And then there were two. After another bruising weekend of Six Nations rugby, only England and Ireland remain in the hunt for a coveted Grand Slam. As they prepare for a potentially defining date in Dublin on March 1, relax and discover what was learned from the games just gone…

– On The Radar, Feb. 16-22: Dubai Tennis Championships, Spartan Race
– INTERVIEW: Shontayne Hape Tackling Concussions in Rugby
– Six Nations round-up: Masterful Sexton kicks Irish to victory

Ireland and Sexton prove they’re made of stern stuff

As England plan for their visit to the Aviva Stadium in a fortnight, they would do well to learn the lessons of France’s defeat there last Saturday. 

Principally, that Ireland and fly-half Johnny Sexton will not be bullied.

Philippe Saint-Andre’s side arrived in Dublin with a physical game plan, designed to test the returning Jamie Heaslip and Sean O’Brien, and knock Sexton off his playmaking stride.

And while Heaslip would not survive, potentially kneed out of the Six Nations by Pascal Pape, their fly-half passed the intense examination with flying colours.

Just as in Ireland’s autumn win over South Africa, Sexton’s boot kept his side in the right areas of the field for the majority of the match and proved unerring in front of the posts.

In standing up to the test, Sexton was able to give his side a lead that allowed them to withstand the late French onslaught.

His performance, coming as it did after a 12-week concussion lay-off only served to highlight his importance and Irish eyes will be watching on anxiously this weekend as he returns to club action with Racing Metro. 

 

 

France should back themselves more

Any side that features the hulking presence of Mathieu Bastaraeud at outside-centre is sure to be powerful. But if France’s defeat in Dublin taught coach Saint-Andre anything then it should be that physicality does not always win matches.

Ireland coped fairly comfortably during a first-half at the Aviva Stadium that saw France play with just 38 per cent possession, and left the likes of Teddy Thomas and Wesley Fofana isolated.

Yet in the second period, with Morgan Parra brought on to dictate operations from scrum-half, suddenly the hosts were holding on and would end the game having made 53 more tackles than their visitors.

In the form of Thomas, Fofana and Yoann Huget, France possess some fine assets behind the scrum. The time has come for Saint-Andre to use them.

 

 

England must make a better start in Dublin

It is fair to say that England were caught cold against Italy at Twickenham, and a more clinical side than the Azzurri would have made them pay.

This is not an isolated incident, either, as they were forced to come from behind in Cardiff and they cannot afford to let a similar story develop at the Aviva Stadium.

Ireland are not the kind of side who will let them back in as Italy did last weekend.

But their slow start, and injury to Mike Brown, aside this was another performance to encourage Stuart Lancaster. Winning when not at your best is a mark of champions, after all.

Jonathan Joseph helped himself to another two tries, and his ability to break out of tackles and get over the whitewash is making him almost undroppable at the moment.

It is a fine turnaround for a player who seemed to be on the edges of the team just a few weeks ago, and he must be retained for the trip to Dublin.

And you wouldn’t bet against Danny Cipriani having a say at the Aviva Stadium either. His try-scoring cameo against Italy highlighted perfectly his ability to produce the unexpected.

How important could that quality prove at the end of a tight contest in Dublin?

 

 

 

Cowan indiscipline cost Scotland

Much of the skill of playing openside flanker in international rugby union lies in keeping on the right side of the referee at the breakdown.

It is invariably the job of the No7 to secure that area and, when defending, either steal the ball or make sure it is slowed down as much is legally possible.

Wales’ Sam Warburton is a fine exponent of this area of the game and on Sunday he emphatically had the beating of his opposite number, Blair Cowan.

Scotland’s No7 has been a key component of Vern Cotter’s new-look squad and was an industrious presence at Murrayfield.

Unfortunately, though, he set the tone for an afternoon spent on the wrong side of referee, Glen Jackson, as he gave away a kickable penalty with less than six minutes on the clock.

It was an invitation a world-class kicker like Leigh Halfpenny was not going to turn down, and was not the last three-point opportunity an indiscretion at the ruck from Cowan would give him.

The breakdown continues to be a subjective area, and overall Cowan did not have a bad game at Murrayfield. But in the age of the laser-like kicker, you cannot afford to give away penalties anywhere in your own half, and Scotland must cut out these mistakes if they are to going to continue to improve.

 

 

 

Gatland may well be ruing Adam Jones’ retirement

Although we live in a world dominated by the use of statistics, it is also true that numbers do not always tell the whole story.

A case in point occurred in Edinburgh on Sunday, where the set-piece stats show that Wales won all four of the scrums on their own feed, while stealing one against the head.

If you hadn’t seen the game you would have a strong case for believing that the visitors were dominant in the scrum. They were not.

The Welsh front row were given an extreme examination for 80 minutes, and at times were so crooked it was a wonder Rhys Webb could even feed in the ball.

Tighthead Aaron Jarvis had a particularly tough game, and there can be little doubt Wales coach Warren Gatland would have preferred to be able to bring on Adam Jones to alleviate his pain, rather than Scott Andrews.

Gatland made it clear when Jones retired last month that he would have remained in his thoughts until after the World Cup had he been available.

Jones made his decision with Samson Lee selected ahead of him for the Six Nations, and the Scarlets prop clearly represents his country’s future in the position.

But when he is missing – as he was on Sunday due to concussion protocol – then Jones is clearly still the best of the rest.

 

Bonus Point

Ireland fans are delighted to have Sean O’Brien back fit and firing. This monster clear-out at a ruck against France shows exactly why…