Six Nations - Report Cards

Wow – it’s hard to believe that it’s nearly 8 weeks since the Six Nations started.  With all the hype surrounding it, did the tournament live up to expectations?  Er...no.  Certainly not in terms of quality rugby.  Sure the weather played its part, but there was also a shocking level ambition by some of the sides as well - but thankfully the rain didn't wash out the drama levels.  The weird thing is no side properly ripped it up this year - even Wales, the champions who finished with a phenomenal performance in Cardiff, were average throughout the beginning of the championship.  So after a remarkable end to the tournament, who are the golden boys and who deserves a hearty smack on the backside (as punishment, that is)?

 

Wales

Position:  1st

Report: Everybody loves a comeback story – unless you're English that is.  With 8 losses on the bounce, there was a better chance of Chris Ashton topping the tackling charts than Wales retaining their crown heading into the tournament.  But what do we know?  Following a dreadful opening 45 minutes where they were hammered by the Irish, the Welsh fought back, claiming respectability in their home defeat before grinding out hard-fought wins away in France, Italy and Scotland.  And then we all know what happened against England at the Millennium Stadium.  Although this was a phenomenal achievement, and their final performance was completely epic, this was by no means a perfect few weeks for the Welsh side.  Their 3 away wins were unimaginative and lacking in any sort of ambition or fluency – it was the pack and the magnificent Leigh Halfpenny who were the chief instigators in bringing in the much-needed wins.  Perhaps it was the weather, perhaps it was the fragile confidence, but we seldom got to see this talented Welsh backline at its free flowing best.  With this pack though, they almost didn’t a backline.  It was numbers 1 to 8 who brought this title home for Wales.  

Stars: Leigh Halfpenny was utterly magnificent throughout the tournament, a rock under the high ball and a nerveless goal kicker.  In the pack, Gethin Jenkins showed a magnificent return to form, dominating the scrum and getting back to his best at the breakdown.  He was superbly supported by Justin Tipuric, Alun Wyn Jones and Adam Jones in a series of dominant displays in the tight and the loose.  Alex Cuthbert and George North also showcased their running skills on the wing on occasion – they would love to get the ball more though!

Must Try Harder:  The centres.  After a shocker against Ireland,  Jonathan Davies was solid and Jamie Roberts was decent in defence, but they should be far better than that.  Where was the rampant Davies of last year’s Grand Slam?  Where is the Jamie Roberts who destroyed South Africa in 2009?  They didn’t play badly but they are capable of so much more.

Final Grade:  B+.  They got themselves into a position where they could win it with one game to go, and then they burst into life with the performance of the Tournament.  The pack became the dominant group of the Six Nations, and what’s frightening is that they have a set of backs who haven’t even begun to play to their potential – if they start to click, then the rest of Europe really does have a problem.

 

England

Position:  2nd

Report: The new world-beaters after their demolition of New Zealand, it’s fair to say England went into this year’s tournament with a fair bit of expectation, even if the camp played it down themselves.  They started brightly with an ambitious, if occasionally clumsy, victory over Scotland, followed by a strong, physical display in rain-soaked Dublin.  But then the cracks started to appear – against France, they didn’t get their own way at the breakdown and struggled for the first 50 minutes, whilst they were woefully wasteful against Italy at home.  Perhaps it was pressure or nerves, but both these issues came to the forefront in Cardiff and were magnified tenfold by a rampant Welsh side.  England look good when they dominate sides with rapid waves of runners who dominate sides, before getting the ball wide – against New Zealand and Scotland, players were going in with a mate driving on their shoulder, but this was absent against the Welsh and in fact in the latter stages of the tournament, where they really missed the ball-carrying abilities of Ben Morgan.  Without that dominance, they looked ponderous and panicky – especially in the backs.  That said, it’s another step on the learning curve for this young England team and four wins out of five is a decent showing – they need to learn quickly from their hiding in Cardiff, because one bad game doesn’t make them a poor side.

Stars: Chris Robshaw was awesome throughout the tournament, and could quite easily have been given the Man of the Match award in the first three games.  Topping the tackling, carrying and metres made statistics, the Harlequins man led from the front and dispelled the myth that he is not an international class 7.  Nobody else came close to displaying his level of consistency, but some players did shine for 2 or 3 games to back their captain up, in particular the second rows – Geoff Parling and Joe Launchbury – whilst Manu Tuilagi was a real handful on his return in the backs.

Must Try Harder:  Chris Ashton got a lot of negative press – some of it was over the top, but largely it was unfortunately accurate.  His work rate was decent but all of a sudden he’s developed the conviction of damp flannel with his tackling.  He needs to take a break this summer and re-wire his head.  Also on the naughty list is Danny Care – the Quins 9 was in scintillating form for club but had 2 absolute stinkers in his final 2 appearances, but in fairness he may have been rusty after sitting on the bench.

