotland however continued their impressive attempt at attacking rugby, gone are the days of kicking the ball at every opportunity and

Russell on form

now with the exciting Finn Russell at fly-half Scotland look to attack wide, and attack often. Scotland were the only team that offered real excitement this weekend and I look forward to watching them the rest of the tournament. Mark Bennett and Alex Dunbar are  superb centre partnership in both attack and defence, the Gray brothers offer really good ball carrying ability alongside the likes of Johnnie Beattie and Ross Ford, Scotland are building a solid team ahead of the World Cup and could surprise a few.

Team of the Weekend - (2nd)
15 - Stuart Hogg (Rob Kearney)
14 - Anthony Watson (Yohan Huget)
13 - Jonathan Joseph (Mark Bennett)
12 - Robbie Henshaw (Alex Dunbar)
11 - Teddy Thomas (Jonny May)
10 - George Ford (Finn Russell)
9 - Conor Murray (Edoardo Gori)
1 - Joe Marler (Alexandre Menini)
2 - Guihem Guirado (Dylan Hartley)
3 - Euan Murray (Mike Ross)
4 - Johnny Gray (Yoann Maestri)
5 - Dave Attwood  (Paul O'Connell)
6 - James Haskell (Peter O'Mahony)
7 - Chris Robshaw (Thierry Dusautoir)
8 - Billy Vunipola (Talupe Faletau)

England on song as they quench the Welsh fire

It was a cold night in Cardiff as Stuart Lancaster's England turned up demanding the stadium roof be open. In the end it probably wouldn't have mattered either way as England dominated the Welsh across the park. Wales took an early lead, through excellent work by Faletau at a crumbling scrum sending Rhys Webb over. However as the first half wore on the tide was turning as England begun dominating the breakdown and the gain line, by half time Wales still held the lead but the atmosphere was nervous. The second half was all England, as they scored two tries and thirteen unanswered points to take the victory away from the home team.

Haskell was superhuman against Wales

The game wasn't a spectacle of running rugby, it wasn't a festival of excitement, it was a proper arm wrestle all match. Played on the gain-line as both teams smashed into each other with no regard for their bodies. Yet with all the talk about Wales' game plan of "Warrenball" it was woefully ineffective for a team that supposedly play the gain line battle every week, the Wlesh ball carriers were stopped on the line with every carry. The usually effective Faletau (and the rest of the backrow) were stalled by the magnificent James Haskell again and again, and oddly the impressive Jamie Roberts was under utilised by Wales.

Did Wales use big Jamie Roberts enough?

Instead they attempted to use him as a decoy, but it didn't seem to work as Jonathan Davies was unable to break past Jonathan Joseph and was then often unsupported at the breakdown. The bluff with Roberts seemed a bit illogical, even if England were keeping Burrell tight to Ford to defend the 10 channel, the doctor is still one of the greatest gain line operators around and would have picked angles to increase his effectiveness.

That was just one of many flaws in the Welsh plan, they went out there to kick England off the park although this has rarely seemed to work for Wales. Mike Brown performed wonderfully under the highball and returned kicks with interest, and apparently Gatland hadn't done his research of Bath fullback-come-wing Anthony Watson. The young man was impervious under the high ball, totally outclassing George North on the wide kicks. Leigh Halfpenny performed dutifully at fullback for Wales, but the lack of intent to counter-attack seemed ridiculous with the talent possessed by that back three. Surely Liam Williams has to be introduced to the Welsh team, his achieved more in a ten minute cameo than Alex Cuthbert did all game, his commitment to his side is on another level.

While the Welsh "stars" under performed, the English youngsters were sublime. George Ford was

England's new general - George Ford

simply classy at fly-half, attacking the line and selecting the perfect pass every time to unleash his dangerous back-line. His kicking game was tactically astute and he didn't shirk his defensive responsibility when called upon. Jonathan Joseph stepped up to the international game with aplomb, his silky footwork was rewarded with a try, and his defence helped England stop the large Welsh centres continually. The most impressive player for England was James Haskell returning to the starting team after a long absence he really put his name forward for continued selection, superb ball carrying ability causes problems all day for Shaun Edwards defence, only a post pad prevented a total display from the Wasps captain. His defence was ridiculous, stopping the normally powerful Faletau again and again, disrupting break-downs  and proving to be a mammoth strength to the England back row.

