Two rounds down and I’m no nearer to picking my winner
“Jones has selected a team based around a simple philosophy of big forwards with some powerful hole makers and a fast and intuitive backline”
After watching the first two weeks of the Six Nations games I have to say I am no closer to predicting the winning team. Wales had a magnificent win over Scotland who had promised so much during the autumn which created an illusion that they had ‘turned the corner’ under Gregor Townsend, but clearly they haven’t.
Then they ran into a defiant England at Twickenham but could take great pride from their performance.
Ireland had Johnny Sexton to thank for nudging past France and then blitzed Italy yesterday. That EnglandIreland finale at Twickenham looks more and more like the puzzle solver.
Wales are still a team in transit but with Warren Gatland back in charge they again look like a team that have confidence.
The experience of that Welsh front row and the shrewd nous of Shaun Edwards made a big difference against the Scots. It allowed the Welsh back row to dominate the game, giving an almost perfect platform for the relatively inexperienced backline to thrive.
Today the Scots are against France at Murrayfield where nobody has an easy game. It is a must win match for Townsend’s men, otherwise they will have moved from Championship contenders to Wooden Spoon contenders in the space of just two games.
The French, however, have the advantage of the Brunel bounce that almost did for Ireland last week.
That bounce is when a new coach is appointed and the team appear to get a little boost and win a few games, which could explain Townsend’s apparent success in the autumn.
As yet, the only sign of the French flair promised with Brunel’s appointment was the Teddy Thomas try but the game was played in bad weather, so we need to see how they cope with a Scotland desperate to show they are contenders.
More has been made about the HIA controversy than the game, despite that fabulous drop-goal by Sexton.
There should be no controversy as the medics who make the call are independent. Sexton should be glad that everybody is erring on the side of caution given that he has suffered more than most in the past.
Since the infamous ‘Bloodgate’ scandal, the decision as to what a player leaves the field for after an injury has been taken out of the coach’s hands and given to independent medical staff.
It is a sad indictment of the game when a player questions another’s injury with the referee – who doesn’t have the authority to challenge a medical decision.
If a team have an issue with any decisions, it is for the management to raise the point with the Six Nations committee after the match, it is not for players to question the referee during the game.
England took their chances against a resolute Italian side in a game that came a little bit too early in the Connor O’Shea plan for world domination. Then they battled manfully to repel the Welsh yesterday.
Truthfully, I thought the Italy score flattered England, although all the tries were taken well, but it was the naivety of the newly capped Italians which created some opportunities, especially when the ‘finishers’ began to fill the field.
I am not overly keen that more than half the team can be replaced by these so-called ‘finishers’ as Eddie Jones calls them, even when there is nothing wrong with the player on the field.
Call me a Luddite, but when the game agreed to allow substitutes, it was to replace injured players, not to increase the likelihood of injuring players who may be fatigued from having played 60 minutes of rugby.
Finishers are now all impact players picked to come off the bench and make an impression on the game and on those players that remain on the field.
Rugby is an 80-minute game and with all the efforts that have gone into making the players supposedly fitter than ever before, you would think they could now at least last from the first until the final whistle.
Plus point from England was the emergence of Sam Simmonds who not only provides an alternative to Billy Vunipola at No.8 but also provides a number of options that were not previously available. However, Simmonds injury yesterday and Chris Robshaw’s subsequent switch to No.8 showed how vunerable England are in that position although it did give Sam Underhill the chance to showcase his talents with a tremendous try-saving tackle on Scott Williams.
Billy is all power and confrontation, while Simmonds brings pace and a work rate in different areas. This gives Jones the chance to alter his game plan by changing just one player.
Simmonds gives Jones a back row link with his outside backs that hasn’t previously been possible with his established back row unit.
Jones has selected a team based around a simple philosophy of big forwards with some powerful hole makers and a fast and intuitive backline. If Simmonds continues to develop, he can be used to create opportunities and a link for the outside backs to exploit.
The only question Jones will have to decide is: does he start with the pace and dexterity of 16st 2lb, 6ft Sam and bring on the 20st 7lb 6ft 2in power of Billy to blow them away, or start with Billy to beat them up and bring on Sam to run them ragged at the finish?
Either way and no matter how the Six Nations turns out, England, in finding Simmonds and the versatility he brings, have taken a step closer to winning the 2019 RWC.