6 Nations 2013

Post by **BobHelm** » February 3, 2013, 9:53 am

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Wales off to a poor start. This was their 8th. successive defeat. On the first half performance though it could have been a whole lot worse. They were dire in the first half & let Ireland saunter into a first half lead of 23 points to 3.
As the score shows it was a far more spirited performance in the second half, but it is hard for any team to give the opposition a 20 point start..
With both England & France having to play in Ireland this is a dream start for them..

Let's be honest, Scotland are nearly the whipping boys of this competition now. Even Italy in Italy is a bigger challenge & England had them at home..
All too easy, but you can only play what is infront of you & the team looked quite impressive...Whether that will continue when under pressure against better opposition remains to be seen. In Owen Farrell however England have discovered another kicker who will ensure that any opposition infringements are fully punished.

Looks like being an open & interesting 6 nations, if day 1 is anything to go by...
Now for a close encounter in Italy, I hope...

Post by **BobHelm** » February 4, 2013, 8:55 am

Italy 23 - 18 France

If ever a side has pushed the idea of the inexperienced needing to play against better sides in order to improve it has to be Italy.
They are no longer the whipping boys in the 6 Nations (sadly that honour now belongs to Scotland) & showed that in spades in their encounter with the French.
This is the second time in a row that they have managed this & leaves France struggling after just one game.
The Italians have developed their game on having a pack that scraps for everything & gives the opposition no time to use teh ball themselves. This, in the past, has often resulted in them being competitive but then losing at the end when they run out of steam.
That was not one of those performances.
While the forwards continued with their pressing game the Italian backs also came into the game with some nice touches.
They are not going to be a soft touch fro anyone this campaign, especially at home.

What of France??
Well it was not a bad performance by them, on the day they were beaten by a good side. They didn't seem to have any glaring errors in the side & I imagine that when facing a side that give them a bit more time than Italy did then they will be a handful...

Post by **BobHelm** » February 9, 2013, 8:19 am

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Two cracking games on today.
With the results the way they were last weekend just about anything is possible.
Before the competition started I would have had this down as two tight home wins.
Scotland will need to improve on their England performance to keep out Italy though.
France were pretty awful against Italy, as were Wales against Ireland for the first 45 minutes.
It depends which two teams turn up to play..

Post by **GT93** » February 9, 2013, 1:42 pm

Thanks for the update Bob. But focusing on more important matters for Thai boys, who are Man U playing this weekend? My 5 year old step-grandson claims to like Man U. I haven't mentioned the Italian rugby team to him yet.

Post by **BobHelm** » February 10, 2013, 8:28 am

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After the joy of victory for Italy last week against one of the 'big boys' it was very much back to reality this week.
Just to put in context this was Scotland's largest ever victory in this competition!!
This was a hugely better display by Scotland as they tore into the opposition & so had ball going forward to give the backs. With a base to attack from the Scottish backs put on a great display and Italy had to play a lot of the game on the back foot. That is not their forte &, as a result, they were never really in the game.
Not sure what it actually tells the two sides.
They both know that if their forwards can dominate the opposition then their backs will have opportunities.
The difficulty is to understand how to do that against the better opposition..

Oh dear, two games gone & France sit at the bottom of the table without a point.
This was not an inspiring game of rugby though. 3 all at half time it was won by a George North try 8 minutes before the end.
Wales will not mind that they had to grind out a victory. After losing 8 on the trot the result was everything.
This was dire by France though, on the back of an insipid performance last time in Italy.
The French crowd can be a little fickle at the best of times. They expect their side to not only win but to play with style & panache. This was pretty awful stuff & you had to feel that they had every right to boo their players off the pitch at the end.

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So given the results so far this is the game for the title..

Ireland are a tough opponent in Dublin at any time & this side showed in Wales that they can play a bit.
Not sure that England are anything like the real deal yet, although they are certainly improving.
I fancy this is a year or so too soon for the visitors to be able to turn the Irish over in Ireland..

Post by **BobHelm** » February 10, 2013, 11:59 pm

FULL-TIME - Ireland 6-12 England

A poor advert for the game.
Penalties decided it in admittedly poor weather conditions. They were not very conducive to slick handling of the ball & none was seen. All points coming from the boot & although both sides missed with Farrell in the England side it is not a very clever game for the Irish to play.
Lot of niggle & a bit of nastiness in the game as well, with Ireland's Cian Healy guilty of at least over enthusiasm a few times. The only man in the sin bin was England's James Haskell for foolishly using his feet to kick the ball out of a ruck in an offside position.
England held on though & actually increased their lead while he was off...but it was all penalties after all..