Long time no see - Corbisiero

Looking ahead, England are cruising at the minute, even with numerous injuries they are performing at outstanding levels and are building excellent strength in depth. Next week they face the easiest game of the tournament as Italy head to Twickenham. It's a chance for a little experimentation but not too much should be done to the team that played so well. At most I'd look at bringing a couple of
players back into the international arena, Coribsiero is a prime example; also consider allowing players who normally play from the bench to have a start Tom Youngs would be a good option to give the dynamic hooker a longer run out.

Meanwhile on this side of the Severn Bridge, Wales need to seriously look at the options across the park and the effectiveness of some players as they travel to Murrayfield to take on a confident Scotland who just lost out to France. As previously stated Liam Williams would provide a creative

Liam Williams could provide the spark for Wales

outlet for Wales, someone who can change the style if "Plan A" isn't working - a Shane Williams character. Scott Williams is the form centre in Wales and neither Roberts nor Davies have performed wonderfully for the national side in recent games and will be looking behind them. More radically is the possible introduction of Hallam Amos at wing, he's proven his outstanding finishing ability for the Dragons, is a player willing to counter attack and provides another kicking option. Rhys Webb has to work hard on his box-kicking as it begun to fall apart in the second half against England, he's sniping and speed of pass is still important but his tactical play needs work. In the pack, the backrow has limited options to be altered by Justin Tipuric still provides a creative spark which could get the team working better. The front row showed signs of weakness at scrum time, Samson Lee came against a powerful operator and showed his lack of maturity, it  might be worth bringing Paul James in on the other side to stabilise the set piece.

Suggested Wales XV vs Scotland
15 - Leigh Halfpenny
14 - Liam Williams
13 - Jonathan Davies
12 - Jamie Roberts
11 - George North
10 - Dan Biggar
9 - Rhys Webb
1 - Paul James
2 - Richard Hibbard
3 - Samson Lee
4 - Jake Ball
5 - Alun Wyn Jones
6 - Dan Lydiate
7 - Sam Warburton
8 - Talupe Faletau

The Six Nations is back!

As I'm sure most of you are aware, the northern hemisphere's premier international competition is back. More importantly it's back during a World Cup year, as the teams look at their final competitive preparation before the biggest competition of all. Looking at the 6 Nations this year it seems to be filled with just as much fire and passion as previous years, but there also feels as if there is a "calm before the storm" consensus between the teams too. Nobody seems to be confident in their title chances this year: Ireland are the bookies favourites but much prefer being underdogs; England are carrying around more injuries than can fit in the physio room; France are just as confused as ever; and Wales has the eternal air of pessimism.

What this post is here to do, is to look at each team and their prospects in this year's tournament. It might also provide some of you with some sneaky player picks for the Tackle Pad Fantasy League.

England
First things first, the injury list. Not only is it long it also almost entirely consists for first choice players. Lawes, Launchbury and Parling missing from locks could weaken the lineout a lot. Wilson missing from tight-head is a concern at scrum time. Wood another lineout operator and ball carrier gone. The peerless "Ice-Man" Farrell is missing too. The list goes on. However this is England, the biggest player base in the world, in one of the most competitive leagues, the replacements are still a mighty prospect: Cole returning from injury stabilises the scrum, Haskell is in the form of his life in the back row, and Ford ended the autumn in possession of the 10 jersey.

