Rough and tumble World Cup clash suited Eben Etzebeth and company, with Scotland sucked into playing opponent’s gameIt must be something about Marseille. For the second day running the city hosted a right rough and tumble game of rugby. It looked, for long stretches, less like a match than something dark going on down a back alley after hours in the old port, the sort of thing which you might cross the street to avoid. At one point it really did break out into a fight, when Ben White bundled Damian de Allende into touch and everyone came wading in after them. The Scotland captain, Jamie Ritchie, raced across to make his point and suddenly found himself in the unfortunate...
A record 91 tries, a match for the ages, Italy’s ‘Florence Dallaglio’ shining, and an England side who ‘weren’t good at anything’France may not have won the title but, once again, they possessed the best player in the tournament. Antoine Dupont was so good against England it was almost laughable: sharp, clever, strong, able to kick off both feet … if he looked slightly weary at the start of the championship, he was back to his best by the end of it. Damian Penaud, Jonathan Danty, Hugo Keenan and Caelan Doris also deserve honourable mentions. Continue reading...
Talismanic fly-half’s air of maturity suggests it could be his time to halt opponents and help ensure a fitting championship finaleIn a not unfamiliar plotline Scotland enter the penultimate round of the Six Nations desperate for a win. Refreshingly, this time such a result would mean not the avoidance of a wooden spoon but a tilt at their first championship of the century – a first Six Nations title, full stop.Perhaps desperate is the wrong word then. Would-be champions are never desperate for anything. If Scotland want to convince as such, they will be using bold words, such as “confident” and “ambitious”, and they must play accordingly at Murrayfield on Sunday afternoon. Continue reading...
Six Nations opponents will feature with South Africa in a daunting pool in France but this jeopardy is no bad thingWith Ireland potentially able to clinch the Six Nations title and Scotland targeting the triple crown, there is enough riding on next weekend’s fixture at Murrayfield without the need to add to the narrative. Still, the subsequent meeting between the two sides on the horizon – in Pool B of the 2023 World Cup in October – is unmissable.Given Scotland’s upward trajectory, Ireland’s unerring consistency and South Africa’s enduring pedigree, not to mention Tonga’s ability to ruffle feathers, that particular pool is increasingly looking shark-infested. As this Six Nations has worn on, there have been numerous suggestions that it is...
The world’s top rugby union teams at the moment are those who can strike the right balance between risk and rewardEven when they lose England’s cricketers are making everyone sit up and pay attention. Their one-run second Test defeat in New Zealand after enforcing the follow-on is merely the latest compelling example of their determination, win or lose, to make things happen. How good it is to watch international players exhibiting so little fear, trusting their instincts and, where possible, having some fun.In rugby union, the same is presently true of Finn Russell and the now-injured Ange Capuozzo but not a whole heap of others. The orthodoxy, as underlined by the Wales v England game in Cardiff at the weekend,...