The first weekend of the 2008 Six Nations competition was one of moments — some of brilliance, others more lamentable.
Only the French, perhaps the least likely of teams given the massive player turnover that new coach Marc Lievremont has undertaken, were able to play a full 80 minutes of quality rugby.
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For the rest it was an up-and-down first round that offered little to suggest we’re heading for anything but another year of French dominance.
England v Italy
Last year an Argentine team being described along the lines of ‘committed but limited’ took down a spluttering English team in their own backyard. At the time the victory at Twickenham was the low point of the English post-2003 slump. With hindsight we may now view the Argentine team as having been somewhat under-rated given their wonderful performance in last year’s world cup.
Italy could learn a lot from that performance as their team shares many similarities with that Argentine outfit. The Pumas victory showed the importance of tenacity. The virtues of hanging in there and weathering the storm. Time and time again the Argies found themselves bailed up by an English backline strung out at depth, a clear overlap to exploit and being beckoned on by a home crowd baying for the killer blow. Yet time and time again Marcelo Loffreda’s men did just enough to hold the home team out.
Slowly the English frustration grew as passes became sloppy and the all conquering pack started to become unsure of itself. The crowd booed, the players heads began to droop. Eventually an intercept try was gifted to stand-in fly half Federico Todeschini, the storm lifted and the English spirit broken.
Italy showed in their spirited first round loss to Ireland that they have more than enough tenacity to match that of the Pumas. Equally, England showed in their defeat to Wales that they have done little to improve their midfield leadership.
Sergio Parisse and Mauro Bergamasco are two of the best loose forwards in international rugby right now and both made life very difficult for the Irish. Similar pressure must be exerted this week on England’s halves and midfield if Italy are going to force the same sort of mistakes that Wales took advantage of late in last week’s game. New fly half Andrea Masi looks like a reliable play-making pivot around whom Italy might finally be able to supplement their great forward pack with a backline capable of scoring tries.
England on the other hand is in need of a new direction. The Guinness Premiership has offered up numerous young players of exuberance and style who have yet to take their play to international level. Despite the promise of the Cipriani’s, Geraghty’s, Hipkiss’s et al, the team’s tactics remain stuck in the bash and bore tactics of yesteryear.
Will it be enough to subdue the Italians? robably, but wear something blue on the day just in case of a famous victory.
Wales v Scotland
Just how good were Wales in their win over England? Just how bad were the English? This game is unlikely to shed any light on the matter as Scotland showed little signs last week of being able to maintain focus for more than a phase or two, let alone an entire game and Wales should account for them easily.
The monstrous Scottish pack does contain one player worthy of any international team. Nathan Hines has the bulk to make an impact in the set piece and couples it well with sublime ball handling skills that ensure good offloads from his carries. The image of Arthur Beetson drawing in tacklers and popping passes out over there heads comes to mind when Hines steams his Scottish team forward. At times Hines was able to inspire the rest of his team to similar heights and for those brief moments successions of brilliant Scottish offloads made large in roads into French territory.
Unfortunately this strength tends to get overused by the Scots as the backline, guided by the boot of Dan Parks, offered no real threat to the French. With their current structure, Scotland remain as much a one trick pony as Eddie Jones’ Queensland Reds in 2007.
It is however in the pack that Scotland will find its best chance of victory. Wales’ pack were swept off the park by the bullish England in the first half of their first round game. With no go forward and only poor field position to work with, the sleek James Hook could do little with the ball. Despite the accolades he received last week for igniting Wales’ revival it would be worth Frank Hadden remembering his poor first half kicking under pressure. Like all fly halves, he can only use the quality of ball he receives.
Wales’s forwards need to fight to keep its backline firing. Gavin Henson made short work of mastering the English defence with some smart angles and strong fending and will do the same against Scotland if given the chance. At fullback Lee Byrne is starting to bring his club form to the international stage and Mike Phillips was the perfectly, niggling scrum half Wales needed.
Perhaps the biggest threat to Wales’ chances this weekend will be how carried away with themselves they get after beating England. Keep their heads and they’ll keep their Six Nations hopes alive. Believe the hype and this game might become Scotland’s upset win for the year.
France v Ireland
Probably the make or break game of the tournament is upon us already. Ireland showed in the first half of last week’s victory over Italy that if nothing else the kicking game of Ronan O’Gara can still control a game as well as ever. A well executed set move from a scrum when Gordon D’Arcy was still on the field showed that some of their pre-world cup form is still alive. Alas, it was only too fleeting a return to form. The ghost of better times.
Against Scotland, France looked like the France we all love. Daring, dashing, confident and impetuous. You can’t like this French side just a little. They encapsulated in that performance everything that is good about the game and everything that rugby audiences around the world want to see. Most pleasingly for French eyes was that this wasn’t just a flighty backs performance but that the rebuilt French pack is just as tough and ugly as ever. New hooker William Servat was elbow-deep over the park and flanker Thierry Dusautoir has the same raw energy as his predecessors Olivier Magne and Serge Betsen.
On paper Ireland’s replacements for Paul O’Connell in the second row and D’Arcy at centre shouldn’t take that much away from the side. Malcolm O’Kelly is as staunch a lock as can be found and both Andrew Trimble and Shane Horgan have enough international experience to fill the inside centre role. Unfortunately their lineout looked all at sea without its’ red-headed anchor last week and the backline never seemed comfortable when D’Arcy was gone. Ireland are no longer a star team but a team of fading stars.
Last year Vincent Clerc made a name for himself by scything through a good Irish side to steal a last minute victory. One can only wonder what he will do this year against an ageing and inferior model.
France to win and Lievremont’s Baby Bleues to go all the way in 2008.
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The men in blue were trying not to let their opponents get away with niggling tactics.