That's enough about the injuries, England do come into the 6 Nations in fine form, especially from their pack having utterly dominated Australia at the end of November. George Ford's excellent kicking put them in good field possession for their top quality lineout to operate, which eventually lead to two tries for the wrecking ball Ben Morgan. England may be without Morgan for this year's tournament, but Billy Vunipola has stepped up his game in recent weeks and looks hungry to reclaim totally possession of the shirt with his power and offloading. If England are looking weak anywhere in particular it is in the centre of the park, in the past few years England have gone through more centre partnerships than Heston Blumenthal has canisters of liquid nitrogen. Sure it hasn't helped that injuries have happened to most of the potential suitors for the 12 and 13 shirts, but I'm still not certain Stuart Lancaster knows who'd he'd pick if everyone was fit. The outside centre berth is owned by the terrifying shape of Manu Tuilagi, but at 12 he needs to decide and soon.

Overall despite the injuries England aren't looking too bad, they have the replacements coming in that can do a reasonable job, and they have a fly-half that can run the game but still unlock defences with ease, and if Lancaster teams Ford up with his Bath team-mates England might just find the back-line attack they've been lacking. There are chinks in the armour, but England are still a threat to the title.
Predicted Finish - 3rd

France
Yeh, this becomes a list of clichés. France are still as unpredictable as ever, they go from beating Australia (3rd in the rankings at the time) to losing to Argentina in one autumn series. The phrase "You never know which French team will turn up", is accurate in two senses. One: they are a team that likes to blow hot and cold when it comes to performance, being practically unbeatable one week to lethargic and weak willed the next. Also however is the selection process of Philippe Saint-Andrewhich has meant the consistency of combinations in key areas has been woefully lacking. However just in time for the World Cup, France seem to have begun to find a consistent selection, only time will tell if this is true or even going to pay off.

The back-line is flooded with talent and flair, Wesley Fofana is the world most lethal attacking centre, Teddy Thomas looks like a natural finisher and then there's the class of Huget on the opposite side. The question is if the half backs can get the backline running, and if the pack can provide the consistent, clean ball for them to use. And it's something I really do doubt, the French pack used to fill opponents with fear, capable of mauling you off the park and smashing you at the breakdown, and now it doesn't seem to be there. If France really want to reclaim their place at the top of Europe they need to rediscover the fear factor.
Predicted Finish - 5th

Italy
Italy are forever the underdogs, and it's not really likely to change this year. They have certainly improved in recent years, even in the autumn just gone they put up a stern fight against South Africa but they still lack the fire-power of other teams. The pack while certainly formidable doesn't strike fear into opponents hearts especially not teams like England and Ireland with their dominant front fives. And the back-line despite having some eye-catching talent (Campagnaro, Benvenutti and Masi spring to mind) has never clicked together. This could be down to the problem of finding a decent half-back pairing to run the game for them, with no confident players filling the nine and ten jerseys week in week out they never really find the spark to allow a threatening line up to reach its potential.
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The outcome of this year is likely to be the same for Italy, just looking at the placement of their two professional teams - 11th and 12th in the Pro12 - tells you the sort of form that can be expected.
Sergio Parisse will no doubt rage against the dying of the light as he continues to be one of the greatest back-row players of all time, the man was carrying balls one handed before Chabal, and offloading before Kieren Read. But rugby is a team game and one man can't swing a tournament.
Predicted Finish - 6th

Ireland

Current Champions. Third best team in the world. England and France at home. This tournament is Ireland's surely. Joe Schmidt is nothing short of a maestro, turning an Ireland team from eternal underachievers into world beaters. World beaters who did it while missing some big names from their pack. The game plan revolves around two top class half backs who control the ball, the field and the play with pinpoint kicking and decision making. Sexton will certainly miss the opening fixture against the Italians, which is worrying but gives Schimdt the chance to see how Madigan does in his place. Madigan doesn't quite have the puppet master touch of Sexton but is talented none the less, and against the weakest team in the tournament he could reap the rewards. Especially with the backline looking at its most threatening in a long while, as they look to find the replacement to the retired O'Driscoll.

