Welcome back to the second instalment of Talking Points, looking at the six key talking points from this week’s round of Six Nations fixtures.
A true battle of the 10s in Cardiff
Wales v Scotland was a true demonstration of two world class fly halves battling it out. Dan Biggar and Finn Russell vied for the 10 jersey in South Africa for the Lions, and their rivalry was renewed with fascinating results in Cardiff. Dan Biggar ultimately came out on top, but Russell’s Scotland were not far behind.
Finn Russell is often described as a “wizard”, “magician” and “maverick”. Whilst all three of these are fair descriptions, they do not do Russell’s ability true justice. Russell’s game management has come on leaps and bounds recently, with world class tactical kicking and calmness in possession. This was the Finn Russell of the first half. However, the second half was a different story for Scotland’s maestro. His decision-making kudos took a hit this weekend due to his yellow card, and one cannot help but wonder how the game would have panned out if Russell had not been sent to the bin. For all his good work, of which was in abundance, this was undone by his yellow card. Russell’s discipline is holding him back from truly elevating his status. Russell has two yellows and one red in his last seven Six Nations games. This is not a statistic you want to see from a mercurial talent. Scotland, for all their growth, cannot afford to lose Russell to disciplinary issues when he is so vital to their play. His flat pass to Graham for Scotland’s first try was a thing of beauty. We have seen the best and worst of Russell in the last two weeks, but for Scotland to kick on, Russell needs to eliminate the bad bits. I think some fans and commentators have been harsh on Scotland’s performance. In the first half they were creative and carried hard. They waned significantly after the break, with Russell’s card only adding to this disappointing collapse. This loss will not derail Scotland’s upward trajectory, they just need to fix their issues.
Dan Biggar, meanwhile, was at his level-headed best. Biggar has often been regarded as a prickly individual, occasionally speaking to referees without the full respect required. After Russell’s yellow card, Wales attacked Scotland extensively, building up a long passage of phase play, but were kept out by Scotland’s impressive defence. Biggar did not panic. He did not opt for a loose pass out wide or a cross-field kick which was not on. Biggar set himself up for a drop goal which he duly executed. The temptation for a team against 14 men to try and force the point or become carried away was resisted under Biggar’s calm leadership, guiding his team to a big win. The drop goal has been criticised by some fans, but I think it was bold decision by Biggar which made sense. Building the scoreboard is a key principle of test rugby. Wales were much improved at home, as previously expected. Ross Moriarty brought physicality through his carrying and Jonathan Davies made a significant impact off the bench. They will face a sterner test in hostile conditions at Twickenham, but they will be high on confidence. Biggar v Marcus Smith is set to be an exciting battle, with both 10s of varying styles.
France and Ireland served up a storm
The game in Paris was easily the best game of the Six Nations thus far. A truly titanic battle of physical carrying, hard hits and fluid attacking charges. France were truly relentless from the first minute. They left Ireland constantly chasing them. In recent times, you might have backed Ireland to chase down an opposition and put them away through their physicality. However, France did not lie down. France won the battle of the breakdown convincingly, leaving Ireland to curse their lack of dominance and poor discipline. This left Ireland with a mountain to climb, and France were certainly an insurmountable task. There was no implosion, nor lapse in concentration. Les Bleus would not let Ireland take this victory away from them and never panicked. They kept their heads in a very un-French manner. Shaun Edwards has clearly revolutionised the side defensively and mentally. This combination of their pure quality and newfound mentality makes them a terrifying prospect for all Test nations.
Ireland have no reason to panic after this loss. Andy Farrell seemed oddly at peace with their performance, as they had been strong. Tadhg Furlong is a brilliant player, showing his physicality and silky handling. Jamison Gibson-Park was creative and quick, scoring a quality try. He is certainly a better starting option than Conor Murray currently and Ireland should persist with him. Ireland’s error county may have been high, but many sides would have struggled not to have made errors against such a physical French side. Paul Willemse and Gregory Aldritt are devastating tacklers, absolutely belting opposition. Despite all this, Ireland went toe-to-toe with France. The statistics were fairly even, including possession, metres made and territory. Ireland should be happy with themselves and will only improve from this game.
