The 2015 Six Nations Championship started with a cracking game between Wales and England.

Wales versus England
Wales got off to a flying start, racing to a 10-0 lead in the opening 10 minutes, with an opportunistic try from a retreating scrum, which owed as much to Jonny May’s poor defence as it did to Taulupe Faletau’s quick thinking to offload the ball to Rhys Webb.

However, England grabbed control of the game thereafter, becoming increasingly dominant in the physical exchanges.

Wales finished the first half with a 16-8 lead, but their intensity levels, which were quite good in the first half, began to drop, as their missed tackle count increased. England, on the other hand raised their physicality levels incrementally over the course of the second half, to a point where Wales could not cope.

Despite the absence of Joe Launchbury, Courtney Lawes, and Geoff Parling, England’s second rowers still dominated their Welsh counterparts. England got a good return from pressurising the Welsh lineout, which creaked badly in the second half, thereby not giving the Welsh three-quarter line the space they need to wreak havoc on opposition defences.

Once they got over Wales’ good start, the English back row really grew into the game, with James Haskell and Billy Vunipola in particular making huge gains in their carries. For most of the game, Faletau got very little clean possession to work with, and Sam Warburton did not get the opportunity to impose himself on the breakdown, as he had to put in a huge defensive effort to try and contain the English forwards.

England’s front row got the better of Wales at scrum time, earning several penalties. Dan Cole’s return to international rugby is remarkable considering the severity of the neck injury he suffered this time last year.

The manner in which Ben Youngs drew in the Welsh fringe defence before sending his forward carriers crashing through Welsh tackles was excellent, and was a major factor in England becoming dominant up front as the game progressed. He and Billy Vunipola in tandem are going to cause a lot more damage to opposition defences before this tournament is over.

Outside Youngs, George Ford also acquitted himself well. His ability to take the ball to the gain line and to put those around him into space are a few levels above what Owen Farrell can do, but Ford’s place-kicking accuracy and ability to kick for territory are not yet up to the standard required at Test level. If he can improve those aspects of his game sufficiently before the World Cup, the England 10 shirt will be his.

Despite the positives, he did have several nervous moments in this game, with a few charged-down clearance kicks and speculative cross-field kicks.

In the centres, injury may have actually been England’s best selector, as Luther Burrell’s offloading and strength in contact dovetailed nicely with Jonathan Joseph’s good footwork and running lines. Stuart Lancaster would do well to keep these two together to further their understanding of each other’s games before the World Cup.

Although Mike Brown is not in the same form as last year’s tournament, England’s back three functioned well as a unit. Anthony Watson was threatening throughout the game, evading several Welsh tackles using good pace and dancing feet, as well as being used frequently to good effect at first receiver off set-phase. His regathering of the ball after Brown’s grubber kick for England’s first try was an excellent piece of skill. Jonny May, despite defensive lapses, ran some dangerous lines from kick returns.

For Wales, Leigh Halfpenny was solid at fullback. George North and Alex Cuthbert got very little possession to work with, although their kick-chasing and work rate off the ball were good.

Wales’ performance in this game provides further evidence to the theory that Warren Gatland’s tactics have become tired. Wales were completely devoid of ideas in the final quarter, and their shuffling of the ball from side to side was painful to watch. They will need to regroup quickly before travelling to Murrayfield, as Scotland are well capable of winning that game. The English defence easily read and nullified Wales’ midfield crashes off lineouts throughout the game.

England, on the other hand, will be confident heading into their next game, a home fixture against a misfiring Italian team. Their ball retention and interplay between backs and forwards was impressive, and the Italy game will also provide another chance for Ford to show what he can do in terms of getting England’s back line moving.

Ireland versus Italy
This was the least entertaining game of the weekend. The intensity levels were relatively low in comparison to the other games of the first round, with several errors from both sides throughout.

Italy looked to test Ireland defensively around the fringes through Edoardi Gori early on in the game, but apart a good period of pressure in the second quarter, they barely threatened. The amount of tackles the Italians had to make eventually told in the final quarter, as Ireland began to find space, putting Italy to the sword by scoring two tries while Leonardo Ghiraldini was in the sin bin.

Italy were competitive in the first half, and did a good job of soaking up Irish pressure for most of the game, but buckled after 60 minutes when Ireland pulled away on the scoreboard with two tries from Conor Murray and Tommy O’Donnell in the space of two minutes.

Ireland’s front row were well up to the challenge of Italy’s supposedly superior scrum, even managing to earn penalties in this area. In the second row, Devin Toner and Paul O’Connell completely outplayed Joshua Furno and George Biagi, stealing lineout throws, as well as disrupting their maul to good effect. Both were quite prominent in the loose as well, with O’Connell making several strong carries.

Ireland’s back row performed well, given that they were up against quality players in Sergio Parisse and Alessandro Zanni, both Italian players getting very few chances to show what they can do with ball in hand. Tommy O’Donnell and Jordi Murphy featured prominently as Ireland’s most effective ball-carriers, with O’Donnell leading the tackle count.

Conor Murray, despite some wayward passes in the first half, was the dominant figure for Ireland, taking on a lot of kicking and game management responsibilities (much like he did two years ago when Johnny Sexton was injured). He easily outshone Edoardo Gori, who, apart from a few dangerous breaks around the fringes in the first half, had very little influence.

Despite a nervous first quarter where he made some potentially costly mistakes, Ian Keatley was successful with all of his place kicks, passed the ball well in attack, and relieved pressure for Ireland through good clearing kicks at vital moments. However, he just didn’t do enough to warrant selection in Ireland’s matchday 23 against France. Sexton will start against the French, as neither Keatley nor Ian Madigan have his ability to impose themselves on games.