The pack provides the platform for Murray and Sexton to dominate, and it's almost back to full strength as we head towards the World Cup. The ever present Paul O'Connoll remains at the pinnacle of second row play in what is touted as his final year of rugby; O'Mahoney is a break-down operator of excellent quality too. Ireland looks strong heading into the competition although the trip to Cardiff at the end could prove a troublesome game and deny them a Grand Slam. Ireland at full fitness are practically impossible to stop, but Cian Healy hasn't played in months, Sean O'Brien is missing and Sexton's lingering concussion is worry that could dent title credentials. Despite all of this, Joe Schmidt has developed incredible strength in depth in every position across the park and can deal with these losses and maintain the quality of performance. These performances may not be as exciting as the way New Zealand play or France (sometimes), but as the saying goes "A win is a win", and that is what Ireland have learnt to do. Win.
Predicted Finish - 1st

Scotland
The most exciting prospect this year in my opinion. Have shown genuine strides during the autumn, with good game control, a pack which seems confident in their ball retention ability, a back line which wants to score tries and a fly-half that wants to let them. Too long Scotland have been content with scoring drop goals and kicking to the corner, now in Finn Russell they have an outside half who is confident in his own running ability, and able to link up with his backs with crisp passing. The centre partnership isn't quite solid and set yet, but there has been promise from Mark Bennett at 12 and Dunbar at 13. Providing a physical partnership that has an eye for a weak defender, and provide secure defence something that has always been lacking for the Scots. The outside backs are by far the most mouth watering section of the side: Tommy Seymour has already proven his international try scoring ability, including an interception against the All Blacks; Sean Lamont provides immense physicality and a useful get out with his aerial ability, he also brings experience to the young side; lastly Stuart Hogg has a boot made of Semtex capable of launching 60m returns with ease, but his pace and willingness to run it back is the best part and defines the new Scotland style.

This new style of attacking rugby, letting the forwards carry hard with confidence before unleashing a very quick backline, could provide difficulty for many teams when they face Scotland. The lineout is still a little shaky on occasion but the towering Gray brothers have begun to show it could be a good weapon with work. The scrum has become solidified but it isn't exactly a weapon, so care must be taken by Scotland there. However they have the ability now to take the game to teams, they have three games at home, peerless kicking from Laidlaw and a defence which can frustrate teams. Scotland could surprise people this year.
Predicted Finish - 4th

Wales
They finally broke their Southern Hemisphere "hoodoo", and come into the tournament practically

clean of injury, only Dan Baker the reserve No. 8 in the autumn is missing. And a chance to beat the old enemy first up. It doesn't get much better for Wales than that. On top of all of that, the first choice players come into the tournament on the back of some superb performances in Europe: Jamie Roberts stamping his credentials as the best inside centre in world rugby; Leigh Halfpenny dominating from the tee; and North scoring tries for Saints on a regular occurrence. The half-backs are comfortable and confident after having three games against the best together, Rhys Webb provides Wales with the spark and the tempo while Biggar controls the game while defending his channel almost as well as the legendary Wilkinson. It says a lot when the form players in the Welsh regions can't make it into the starting team about just how much talent there is in the Welsh set up. Gatland has a wealth of players at centre and in the back-three and I expect the likes of Liam and Scott Williams to get their chance during the tournament just to develop the strength in depth before the World Cup.

The pack practically picks itself for Warren Gatland and his staff, with Samson Lee being a young revelation at tight head, Jake Ball securing his place alongside the legendary Alun Wyn Jones, and the backrow of Lydiate, Warburton and Faletau are a fearsome trio. This collective has the ability to control scrum time, and the ball carrying ability on par with the very best. Not to mention captain Warburton rediscovering the breakdown ability that shot him to fame during the 2011 World Cup. Wales have historically been praised on their back-line flair and exuberance; their forwards are fast gaining their own notoriety.

Overall Wales have the talent, but they've long been insulted for a one dimensional game plan or "Warrenball". Yet in the autumn we saw the inkling of something more, Wales looked to play heads up rugby, spotting gaps and using their brilliant runners (North, Cuthbert, Davies) to attack whenever the chance is there. However we also saw the lineout suffer a lot during the November tests, with inaccurate lineout throws costing good field position on more than one occasion. It's incomplete red-zone success like this that hampers the likelihood of Wales winning the championship.
Predicted Finish - 2nd