Lineout Calls of the Week – Six Nations Super Saturday

Is there anything else to really talk about this week in all honesty other than the penultimate end to what has been an enthralling Six Nations? This Super Saturday, as the tournament’s final weekend has come to be known, is going to be one of the most exciting in the competition’s 24-year history as a group of six fierce competitors.

Four teams are still in it to win it even though Ireland have a commanding lead on the points table, despite coming unstuck against England last weekend. England have been quietly in the hunt since the beginning, and if not for that unfortunate and costly wobble at Murrayfield in Round 3, would be the only side heading into the final Round unbeaten. Scotland although sitting in third place heading into the final weekend, are there by the skin of their teeth and have demonstrated their end of tournament customary fadeout by losing to Italy last weekend, and another difficult trip to Dublin awaits them this Saturday. France would seem to have finally recovered from their World Cup hangover if last weekend’s second half annihilation of Wales is anything to go by, even if their final game on home soil is against an English side that looked nothing short of awesome against Ireland. Italy would finally appear to have developed the ability to win big games and have been exceptionally competitive all tournament with the only real blip on the radar being found asleep at the wheel against Ireland in Round 2. Last but not least its been a strange but highly courageous tournament for Wales, despite them staring at the handle of the Wooden Spoon on Saturday, especially if they come unstuck against an exceptionally feisty and confident Italian side. This young and inexperienced Welsh side has certainly not been intimidated by the bright lights, and given it’s only year one of the next World Cup cycle, there is plenty to be excited about for the future.

So no, we’re not going to go into the various mathematical permutations of who needs to get what to finish where. Instead, what got us talking this week, especially looking over the team sheets is where we think the teams might stand come the final points table allied to a player that is likely to loom large in the respective Coaches’ plans for making that happen on Saturday and likely to be a big part of their future plans. We did cover all six teams but unfortunately on publishing for reasons best known to WordPress it deleted the sections on Scotland, Italy and France and we have been unable to recover them, so our apologies and we’re out of time. However, we have covered all three matches over on the Podcast see the link on the TV Page.

Ireland – No Grand Slam this year, but still the team to beat!

Ireland’s one point loss to England at Twickenham last weekend, and with it a shot at historic back to back Grand Slams, was a setback on their march to Six Nations glory, but one they almost seemed to relish and with it the chance to embrace the lessons they needed to learn from it. Let’s be honest, Ireland had not really been tested until they arrived at Twickenham. Despite the opening game in Marseille against joint tournament favorites France being prematurely being billed the tournament decider – it simply wasn’t. France arrived still nursing an almighty World Cup hangover, allowing Ireland to keep them in check with relative ease. They then breezed past an Italian side still coming to grips with the way they could and should play under new Coach Gonzalo Quesada, and much the same could be said two weeks later as Ireland sailed past Wales without ever really having to get out of third gear.

Unlike the Irish media, who, after England’s loss to Scotland, essentially made the rather arrogant assumption that a Grand Slam was in the bag, we never felt the game at Twickenham was going to be easy. England had only suffered one loss and were quietly building towards something, even if they were tripping over their bootlaces at times and didn’t look overly confident in the process. We weren’t alone as you sensed the team, and most Irish supporters felt the same way. England were waiting to click into gear, and what better opportunity than to put one of the World’s best sides in their place on your home ground. That’s what happened last Saturday at Twickenham, and had George Ford brought his kicking boots with him, then it would have been a much more dominant scoreline than just the one point win in favor of England.

Ireland are a very good team, make no mistake, and we’d still be bold enough to say that they are the most complete side in the Championship. Ireland have dominated a large chunk of the statistics this tournament both at individual and team level. However, what happened last Saturday was that England were better at being Ireland than the Irish were at being themselves. The mark of great sides, such as the All Black squad from 2011 to 2019, was their ability to adapt on the pitch when things clearly weren’t going their way, and change things up if necessary. If there is a lesson Ireland needed to learn from last Saturday’s dustup at Twickenham, it’s that. Ireland kept playing as Ireland even though England essentially copied them and were, for all intents, better at playing the Irish game plan. Ireland have become so sure that their frenetic attack and blitz defense can overwhelm teams, they seem almost unsure of themselves when a team can match it play for play as England did last Saturday.