Final Grade:  B-.  A great opening 2 performances looked to have set England on their way, but a regression against France, Italy (in particular) and Wales meant they fell away somewhat.  But, in the same way Wales weren’t a bad side because they had lost 8 matches on the trot, England won’t be  a poor one because of their loss to an inspired Welsh team.  There’s no need to panic, but Lancaster’s England will need to learn quickly and go back to what they’re good at if they are to go in to next year’s matches with a realistic chance of winning.  The balance of the backline also needs revising.

 

Scotland

Position: 3^rd.

Report:  This Scottish side proved itself to be something of a Houdini impersonator – grabbing a couple of wins in games they had no right to be even close in.  Living off an average of 35% possession, the Scots simply had no quality ball this Championship and it’s a testament to their grit, character and defence that they were able to pick up a couple of wins.  It started fairly brightly, with a bright showing at Twickenham despite a heavy defeat, and then a bright and convincing win against Italy at Murrayfield.  Then they were dragged into a couple of arm-wrestles against Ireland and Wales, beating the Irish in a bizarre match in which they were hammered in every facet except the scoreboard before losing the eventual champions in arguably the worst Six Nations game in memory.  A stubborn loss to the French followed, but the overall feel was that interim coaches Scott Johnson and Dean Ryan had installed some pride by helping the Scottish win back to back games for the first time in a decade.  But there has to be a concern for Scottish fans that their team does not seem able to gain hold of possession and keep it for any length of time – the fact they have won games has been based on brave defence and tenacity as opposed to any prolonged pressure.  In my opinion, they need to start throwing more men into the breakdown – on their own ball and the opposition’s – in order to maintain control of the pill and to put pressure in the other side.

Stars:  Kelly Brown was a monster in defence for the haggis-munchers.  Topping his side’s tackling and turnover charts, the captain was an inspirational figure who was ably backed up by the industrious Johnnie Beattie and big Jim Hamilton, who found some decent form in the middle part of the tournament.  In the backs, Greg Laidlaw was calmness personified off the kicking tee and Matt Scott put in a decent shift at 12, but it was the fullback Stuart Hogg who caught the eye the most, with his searing speed and eye for a gap making him a deadly runner from deep.

Must try harder:  Well, the Scottish pack as a unit, really.  They need to get some quality ball – otherwise it is a waste having a back 3 as rapid as Visser, Maitland and Hogg. In terms of individuals, Euan Murray was consistently disappointing, often losing his way in the scrum and ineffectual in the loose, missing tackles, which a sad regression when you consider how important he was for Scotland a year ago.  Richie Gray was another who didn’t live up to the mark – although this is slightly harsh, given that the mark he set was at a phenomenal level the previous season.

Grade: C+.  Two wins in a tournament for the first time in ages is a great achievement, as is the discovery of a lethal back 3, but Scotland have a major problem of possession control.  They will not be able to consistently get wins against decent sides unless they gain at least parity on that front – if they can rectify this, then they be able to classify themselves as genuine contenders next year.

 

Italy

Position: 4^th.

Report:  Like a Roger Moore James Bond film, started and finished with a bang, and then irritatingly naff in the middle.  After a sensational win against France, in which the Italians played a wonderful mix of fast, aggressive, smart and ambitious rugby, they meekly surrendered to Italy and Wales, reverting to type with slow, monotonous and predictable displays that have characterised the majority of Italian performances since they joined the Six Nations.  That said, their performances in the autumn and their opening win against France showed what they were capable, which made it all the more irritating that they couldn’t hit those heights consistently.  Against England though, they showed a return to form – perhaps enjoying the underdog tag once again rather than suffering under the weight of expectation – and played a resilient game, complimented by powerful defence.  Finally against Ireland, the Azzurri we had seen on the opening weekend reappeared, dominating Ireland in the contact zone and playing some decent stuff in the process.  Italy have been in this position once before – in 2007 – where they won 2 games, and they didn’t kick on.  They’ve got another chance to do that now, but they need to learn how to cope with expectation and how to win away from Rome.

Stars:  The usual suspect, captain Sergio Parisse, was phenomenal (when he wasn’t banned) and showed off his vast array of skills in brilliant performances against France, England and Ireland, with some of his offloads defying belief.  In the pack, flanker Alessandro Zanni was a workhorse on the blindside whilst his openside compatriot Simone Favaro was a thunderous influence in the contact area, with hooker Leonardo Ghiraldini adding plenty of punch and energy around the park.  Behind the fatties, Luciano Orquero became a cult hero after a virtuoso display against France, and followed it up with 2 great showings against England and Ireland, whilst Andrea Masi was an unwaveringly consistent and powerful influence from full back.

