The Second Six Nations

A few weeks ago I wrote a piece on this year's Euro Nations Cup. The fourth round of fixtures took place yesterday and, as predicted, Romania will face Georgia in a ENC 2013 Grand Slam decider in Bucharest next Saturday. Nothing between these sides - they are currently joint top of the table, each on 17 points.  In the 16 previous meetings each country has recorded 8 wins!

Round 4 results are below:

Georgia

61 - 18

Spain

Portugal

23 - 31

Russia

Belgium

14 - 32

Romania

http://www.therugbyblog.co.uk/the-second-six-nations

Seven sometimes six

My thoughts on the Lions blindside conundrum. Unfortunately it looks like Stephen Ferris is definitely out of the tour, after undergoing another ankle operation. Does this make it more likely that Lydiate or Croft will tour? Only Warren G knows.

Thanks to Jamie Hosie for publishing it on the site. Follow him on Twitter - @jhosie43. 

Thanks also to the great Oliver Blazeby for being the inspiration behind the title!

http://www.therugbyblog.co.uk/seven-sometimes-six

The former Cheetah loving life as a Wasp

London Wasps kindly let me interview their star Springbok flanker, Ashley Johnson (@ashj1605), a couple of weeks ago. Massive thanks to Alison Donnelly and Ben Lloyd, who both work for Wasps, and of course to Ashley, for giving up his free time.

The blog piece can be found at the below link. Ashley was named man of the match in his first outing since the interview (in Wasps' crucial Aviva Premiership win over Gloucester at Adams Park yesterday). I should interview players more often!

http://www.therugbyblog.co.uk/the-former-cheetah-loving-life-as-a-wasp

Thanks also to Jamie Hosie and James Hutchison for putting the piece on therugbyblog.co.uk

A quick recap of a fantastic weekend for international rugby, from New Zealand’s North Island to Houston and all across Europe

Rugby’s very own Super Saturday began in Wellington with the final stages of New Zealand leg of the IRB Men’s 7’s World Series. Kenya, managed by the impressive former England 7’s coach Mike Friday, beat New Zealand at the semi-final stage, in the All Blacks’ very own backyard. The Kenyan team came desperately close to winning their first ever series title but fellow finalists England scored a try in the final play of normal time and eventually won the match, courtesy of Sam Edgerley’s golden point try.

Not a bad way to start the weekend. The fact that England have recently lost to Spain, Portugal, drawn with the USA and Kenya and are only 8th in the overall series standings illustrates the new global strength of 7’s. The sixth edition of the Sevens Rugby World Cup takes place later this year, held in Russia for the first time, and there are just three years before the sport is reintroduced as an Olympic event at Rio 2016.

Just as Ireland and Wales were getting the 2013 Six Nations underway in Cardiff, the second tier European sides were also beginning their quest for silverware. In the first round fixtures of the Euro Nations Cup, Georgia, who had several Top 14 players in their side, including their giant captain Mamuka Gorgodze, travelled as defending champions to newly promoted Belgium, playing in their first ENC tournament. Shortly after kick off there was an unfortunate brawl between several players, which led to a prop from each side being sent off, but the match settled into a compelling contest, with Georgia scoring a late try to secure a 17-13 win. The Diables Noirs were ever so close to a famous victory.

Remember that Georgia have progressed to become a much more competitive side than when they first appeared at a Rugby World Cup, back in 2003. They narrowly lost to Ireland 14-10 in the 2007 tournament and put up fierce resistance against Argentina, Scotland and England in the group stages of the 2011 event, sixteen months ago.

The other ties saw Romania edge out Portugal 19-13 in Lisbon and Russia narrowly beat Spain 13-9 in Sochi, where the 2014 Winter Olympics will be held. This season’s second tier Six Nations is proving to be the most competitive yet. Imagine if promotion to the Six Nations was at stake?

Which brings me nicely to what many are calling the best opening weekend of a Six Nations. Ireland beat Wales in Cardiff, with ex skipper Brian O’Driscoll at his mercurial best. Wales have now lost eight matches in a row since beating France last March, when they secured their third Grand Slam in eight years.

In the second match, England continued where they left off from their impressive win against the All Blacks last December, beating Scotland by a similar winning margin at Twickenham. Scotland were competitive and Stuart Hogg had an excellent game at full back. England’s Owen Farrell had a near flawless day with the boot, landing 18 points, added to his side’s four tries, and he very much controlled proceedings from fly half.

Despite missing the majority of their backline, including Emily Scarratt, Katy McLean and Alice Richardson, England started the 2013 Women’s Six Nations Championship in ominous form, beating Scotland 76-0 at Esher. At the same time the Italian team defeated France 13-12, just twenty four hours before their male counterparts went into battle in Rome.

A few hours later round two of the IRB Women’s Sevens World Series came to a climax in Houston, Texas. England, bolstered by many of their impressive 15 a side backs, emulated the men’s side by winning the event, beating the host nation in the final 29-12. New Zealand pipped Australia for third spot whilst the Netherlands won the plate final against Russia. Other lesser known rugby nations including Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago also participated in the tournament, held at BBVA Compass Stadium.

On Sunday Ireland’s women also managed a win in Wales by a slender two point margin (10-12), shortly before the final match of the opening round of the men’s Six Nations. Italy proved that their famous 2011 home victory over France was no fluke. Led by the hugely talented Sergio Parisse, the Azzurri demonstrated clever offloading and excellent running lines, to go with their trademark powerful set piece play, and their second Six Nations victory over France, which finished 23-18, was surely their most complete performance since they joined Europe’s top rugby table back in 2000.

With two more home matches and a well-timed away fixture next weekend in Edinburgh, Jacques Brunel’s side will target breaking the highest number of wins in a Six Nations season (2) and improve on their best placed finish of 4th, which they achieved in 2007.