There were two lovely moments of entertainment in this game. As Cyril Baille made a barnstorming spin for the try line, referee Angus Gardner was forced into a commando roll to avoid the 115-kilogram prop from sending him flying down the Champs-Elysee. This was a moment of both committed refereeing, and Benny Hill-like comedy. The second moment of quality was Gael Fickou being told that France’s disallowed try was indeed being disallowed. His face painted a picture of cheeky innocence, despite presumably knowing full well the correct call had been made. “No try?”, he asked, followed by a wry smile. The game was box office entertainment, with two little moments of humour sprinkled in.
Joey Carbery deputised well for Jonny Sexton – but is he Ireland’s long-term answer at 10?
I’ve been a fan of Carbery for some time. His brief cameos for Ireland have often been impressive and he has been woefully unlucky with injuries. Sexton’s injury presented Carbery with an opportunity to stake a claim for being Sexton’s deputy and eventual replacement when the old warlord’s career comes to an end. Carbery certainly staked a decent claim, with a commanding presence and calm demeanour. He distributed the ball quickly and kicked from both the tee and hand well. However, a late decision taken by captain James Ryan and Carbery has come under much scrutiny. Ireland won a penalty late in the game, but opted for the posts instead of going for touch in the hope to convert a driving maul into a try. The blame for this decision should arguably not be left at Carbery’s door. The captain made the call, for which Carbery duly obliged. The blame should not blame at the 10’s door. He presumably could not dictate to the forwards where the momentum lay in that moment – did the pack feel confident of scoring from a driving lineout?
So how do Ireland shape up going forward? With Carbery at the helm, Ireland are in good hands when Sexton retires. Andy Farrell just needs to work out a way of integrating him efficiently while Sexton is still around. If he can, Ireland can feel more relaxed about the post-Sexton era.
England were improved but there are still outstanding questions
England’s win against Italy was not vintage by any means, but there were some encouraging signs. Marcus Smith’s performance was exceptional (see below), Alex Dombrandt sampled some of his Harlequins form with 18 carries and Jamie George was back to his try-scoring best with two scores. However, for an encouraging first half came a disappointing second. England seemed to lose momentum after the break, only scoring two tries. They kept Italy to nil which was a good showing for their defence. Praise for the top teams beating Italy always seems to feel as though it should have asterisk against it, but Italy were improved on performances against England in recent years.
Despite this win, questions still hang over England. Harry Randall was encouraging, with sniping runs and providing quick ball for Smith. However, he only played 55 minutes. This was a brilliant opportunity for him to play either a full game or the vast majority of one. Ben Youngs came on to equal the England men’s record for caps with 114. This is a remarkable achievement, and Youngs looks to extend this record over the rest of Eddie Jones’ reign. Not to take anything away from Youngs, but England need to start an extensive search for Young’s long-term replacement. The ball provided by Youngs is nowhere as quick as other 9s out there, despite his undeniable experience. Raffi Quirke, Alex Mitchell and Harry Randall present wonderful options, but they need experience in key games. When Willi Heinz was struck down just before the World Cup final in 2019, Ben Spencer was flown out last minute with only three caps to his name. Jones and England cannot risk a repeat of this.
The midfield conundrum is another issue still facing England. Henry Slade and Joe Marchant was another new combination tried by Jones against Italy. Since taking over in 2016, Jones has tried over 20 different centre combinations. Many of these have come down to the issue of Manu Tuilagi’s availability. With Tuilagi returning to the squad this week ahead of Wales coming to Twickenham, it looks as though we are set to see Tuilagi start in the midfield for England again. I do not think consistently relying on Tuilagi, despite his brilliance, is sustainable for England. His injuries seem to leave England in the lurch, and alternative options still need to be assessed.