Not a great display by England, but they won, in Dublin, which is quite an achievement. In fairness in Manu Tuilagi England had the only man on the pitch who looked likely to score..

Post by **Tafia** » February 11, 2013, 10:18 am

So given the results so far this is the game for the title..

A big assumption giving it was only round 2 of 5. England will need to up their game to win the Slam!

Post by **BobHelm** » February 11, 2013, 10:44 am

Tafia wrote:England will need to up their game to win the Slam!

That is a fact!!

None of the sides have looked very special though, except possibly Ireland in their first half against Wales. I know that the weather conditions have made running rugby difficult however I shudder to think how any of the 6 Nations would fare on this form against the Southern Hemisphere big boys.
So far it has not been a competition to inspire. With a week off to replan, I hope that the next round will change that...

Post by **Tafia** » February 11, 2013, 12:13 pm

BobHelm wrote:
Tafia wrote:England will need to up their game to win the Slam!
That is a fact!!
None of the sides have looked very special though, except possibly Ireland in their first half against Wales. I know that the weather conditions have made running rugby difficult however I shudder to think how any of the 6 Nations would fare on this form against the Southern Hemisphere big boys.
So far it has not been a competition to inspire. With a week off to replan, I hope that the next round will change that...

Lets hope so, the first weekend produced far more exciting rugby than this last one tho as you say weather and pitch conditions contributed to more grunt than flowing rugby, As you say Ireland looked good for 30 min against Wales yet Wales put 3 tries past them, what was more apparent this week was the quality of the defence of all teams (except maybe Italy )
Nice to see Scotland has found the try line again, long may that continue.
To date could be anyones championship, no signs yet of anyone running away with it.
Makes for an interesting few weeks

Post by **BobHelm** » February 23, 2013, 7:51 am

Two good games today.
Will it be the Italy against France, or the Italy against Scotland today?? The same question could be asked of the Welsh side. Depending on which sides actually turn up, this could be a real nail bitter, or a stroll in the park, for one of them. Should be well worth the watch.

England have won two & are at home. They still have not convinced many during the winning though.
France have been shocking.
If England want to throw down the gauntlet then they must win big & convincing.
I fancy that France will not let them do that.
England should win but I will not be surprised if the kicking boot of Owen Farrell ends up as top scorer in the game, rather than points from crossing the line..

Post by **BobHelm** » February 24, 2013, 7:37 am

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A rain lashed affair in Rome saw the visitors going into a small first half lead.
Wales blitzed the Italians after the break though & ran in a couple of tries to establish a 26 to 9 points lead by the hour mark. They then quite comfortably held the home side at bay until the finish.
Despite the first round home loss this has been a good competition for Wales. It is their 4th, successive away victory in the competition, something they have not managed since 1979!!
This maybe was a bit of a lack lustre game for the spectator but the weather certainly played a big part in the decision making. Wales made the most of limited opportunities & gave better than they got in the rough & tumble areas of the game that the Italians so often enjoy & dominate.
A victory that will give a lot of satisfaction to the coaching & playing staff.
Now Scotland away before maybe a championship decider at home to England??

As it was as wet in Italy it was as cold in England. France put on a first half display that would have warmed their supporters hearts though. They went in at the break with a 10 point to 9 point advantage as they scored a try while England struggled to get anything except penalties going.
The second half was better as Manu Tuilagi again showed his undoubted class & power in getting to the line. As France tired under the pressure late penalties added some points icing to the cake & flattered the home side.
This was not a very good England performance, as indeed, none have really been this competition. They look beatable & often not very fluid. They do keep winning though, for now...
A break next weekend then Italy at home on Sunday 10th. Not a given, but surely a game that England will be confident of winning. Then, just maybe, a Grand Slam attempt in Cardiff on 10th. March. Now that is a game to look forward to...

Post by **BobHelm** » February 24, 2013, 10:44 pm

FULL-TIME- Scotland 12-8 Ireland

I have seen nor read anything about the game apart from the final score....will have a look tomorrow, but, to me, that looks like the shock of the competition this season so far. I rate the win even bigger than the France loss in Italy.