That’s where Jack Crowley comes in as perhaps the most important player in Andy Farrell’s plans going forward, and how to deal with a Scottish side who will come to Dublin with every intention of causing an upset and possessing the skill set to do it. Crowley will need to pull the strings when Plan A clearly isn’t working. What we’ve seen of him so far leads us to believe that he is the player to do and shows a creativity and ability to think on his feet that Sexton in his latter years wasn’t as comfortable with. Crowley is still developing his own style of how he wants to conduct the Irish symphony, but is not burdened by the aura or expectation that surrounded his predecessor.

In short, he’s much more of a free spirit and from what we’ve seen so far has an excellent eye for space and how to use it, while also much like his predecessor not shy of putting his body on the line for his teammates if that is what is required. The essential difference we feel though is that he is more prone to hang back and get a feel of the flow of the game, rather than rush headlong into the fray as Sexton was at times all too eager to do, resulting in a breakdown of communication and timing. Crowley has shown a calmness that belies his youth and which bodes well for the future. We simply haven’t seen him panic yet, and considering this is only his first year of picking up where Sexton left off, that’s an impressive quality indeed. We have a hunch that Andy Farrell has big plans for the Munster youngster, both with Ireland and the Lions next year.

Saturday’s tussle with Scotland must see Ireland be able to think on their feet, trust in their tried and proven processes, but also change things up when needed. There is a humility and eagerness to learn in this side, even if their media doesn’t reflect it, that should serve them well enough to get them home this Saturday in Dublin and lift one of the sport’s most cherished pieces of silverware for the second year in a row.

England are getting there make no mistake, despite the barrage of criticism they’ve been subjected to

We’ll put our hands up and be the first to say that we are guilty as charged if we’ve been less than positive about England at times so far this Six Nations. However, all that aside we were in awe of the performance England put in at Twickenham last Saturday. That was THE best English performance we’ve seen since the World Cup in 2019 plain and simple. It was cohesive, ferocious and meticulous in its execution against one of the best sides in the world. England rarely missed a beat and had George Ford brought his kicking boots the winning margin would have been even bigger. What’s more England’s attacking game showed a truckload of ambition and skill while, unlike in the first three Rounds, it was implemented with precision and confidence. In short, England are back and a French side who look to be coming out of their Post World Cup coma, will no doubt be feeling more than a little anxious about this Saturday’s meeting in Lyon with the Red Rose. In the space of a fortnight all England’s problems, so painfully in evidence at Murrayfield, were fixed. They clearly did their homework on the Irish and decided the best way to beat them was to play as Ireland themselves. That’s precisely what they did and were the better team on the day.

The statistics make for impressive reading, against Scotland England made 25 handling errors while against Ireland they only made 13, and passed the ball only slightly less. The game was played at a furious pace and intensity but there was a focus and sense of understanding of what they needed to do and how to do it under the kind of relentless pressure a side like Ireland can put you under. In short, this was a very good performance indeed and we’d argue one of the best games of the Championship so far. It will be an enormous confidence booster ahead of a tough trip to France.

Some have criticized Marcus Smith who came off the bench at fly half for George Ford, choosing to go for a guaranteed drop goal at the death when England had advantage and could have kicked for the corner and a bonus point try. We think Smith made the right choice, and in doing so won the match for England. That win more than anything is what England really needed at this stage in their development. There are three more Six Nations before the next World Cup. England are still a work in progress but it’s wins that are needed at the moment rather than trophies. There was absolutely no guarantee, given the quality of Ireland’s defensive structures, that England would have been able to maul it over the try line at the death – whereas that drop goal was a gifted certainty.

However, what perhaps impressed us the most about England’s performance was the superhuman effort from England’s number 8 Ben Earl. He had already emerged as England’s most important player at the end of the World Cup, but his performance last Saturday at Twickenham had to be seen to be believed. If he doesn’t get the nod as the best number 8 of the tournament then there really is no rugby justice. Earl’s importance to the way England want to play simply cannot be understated. He is rapidly becoming the linchpin in how this England side gets over the gain line, while at the same time disrupting any kind of flow or rhythm of England’s opponents. He is the catalyst both in attack and defense which is making the rest of his forward pack increasingly effective. His ability to carry the ball and break open defenses is becoming legendary, and in terms of meters carried he sits just behind Ireland’s James Lowe on the tournament stats table.

