Grand finale
A three-way title tussle, coaching farewells and records in peril – this will be an epic afternoon
A Slam for Wales, the title for England or Ireland... why this could be the best Six Nations climax in years Mick Cleary:
Storm Erin headed through Dublin airport late on Thursday afternoon, a liveried Ireland squad looking relaxed and on-message, bound for Cardiff. They travelled intent on whipping up a sporting tempest that would wreak havoc with Wales’s Grand Slam hopes and boost their own credentials, even if doing so would probably hand the title to England.
Six Nations Super Saturday may be a marketing gimmick to help fill TV couches across Europe, but it invariably lives up to its billing where it matters most – on the field of play.
Three teams still chasing top spot on the podium, trophies in both locations, record-breaking milestones to be logged, award-winning coaches to be saluted as they depart the Six Nations stage and, perhaps, if you are that way inclined, a drink to be had on St Patrick’s weekend. A day of delight awaits.
To have doubt in the air is the
sine qua non of any competition, the sense of intrigue that draws even the neutral to the contest, although there will not be many of those to be found on the streets around the Principality Stadium today. The gathering of the Celtic clans in Cardiff promises to be a tumultuous occasion, rich in promise and spicy in the collision.
They may be drawn from the same gene and cultural pools but there is little love flowing between the playing tribes, right down to Joe Schmidt’s insistence that the stadium roof should remain open to the elements, against all logic given the forecast but eminently understandable when you realise that it riles Wales. You know there is a fair bit riding on a match when even steel and cables are factors in play.
This is a fixture laden with bite and edge, although it is a measure of the inter-connectivity of this final day of action that such sentiments appear also to be winging their way along the M4 and across the Bridge, with England coach Eddie Jones adding his two-pennyworth on putative events in Cardiff, reckoning Wales to be “tired”.
Warren Gatland gave England a verbal dig three weeks ago, as well as a bloody nose in terms of the result, and Jones has not forgotten nor forgiven, aware also that the outcome at the Principality has a distinct bearing on matters at Twickenham.
Do not believe for an instant coaches when they say they are solely focused on their game, the Calcutta Cup in this instance, because they all know the value of titles and trophies, not necessarily for egotistical reasons but as a notable notch on the belt for a team as they head towards the World Cup in Japan.
These are the last seriously competitive matches before that tournament, which starts in midseptember. The rash of August warm-up games are mere pre-season friendlies. They are looseners, a rapidly erasable footnote even if they are classified as Tests.
Today’s crunch games – and there is even much riding on the basement battle in Rome, with Italy desperate to show their worth in these angsty times of relegation debate – are events of true significance to stand alongside a knockout match in the Champions League or a coming-over-the-last Cheltenham Gold Cup.
The Six Nations has no need of other reference points but there is no doubt that World Cup pointers will be taken from the respective results. A Grand Slam-winning Wales would approach the tournament with deep self-assurance, much less so if they were to fall at the final hurdle for what would be their first loss in 14 matches.
England might claim they have little need of external approbation, but a third title in four years under Jones would add an outer casing of real substance.
And then there are Ireland, the outsiders in the title chase but hell-bent on rebutting suggestions that they might be over the hill, a fading force after their annus mirabilis in 2018 when they saw off all-comers including the world champion
All Blacks.
They have yet to approach those heights in this tournament and, in the eyes of many, are due a performance.
They are aware of the critical sniping, yet would probably agree with the assessment that there is more in them. Wales will be looking to stifle half-backs Conor Murray and Johnny Sexton as they did Ben Youngs and Owen Farrell, shutting down the supply lines. It is entirely valid to suggest that there is more pressure on Ireland to deliver than there is on Wales. An Irish victory would quell the doubting voices, while a loss would only lend weight to the perspective that this team have already peaked.
Wales, of course, have proven to be masters of the big moments under Gatland, whose record stands comparison with the very best. A Grand Slam would be a record-making third on his watch, testament to his man-management as well as to the wingman exploits of defence coach Shaun Edwards. Wales have conceded only six tries in four games, the lowest in the championship. Conversely they have scored only nine tries, far fewer than England’s tally of 19, whose bonuspoint haul of three for their attack ensures that they are well-placed to take advantage of any Welsh slip-ups. It is Gatland’s final Six Nations campaign, and also Schmidt’s, while it might have been Manu Tuilagi’s last but for an emotion-influenced decision to resist lucrative overtures from French club Racing 92 to stay with Leicester and be available for England. He called it “a feeling you can’t replace”, a sentiment true for Tuilagi, but also for the many millions watching this afternoon’s finale, whatever your colours.