Post by **BobHelm** » March 2, 2013, 12:24 pm

Just in case anyone was wondering...

A weekend off from the competition this weekend.
Back to two games on Saturday, one on Sunday next weekend.
Then on Saturday 16th. March all 6 sides play in the concluding games..

The final game is France at home to Scotland, played at 8pm. UK time. That might be one where the interest is more about the bottom of the table than the top...Amazingly France are still pointless after 3 games, while Scotland currently lie in 3rd. with 2 wins, just on points difference from Wales..

Post by **BobHelm** » March 9, 2013, 8:14 am

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Can Scotland keep up their home form that shocked Ireland last time out??
A Wales win will make for a decisive last home game against the old enemy, England..

Ireland will want to send out a real message after their last game.
France were fancied to be contenders for the title by many this year...They are currently contenders for the wooden spoon!!

Post by **BobHelm** » March 10, 2013, 8:15 am

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It was a tighter affair in Scotland than maybe the scoreline indicates. Both sides exchanging penalties for most of the first half & not much difference in the second except Wales then crossed the line twice.
It was certainly not a flowing game but Wales did what they needed to come through it.
I gather that the game set a new world record of 18 penalty attempts at goal was set in the match. Hardly ever a statistic to recommend a game.

The conditions were pretty appalling in Dublin for the French encounter.
Ireland dominated much of the early game but then France snuck in right at the end with a converted try to draw the contest.
The result gives France their first points of the Championship - with only 1 game to go.
Ireland have not fared much better though in what has been a disappointing Competition after the great start of a victory against Wales.

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Can England keep their undefeated Competition on track against Italy? Maybe, more importantly can they win with a bit of style?
Many will see this game as something to just get through before the now massive final game against Wales.
Italy are no pushovers & if England do not take the game very seriously then an upset is all too likely..

Post by **Tafia** » March 10, 2013, 11:11 am

Wales then crossed the line twice.

Unfortunately not. Wales only scored the One Try with a conversion.
The game was messy & dominated by penalties & certainly not assisted by the renowned whistle happy Steve Walsh who did little to allow the game to flow.

Post by **BobHelm** » March 10, 2013, 11:16 am

Sorry Taf...

I didn't watch the game as I was watching something else. Followed it on live text.
At the start at least the only words written were 'Penalty'.
It is disappointing when a game doesn't flow. However as the penalties seemed to be coming thick & fast in both directions then quite possibly the ref was far too picky in the circumstances..

Post by **Tafia** » March 10, 2013, 11:37 am

It is disappointing when a game doesn't flow. However as the penalties seemed to be coming thick & fast in both directions then quite possibly the ref was far too picky in the circumstances.

True Bob, The ref can certainly spoil a game.
My mistake the ref was Craig Joubert who is rated as one of the best, tho since the last WC final I have seen a decline in his standards, as with most these days with maybe the exception of Nigel Owen, Roman Poite and Wayne Barnes. The new rules re scrum time seems to have caused more problems than it has solved and an area for an almost guaranteed penalty to whoever the ref deems the more positive instead of them looking out for the obvious, crooked feed, not binding or bringing the scrum down.
Not the best 6Nations lets hope next weeks final round will have more of an impact tho as said earlier Whistle Happy Steve Walsh officiates at the Wales England so more of the same I guess.

Post by **Dizzy Dave** » March 10, 2013, 5:03 pm

Hi Guys, I'll be in Udon Thani next weekend and am desperate to find a bar that will show the Wales v England game. I believe the KO is midnight Thai time and I understand most bars close then. Can you suggest anywhere that will stay open and show the game...preferably with commentary. Thanks in advance for your help. Hopefully England will win tonight to set up a great decider next week.

Post by **BobHelm** » March 10, 2013, 11:57 pm

FULL-TIME - England 18-11 Italy

So England will face Wales undefeated. However on this sort of performance I doubt if that will over worry the home side much.
It started quite brightly for England on a day that was much more conducive to running rugby than yesterday was. The second half was all about Italy attacking though & the England defence needed to be at their strongest.
They held out, just...
That has been England this year in this competition, they have done just enough to get over the line without ever looking like they possibly deserved it.
As Taffia said, just not a very good competition this year.
Lets hope for a final weekend to remember.

Sorry Dave I have no idea where will be showing the England game live next weekend. It will be a difficult game to see out & about I think..