Can you believe that the 2014 RBS 6 Nations are here already? It seems like only yesterday that we were discussing the Autumn Internationals and now at the start of a brand new year we are ready to witness what will undoubtedly be one most competitive and thrilling 6 Nations tournaments of recent years.
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| Here we go! |
Just like in the autumn the
greatest scrutiny will be reserved for Stuart Lancaster and his team and with
the number of matches before 2015 decreasing in number we are already at the
stage where every single performance counts. Le Crunch is always a tasty
fixture however this year’s fixture has a little more bite than last year's… and yes I
did just put two puns in one sentence!! Why
does it have more bite? Well for a start it is in Paris and secondly the French have a point to prove, after winning just twice last year against
Scotland and Tonga. It is a fact that France play much, much better rugby when their pride is hurt and going into the match fresh, as opposed to on the back of two losses like last year will also help them. It goes without saying that the loss of Thierry
Dusautoir to a bicep injury was a blow however not a killer one as Pascal Papé
is more than capable of stepping in as captain and they still have some of other
key threats. Who or what are these key threats? Well unsurprisingly I’m going
to mention Wesley Fofana first… the man has one of the most delicious step's in
the whole of the RBS 6 Nations and can create opportunities out of
nothing. Brice Dulin is another worthy
of an individual mention and of course the French pack are huge and mean business. However
like a broken record unless Philippe Saint-Andre sorts out an expert half back
pairing once again it could be all talk and no trousers for Les Bleus. Am I
being an overly-optimistic English fan here with this assessment? Maybe… however
I can assure you that some solid rugby logic and thinking has been put into it too!!
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| Mr Fofana... A Key French Threat |
Turning the spotlight onto
England this week Stuart Lancaster made the big calls… the calls that many have
wanted to happen for a long time; Chris Ashton is out along with Ben Youngs who has been dropped for the first time in his International career. I wouldn’t have
been surprised if Chris was included in the squad however reflecting on this selection
decision I believe that it is absolutely the right one as the time is right to ‘try
out’ Nowell/May/Watson. Whilst all three are young their talents speak for themselves and the X Factor each will bring to the back line will be essential for Le Crunch. Danny Care looks set to start in Paris and given his form in the
Aviva Premiership I cannot wait to see him put on that number 9 shirt… his
dynamism and vision is unrivalled and his partnership with Owen Farrell,
the likely 10 will be a strong one. Last time out against the All Blacks England
did everything right up front and I expect there to be little change in the
forwards (injuries excluding)… personally I think Dylan Hartley will be huge at
the weekend and throughout the tournament and the usual suspects, Robshaw, Wood
and Launchbury will drive this England team on. Yes we are missing the mighty
Manu, the reliable Parling, the dynamic Corbisiero, the workhorse Croft and the
electric wing men of Yarde and Wade however this England team certainly gets my
rugby pulse racing. This England XV is steady and reliable up front with a huge
amount of X Factor in the back line... all that all that means that my
expectations are extremely high and I do believe that England will prevail this
weekend in Paris.
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| Anthony Watson... one of the new boy's in town! |