Kelly Haimona failed to carry his good November form into this game, standing too far behind the gain line to really threaten the Irish defence. There was a noticeable improvement in Italy’s back line when Tommaso Allan came on at 10 and Haimona was moved to 13.

Ireland’s centres played well as individuals, with Robbie Henshaw making several gain line busts and Jared Payne making a few decent breaks, but the two did not click together particularly well. On the other side, Italy are not renowned for exciting midfielders, but it was still disappointing to see Michele Campaganoro, an exciting prospect, get so little possession.

Simon Zebo and Tommy Bowe got precious few chances to show what they can do in attack, but they were both highly effective in their kick-chasing. Rob Kearney was reliable if not spectacular at fullback, taking the right options as regards when to kick and when to run. The Italian back three, much like Campagnoro, had very little influence on proceedings.

All the talk in the media in the build-up to the game was of a spirited Italian challenge. Italy had a good chance to make a statement against an understrength Ireland team in a World Cup year, but they failed to do so.

The scrums, Italy’s supposed area of dominance, were even enough; with penalties going both ways until the last of Ireland’s front row substitutions in the final quarter. Italy started to dominate thereafter, but it was too late. Italy face a daunting trip to Twickenham in the next round of the tournament against an English team that are the best performers in the tournament thus far.

As for Ireland, they were professional in how they dispatched Italy, even without some of their key players, but they have cause for concern going into their next game, as a repeat of this type of performance will not be good enough to beat France. Ireland were quite predictable in attack, opting for one-out forward carries for much of the game. A major factor in Ireland’s lack of threat in attack was the manner in which they allowed Italy to slow their ball down. They will need to be much more aggressive in their clear-outs against France, and greater ball protection at the ruck will be required.

Scotland got huge gains from attacking France’s outside centre channel through Mark Bennett and Stuart Hogg, and Ireland would do well to target this area as well. If Ireland do manage to get in behind the French defence, they will have to be much more accurate, as they will not get away with same amount of butchered try-scoring opportunities against a much higher level of opposition. Ireland’s defensive shape was quite good, and they made good use of the choke tackle, but they weren’t asked too many questions by the Italian back line.

The main issue for Ireland is that they were not cohesive against Italy, and may be even more disjointed in their next game with Jamie Heaslip, Sexton, and possibly Cian Healy and Sean O’Brien due to return to the starting line-up.

France versus Scotland
This was difficult match to predict beforehand. Scotland made good strides under Vern Cotter in November, but could they continue to improve?

Scotland went to Paris with confidence in a game plan based on moving the ball wide quickly, and the Gray brothers were used as frequent ball-carriers to great effect. Scotland managed to create several chances through good attacking play, only to be undone by errors, particularly when they got close to the French line. However, they managed to convert one of these chances just before half-time, with a try from replacement Dougie Fife keeping them in the game.

Scotland were prepared for a French onslaught with a better defensive system than they have had in years. Their first-up tackling was good, and when France did manage to get in behind, Scotland were able to reorganise quickly and make vital covering tackles.

Scotland were highly competitive in the set pieces, particularly in the lineout, contesting most French throws through Jonny Gray, causing disruption to this facet of France’s game. They took France on in the scrums too, not giving them easy ball from that source, but the French dominated late in the game when substitutions were made, as they had superior scrummagers on the bench to Scotland.

The back row has traditionally been one of Scotland’s major strengths, but they were outperformed in this area. Damien Chouly was prominent in the loose, and Bernard Le Roux led the tackle count in a hugely destructive performance. The competitiveness of the French pack at the breakdown was a major factor in asserting their dominance in the second half.

Greig Laidlaw did a good job of testing the French back three’s position and aerial skills early on through clever box-kicking, and Finn Russell outside him varied his options nicely at 10, really trying to test Camille Lopez defensively.

France were dangerous in attack, getting the home crowd behind them early on. Lopez made a huge difference at 10, directing France’s attacking play well. There seemed to be a collective intent among the French back line to move the ball out of contact, as they looked to do so at every phase.

Wesley Fofana was given more possession than he has seen recently with France, changing the point of attack effectively, and Mathieu Bastareaud steamrolled Scottish defenders at will. However, they butchered a few try-scoring chances, which seemed to be a trend in the weekend’s games.

Despite their prowess in attack, France were quite poor defensively. Their forwards were slow to get back into position around the ruck, and out wide they were woeful, with no recognisable pattern or designated defensive organiser, as well as a poor line speed.

The main factor in Scotland’s inability to establish field position and possession in the second half was their high number of turnovers, which was caused by their own inaccuracy at the breakdown, as well as good French counter-rucking.

It was a close game on the scoreboard, but France really dominated the physical exchanges as the game progressed. Scotland struggled to get territory and possession in the second half, and the defensive effort took its toll on their players, several of whom became noticeably fatigued.

Although they will no doubt be disappointed to lose, Scotland can draw encouragement from their performance. Most teams buckle under the type of relentless power up front that France displayed in the second half, but Scotland’s defence stayed resilient.

On the basis of this performance, they are more than capable of beating a struggling Welsh team at home. Their intensity levels are good, and they have enough pace and structure in attack to cause the big Welsh back line headaches. However, they will need to rectify their breakdown issue, as Wales, through Warburton, will target this area.

As for France, although their intensity levels were high and they played at a quick pace, they will need to make a big improvement defensively if they are to beat Ireland in the next round of the tournament. The Scottish outside backs ran amok in the space afforded to them, and Ireland too have outside backs with the ability to cause problems for any defence.