Earl’s abilities are more than just a rampaging back rower. This is a very well rounded rugby player who makes the role of a loose forward look like a craft, much more so than the one dimensional nature of some of his predecessors such as Eddie Jones’ favorite Billy Vunipola. Some of his offloads both under pressure and even in the tackle have been exceptional, and demonstrate a strength and skill set that is rapidly making him a linchpin of how Coach Steve Borthwick wants the team to move forward. In the game plan that England is developing expect to see a lot of it built around the skills and strengths that Earl brings to the table, both in attack and defense. Earl can rattle opposition sides by getting in their faces but at the same time maintaining his composure and discipline, if you ever could define a player in terms of controlled raw aggression then Earl fits the bill rather well.

It will be a big ask of England to travel to France with their new set of blueprints and put them into practice successfully against a French side with everything to prove. However, the weight of expectation in Lyon on Saturday is ALL on France and it tripped them up in the World Cup. As a result we have a sense that England may well be relishing the underdog label this weekend, and either way a strong finish is on the cards in this year’s tournament for Borthwick and his men.

France are emerging from their post World Cup hangover a little too late, but the signs are promising

Let’s face it, it hasn’t been exactly fun times for Fabien Galthie and his charges this Six Nations. First there was the challenge of adapting to life without superstar Antoine Dupont in the scrum half berth, and to be honest until last Sunday in Cardiff that hasn’t gone that well. Then there was the difficulty in coming to terms with France’s premature exit from the World Cup. That in itself seems to have been the biggest hurdle to French progress in the last few months. France are simply not themselves either in the Coaching box or on the pitch. All that appeared to change last Sunday in Cardiff, but this weekend’s action in Lyon will confirm whether or not France really have emerged from their post World Cup malaise.

France have been an interesting conundrum this Six Nations, in that they haven’t exactly been awful and when you look at their overall statistics it doesn’t show a dominant French side vis a vis the rest of the competitors, but it doesn’t make for grim reading either. For example, their defensive stats while not quite up to their usual high standards are still nevertheless fairly robust. Their scrum success rate is the best in the competition, yet watching France since February, that clinical and well structured approach just doesn’t appear to be there. We’re not the first to comment on the fact that although their defensive stats wouldn’t necessarily set alarm bells ringing, there has been little doubt that while watching France’s defense in action on our TV screens this past two months, it has looked surprisingly and uncharacteristically porous at times. When it does all click they are amazing to watch but, that confidence that was so prevalent in everything they did last year up until the World Cup appears to be lacking.

However, last Sunday in Cardiff the sleeping giant that is France appeared to waken from its post World Cup stupor. If you ask us it was all down to a certain gentleman wearing the number 9 jersey. The legacy of Antione Dupont and his absence from proceedings this Six Nations seemed to leave the French squad in a state of confusion as to what game they should be playing and how to execute, with hardly anyone singing from the same song sheet to make matter worse. Enter Racing 92 scrum half Nolan le Garrec stage left, last Sunday in Cardiff. All of a sudden with him starting for France they finally started to click.

Although Maxime Lucu is a fine player in the position, his value added seems much greater as an impact player off the bench. Right from the get go le Garrec set the tone of what kind of game France were going to play and everybody seemed to understand what was required of them. Le Garrec’s ability to link his forwards to his backs and ability to make split second decisions was more akin to what France were used to under Dupont’s tenure. At long last France’s prowess on both attack and defense reasserted itself. In short, the disjointed French side we’d seen up till then was no longer in evidence.

For his efforts le Garrec has been rewarded with the starting berth in the 9 jersey for Le Crunch match with England this Saturday in Lyon. In him, Coach Galthie appears to have found a replacement for “le petit general” that he can rely on. The way France is structured at the moment that role is vital and as evidenced in the World Cup, when not there France look vulnerable. Looking to the future the ability to interchange between le Garrec, provided he passes the big test on Saturday, and Dupont will be critical to French plans going forward and with a view to Australia in 2027. He’ll be France’s most important player on Saturday, and it will be fascinating to see how well he copes with the weight of expectation of a nation.

So like we say no disrespect to Scotland, Italy and Wales but unfortunately technology decided to censor them this week. A thousand apologies, but there is a ton of content from our good mates Squidge, Two Cents, Riaan Louw and Eggchasers and our usual Podcast available on Spotify and other platforms over on the TV page for you to sink your teeth into and ponder so enjoy what should be an epic Super Saturday!