Number 8 is another area of contention for England. Sam Simmonds started against Scotland, making some good carries and showing his strong running game. Alex Dombrandt started against Italy, demonstrating his own unique skillset and telepathic partnership with Smith. Both have their own unique attributes but have one key thing in common – they are lethal try scorers at club level. I would start Dombrandt against Wales after his Italy performance, and use Simmonds off the bench to attack broken field and tired legs. The two are great options and have enjoyed rich club form, but we are yet to see their full international potential. Hopefully both can seize their chances to truly replace Billy Vunipola as England’s long-term no.8.
Marcus Smith shone again
Another week, another blog raving about the second coming of Christ. Marcus Smith truly is a wonderful talent. You can caveat this performance with all the Italy arguments until the end of days, but the fact is that he was very good again. Smith seems to improve with every appearance, building on his good work from the preceding week.
The man just seems to generate so much time and space for himself. He plays as though there is a force field around him, and defenders can barely get a hand on him. His score was vintage Marcus Smith, starting a move which, he eventually got on the end of to finish. He covers a lot of ground, running a total of 97 metres against Italy. The hype around him has been extensive, but I truly believe it is well founded. It will be fascinating to see what happens when Owen Farrell is fit and where Smith fits in. With England touring Australia this summer, it will be interesting to see who is on the plane and who starts the tests. Barring injury or disastrous form, Smith should start England’s test matches going forward. Farrell at 12 still makes sense due to his experience, but his inclusion should not be at Smith’s expense or detriment. England used Smith and Slade in varying fashions against Italy. Slade often came on Smith’s inside, offering himself as a first receiver and Smith distributing outside him. These structures will be what we will presumably see from Smith and Farrell together over a run of games.
ITV need to sort their coverage
Some off the field complaining from me now. ITV share coverage of the Six Nations with the BBC, but I know whose coverage I prefer (especially now a certain ex-England hooker has left the BBC’s commentary team). Sam Warburton, John Barclay and Martin Johnson are knowledgeable and insightful on the BBC. However, ITV’s coverage this weekend lacked any truly deep coverage. For France v Ireland, there was no French representation on the punditry team. Ben Kayser would have been the perfect option here, but ITV opted with two Irish representatives and Gareth Thomas. I love Gareth Thomas, but a true French rugby expert is required for games. French rugby is quite literally far from home and with no coverage on British television, it is difficult for the armchair fan to keep up with the goings on over the Channel. Kayser or another pundit who covers French domestic rugby would be ideal. A similar story was seen for Italy v England, with no Italian insight on the panel. There was an awkward moment where Jonny Wilkinson was asked about Italian fly half Paolo Garbisi, but he did not seem to be particularly clued up on the young Italian. This has been a monumental moan, but the coverage is important, especially for attracting new fans.
Speaking of Italy, a quick word on their under 20s’ massive win against England. The score line did not reflect the most dynamic or exciting of wins, but this is a huge win for the young Italians. If Italy can continue with their strong progress and keep this group of young players together, then the future for Italian rugby is exciting.
Predictions
With a fallow week this weekend, it seems odd to make predictions for just under two weeks’ time but we will anyway. We got two out of three last week, so hopefully an improvement for the next round:
· Scotland v France is up first. This should be a great game, but I think France will edge it. Scotland will perform much better at Murrayfield, but France’s power game will be too much for the Scots.
· England to beat Wales at Twickenham. I doubt this will be a scare for England, but I cannot see it being overly comfortable. Tuilagi factor to make a difference, especially as Wales are also struggling for midfield combinations.
· Ireland to beat by 30. Hoping to see Ireland land a few more punches on their opposition than against England.
Thank you for reading once again and I’ll see you next time.
DISCLAIMER: I do not own the photographs in this article, nor do I claim to.