Two IRB 7’s tournament wins and Six Nations victories over Scotland for England but Kenya, Belgium and Italy are the real success stories of the weekend. International rugby, long and short form, in both the men’s and women’s game is becoming more much more competitive worldwide. IRB CEO @BrettGosper will be happy with the progress the sport is making, in a defining decade for global rugby. 

The Heineken Cup – the competition that keeps on giving

Only eleven days till the start of the 2013 Six Nations but Europe’s premier international rugby tournament can wait – let’s focus on its thriving club rugby.  

The future of the Heineken Cup remains uncertain beyond 2014 but this season’s group stages have produced four compelling quarter final match ups, despite Leinster and Toulouse, champions between 2009-2012, being knocked out early, by their very high standards. And there is every chance that a new name will appear on the trophy in late May, joining the nine names already engraved.

There are, however, three former champions left in the competition; two giants of European rugby and a rejuvenated Irish province with a well-balanced squad, assembled over the last few years. 1999 champions Ulster are top of the Rabo Direct Pro 12 and on Saturday recorded their first ever away win in France. Munster and Leicester, both two time winners and multiple finalists, did what was required in round six and have also made the last eight. 

But their efforts have been rewarded with tricky away ties at Saracens, Harlequins and Toulon respectively.

Firstly to Munster and the pressure is very much off the Limerick province, for the first time in well over a decade. They scraped through to the quarter finals in eighth qualifying position, albeit courtesy of a last round bonus point home win over Racing Metro, which included a fine hat trick from Simon Zebo, and achieved without the talismanic figures of Paul O’Connell and Ronan O’Gara (the first time in fourteen seasons that neither player appeared on the Munster team sheet in a Heineken Cup match).

Harlequins have never made it further than the quarter finals but this is undoubtedly their most impressive squad to play in the tournament and the reigning Aviva Premiership champions will start the match as favourites.

Leicester made it through the so called group of death, overcoming four times winners Toulouse and defending Pro 12  champions the Ospreys (and an improving Treviso, who were ever so close to beating the Tigers at home in round 4). Toulon, currently leading the Top 14, have shown cracks in their armour in recent weeks and defeats at home to Racing Metro and this past weekend away to Montpellier, where they were comprehensively outplayed, will certainly be worrying their coach, Bernard Laporte.

But April conditions should suit the Mediterranean giants and Leicester will need to be bold and brave to come away with a win. A smash and grab approach, built on forward supremacy and any hope for the Tigers will surely rest on Manu Tuilagi returning to provide much needed penetration in attack.

Most teams are punished by Toulon’s experienced global international contingent at the Stade Mayol and if Jonny Wilkinson, as many reports suggest, announces in February that he will retire from professional rugby at the end of the season, this will spur his side on even more, in surely one of the club’s most important ever fixtures.

Ulster’s trip to Saracens’ new Copthall stadium, which opens this weekend, looks to be the most intriguing tie of the round. The Ravenhill outfit have already recorded away wins over Northampton and Castres and have only lost two games this season.

A year older and wiser, Owen Farrell and co have continued to develop despite the club having a nomadic existence this season, playing their home matches at six different venues (including one in Belgium). Their backline has prospered in Europe ties and this has gone someway to removing the unfair boring tag that has stuck with them from their style of play in the Aviva Premiership. Perhaps Saracens’ greater experience with their new artificial pitch could prove the difference and Ulster’s chances could rest on whether the star Lions duo of Tommy Bowe and Stephen Ferris return to action by April.

Clermont will be at home in the final contest, for an all French affair against the surprise package of Montpellier, managed brilliant by former French captain Fabien Galthie. Clermont are seemingly invincible at home, unbeaten in 54 European and Top 14 matches at the Stade Marcel-Michelin and along with Harlequins have a perfect record in this year’s Heineken Cup. But Clermont have beaten Leinster, who have won three out of the last four HCup’s, both home and away, which shows just how strong the central French side are in the 2012/13 season.

Montpellier were hugely impressive in the home win against Toulon and it is great to see another team making the knockout stages for the first time. But Mamuka Gorgodze’s troops will face their greatest challenge in April and will need to be at their very best, and injury free, if they are to stand any chance of progressing further, at the expense of the bookies’ favourites for Europe’s most coveted club rugby prize.

So three English and French sides apiece and two Irish provinces are in with a chance of winning the 18^th edition of Europe’s finest club rugby competition. Enjoy the Six Nations but I expect many fans will be looking forward to the climax of the Heineken Cup just as much.

A final thought.. If Harlequins, Toulon, Saracens and Clermont decide, as expected, to play the ties at their natural homes, the accumulative attendance will be a maximum of just over 60,000. If Twickenham, the Stade Veledrome in Marseille, Wembley and football grounds in either Bordeaux or Lyon were used for the respective ties, the possible attendance would be well over the 200,000 mark.

Refereeing at tipping point

A very contentious issue but here are some thoughts on the current tip tackle situation. A different approach is needed. Referees have a very difficult job and should not be under so much pressure to send players off. Tackles are physical movements and body positions when returning to ground can be awkward but very few tackles are malicious (with the aim of spearing a player to the ground, with force).

I'd much rather tackle situations are reviewed after matches and players are banned, if found guilty, instead of being sent off.

The 1990's saw a similar escalation of red (and yellow) cards in football and the sport has reached the point of no return. Let's hope rugby does not go down this path. 

Blog link is below. Thanks all.

http://www.therugbyblog.co.uk/refereeing-at-tipping-point

Elite England after toppling the All Blacks

My latest blog can be found at the below link (thanks again to James Hutchison). Lots of interesting comments.

http://www.therugbyblog.co.uk/elite-england-after-toppling-the-all-blacks