Scotland’s win over France hands England a chance for the title – while Ireland wait in the wingsLeaving aside Manu Tuilagi’s red card and Joe Marler’s bizarre piece of handiwork England had reason to be quietly encouraged by their last Six Nations outing for the foreseeable future. They started well, imposed themselves up front and showed the kind of defensive appetite, in the face of a physical Welsh challenge, that distinguishes the best teams. If this was the last Twickenham hurrah for George Kruis and his long-time lineout guru Steve Borthwick, they went out in style; Tom Curry, Courtney Lawes, Maro Itoje, Kyle Sinckler, Ben Youngs and George Ford all had good games and the absence of Billy and Mako...
The scoreline at Twickenham flattered Wales, while France were pragmatic in pursuit of bonus points rather than chasing the grand slam as the clock wound down at MurrayfieldMuch was made in the build-up of the intention of both sides to play with an edge, but from the opening minutes it was clear England were sharper and hungrier. When the ball bounced loose, the Wales captain, and talisman, Alun Wyn Jones prepared to fall on it. He was beaten to it by Maro Itoje and that set the tone for the afternoon. Wales kept banging into a white wall while England, never moving the ball for the sake of it, waited for their moment. The home side defended with power and...
Les Bleus go to Murrayfield with the grand slam in reach and Gaël Fickou says they now have the tools to challenge the bestFrance have arrived in the danger zone. A team that were treated dismissively by Eddie Jones at the start of the Six Nations, were sublime and sloppy against Italy and showed a depth of character in Cardiff missing from the side for a decade now have the title, and a grand slam, in sight. Expectation has replaced hope.A young side have not had to wrestle with the demons of the past because, for the majority of the squad, they were in someone else’s nightmare. On Sunday Les Bleus are at Murrayfield, a ground where they have not...
The spread of the coronavirus may mean the tournament’s end may be delayed until the autumnThe Six Nations organisers meet in Paris on Monday to discuss contingency plans after fears over the cross-border spread of the coronavirus forced the postponement of next Saturday’s match between Ireland and Italy in Dublin and put in doubt England’s trip to Rome on the final weekend. Ireland’s head coach, Andy Farrell, has an extra week to prepare for his side’s final match against the leaders, France, in Paris, but he is not sure if it will go ahead. “We don’t know,” he said. “All we can do is prepare properly for it.”Ireland’s match against Italy is unlikely to be rescheduled before October. The Aviva...
Eddie Jones under scrutiny, Wales and Ireland settling into new management regimes, and a fragile French renaissance?After Ciara and Dennis comes storm Eddie? After England overwhelmed New Zealand in the World Cup semi-final the Six Nations seemed a breeze for them, with four teams under new management and Gregor Townsend’s Scotland looking inwards. But it is England’s head coach who is under the most scrutiny after two rounds.Jones’s contract ends in 2021, at the midway point between World Cups, and the sight of Rassie Erasmus, South Africa’s Japan 2019-winning coach, at Murrayfield last Saturday was another cause for speculation. Jones’s side’s meek opening in Paris after the Australian’s bellicose buildup was followed by a narrow win in appropriately stormy conditions...