Must Try Harder:  It pains me to say it, but poor Martin Castrogiovanni didn’t have the best of times this tournament.  He’s one of my favourite props, and an icon of Italian rugby, but after an initially strong showing against France he faded alarmingly before suffering injury at Twickenham.  Enduring a torrid time in the scrum against Wales and England – before injury – it was a sad sight to see one of the best European scrummagers over the last five years fall a part in an aspect of the game he has dominated for so long.  Aside from him, Eduardo Gori was reckless and mistake-prone before a fine final game rescued his Championship.

Grade: B+.  Getting two wins for the first time in 6 years was a great achievement, but the manner of their performances against France, England and Ireland were the most pleasing.  They now have to learn to cope with the pressure of expectation and bring some consistency to their game – then they’ll be a real force.

 

Ireland

Position: 5^th.

Report:  Oh dear.  A pretournament that was filled with optimism after a bright showing in the autumn seemed to be justified after a rampant opening 45 minutes in Cardiff where they hammered three tries past the Welsh.  But then it all went downhill – a defeat to England at home was followed by an injury crisis and tame, inaccurate performances against Scotland, France and Italy meant they failed to win in their last 4 games.  An Irish pack was too often bullied at the breakdown – an area in which they have usually been so strong – where they were beaten for speed around the park and accuracy, rendering their backs almost invisible for a large part of the tournament.  In fairness, they weren’t helped by injuries Johnny Sexton, Paul O’Connell, Stephen Ferris and a host of other players who were struck down throughout the tournament, but an Irish side should never be lacking in aggression and accuracy at rucktime – and unfortunately this was one was.  Declan Kidney will be lucky to see his contract renewed, and this summer the Irish need to blood some new young players to improve their depth and add some much-needed spark.

Stars:  Sean O’Brien was the chief yard-maker for the men in green, with his low centre of gravity and speed making him a constant source of go-forward ball, whilst Peter O’Mahony and Donnacha Ryan was also consistently impressive.  Out wide, it was all fairly quiet, but young Ulster flyer Craig Gilroy showed enough in defence and attack to show he might be a stalwart of this Irish sides for years to come.

Must try harder:  Jamie Heaslip was named Irish captain and was also a decent shout for Lions captain before the tournament began, but an average championship where he made an average of less than 2 metres per carry and beat only 2 defenders isn’t really good enough for an international number 8, and he wasn’t able to lead his side effectively when the going got tough.  Unfortunately, he wasn’t helped by the legendary Brian O’Driscoll having an anonymous tournament after an inspired opening, whilst Ronan O’Gara closed the curtain on his international career with an abysmal appearance against Scotland.  Not a good couple of months for the old guard.

Grade: D+.  This Six Nations campaign was almost a complete disaster – not winning in 4 matches for the first time since 1999.  There were some positives – such as the emergence of Luke Marshall and Craig Gilroy – but until they sort out their serious problems surrounding the speed of their ball retention, and get some luck on the injury front, they will continue to struggle.

 

France

Position: 6^th.

Report:  Well, the French did succeed in one thing.  They made us all look like complete idiots.  Likely champions, we said, with a possible Grand Slam on top.  Well now we all feel a bit silly – but not as silly as the French probably feel (but who knows, it is the French after all).  A dominant series of displays in that autumn were eclipsed by a barrage of performances of such ineptitude that it almost beggared belief.  Unambitious and inaccurate against Italy and Wales, physical but tactically poor against England and Ireland, it looked like more of the same for the first 40 minutes against Scotland, but luckily, with the Scots content to just handover possession, Les Bleus finally clicked and ran in a dominant second half display to get their first, and only, win of the tournament.  It still meant they finished last though, and it couldn’t change the fact that they had been woefully sort of any energy or urgency throughout – although they weren’t helped by a bizarre selection policy that seemed to insist on playing the best players out of position.

Stars:  Very few to choose from, but Louis Picamoles was inspiring at times from number 8, offering ferocious contributions in attack and defence, whilst the front row generally got on top in the scrums in every game.  The standout back was, without doubt, Wesley Fofana – when he was finally picked in the centres.  The Clermont man showed off his incredible footwork in a series of standout displays that left many a defender floundering.

Must try harder:  Philippe Saint-Andre, the coach, was behind the whole wretched game plan and selection debacle that underpinned this miserable campaign for the French, and I expect him to take the brunt of criticism from this – he’ll be a lucky man if he stays in his position.  On the field, his golden boy Frederic Michalak was uninspiring at best, lazy at worst whilst out of position at fly half, and stand-in captain Thierry Dusautoir was a long way short of his best.

Grade:  U.  Ungradeable.  With the level of talent they possess, this should not have happened.  They need to get a new man in quickly so he can get ready for a nice, easy summer series to bounce back in – away in New Zealand.