After the the game finished last night I flicked the TV over and there was a documentary about poisonous plants on. The narrator was describing the symptoms of eating a particularly nasty specimen - "Irregular heartbeat, palpitations, cold sweats, dizziness, nausea..." - for a second I thought I was still listening to Jonathan Davies reflecting on the game...

Three games on the trot now, we've offered heart-in-mouth finishes, tremendous excitement and, let's face it, about 200% more enjoyable viewing than anything England are likely to be involved in. But, the ugly truth is that the old enemy still have an decent chance of winning the title, and Wales are looking like fourth place might be the best we can do.

And yet in none of our games have we really been outplayed. Every try we've conceded in this tournament has either been the result of defenders not doing their jobs, being down to 14 men, or, the newest trend, interceptions. We'll come to that in a minute, but it shows that when Wales concentrate and play intelligently, they're probably as good as any other team in the tournament. Sadly, at the moment the Wales players don't seem to start concentrating until they look at the scoreboard and see that they're 20 points down.

Back in the Autumn, Wales took a lot of flak for the robotic way they played. They were organised and mostly defended very well, but the spark, the 'Welsh Way' seemed to be absent. By contrast, the Welsh Way is back in full force for the Six Nations - we're playing exhilarating rugby at times, but at the same time we're beating ourselves by making catastrophic errors and not playing with any sort of consistency or composure.

In many ways it's rather nostalgic - this is the way that Wales have been playing for much of my lifetime, before the Gatland era. The problem is, we expect more these days, two Grand Slams in four years has created an expectation of excellence, of being more than valiant, plucky losers.

So what can be done? Well, it's a familiar refrain to most Wales fans, but once again we were trying to run before we could walk on Friday. A promising start gave way to disaster because Wales didn't do the basics properly and it cost them. Wales' error count was up in the 20s by the end of the game, and that says a lot about the handling errors, misplaced passes, botched defensive assignments, and dreadful kicking out of hand (I'm looking at you Lee Byrne!) that ultimately cost us a game we, amazingly, should probably still have won.

The set pieces are another issue - the lineout was inconsistent, while the scrum was going backwards all day. But in many ways you can't really blame them - that French scrum is monstrous, in my opinion it's the best in the world right now, and a Welsh scrum missing three or four first-choice players was always going to struggle, while the French lineout was much improved from last week.

Wales need to stop playing on the edge from kick off - there's a real sense that they're trying to force things too early, rather than looking to get a foothold in the game by doing the simple stuff, kicking a few penalties and playing the game in the right areas. James Hook's interception was a textbook example of that - the pass was never on, and yet he looked, and something in his rugby brain said 'If I can squeeze that in there, Halfpenny could be away here.'

Sadly, the odds of that happening in comparison to what actually did were probably about 50-1, and yet he still took the risk. It was stupid, and ultimately it cost us the game. I wouldn't draw attention to it if not for the fact that teams are clearly doing their homework and seeing that we're trying to play too much rugby in our own half and that the interception is on. Hook also needs a serious talking to after an all-round performance to forget. It was a stupid pass, but we've seen him throw a carbon copy of that pass three times in his international career, and each time the result has been the seven points against us. If he can't see that he's costing his team games with this reckless play then someone needs to impress it upon him very forcefully.

But it wasn't all bad, although frankly, I'm getting tired of saying that particular sentence. Bradley Davies did his late mother proud by putting in a superb shift - the young Blues lock looked like Ian Gough incarnate and if he keeps playing like that he'll be a fixture in the side for years to come. The back row seemed a lot more balanced with Jon Thomas at six, they did a decent job of spoiling and slowing down French ball and getting to the breakdown quickly. Stephen Jones continues to play extremely well, defending, kicking and even running with authority. And of course, there's Shane. If it's true that he is being courted by Toulon with a £1million two-year deal on the table, then he's really showing why. He's a strong candidate for player of the tournament so far, and his try at the death was truly magnificent.

So there's lots to do, but none of it is particularly impossible to fix. That said, it will be big ask to pull out a win in Dublin in a fortnight. Here's hoping....

Josh Gardner

Ireland played well enough a fortnight ago. They were just totally out-powered and out-played by a French team that would have beaten any team on the day. So we’ve had a poor performance against the Italians, but a win and a reasonable performance that we lost. Where does that leave us going into Saturday’s match at Twickenham?

I can just about remember watching my first England v Ireland game in 1976, a game Ireland won by 1 point after a second half comeback (I wish my memory was that good, but I have to admit to looking it up). Maybe that match set the scene for how I have viewed England matches ever since. While in recent years, Ireland have been a bit more convincing – that has tended to be in Dublin. Twickenham has never been a place where the Irish have claimed large victories. In my time watching, the greatest margin of Irish victory is 6 points (2004) and 3 of the 5 wins have been by a single point. While the biggest losing margin has been … well … embarrassing.

Those all too rare wins at HQ have always tasted sweet, regardless of the scoreline. Amongst my top 5/6 Nations memories are Ginger McLaughlin pushing the entire English pack (and as legend has it, pulling several of his team-mates) over the line in 1982. And Simon Geoghegan scorching into the corner in ‘94.

England have not played well in their two outings this season, but the table shows 2 wins from 2. I have long been convinced that this England team have a couple of good performances in them. Will the talent of the England players finally break free of the shackles, or will they continue with their (ultimately successful) win-ugly system. Either way, I can’t see this match bucking the trend, Ireland will not romp home, but hopefully they have enough flair to beat whichever England team faces them. I can’t see it being more than a score either way though, and just for old times’ sake I’ll be happy enough with “Ireland by 1”.

BR

... is what we would like. Well, apart from the last 7 minutes (plus, of course, the all important 2 minutes after the match clock had expired - cheers George).

But for Scotland fans there is no choice but onwards and upwards, after witnessing what was not only great sporting drama but also probably the most complete 70 minutes of rugby put together by one of our teams since 1999 or so. The last ten minutes of Scottish lunacy will of course be familiar to Italian fans who have benefitted in the past from Scotland's desperate attempts to hand them a victory (6 Minutes of Murrayfield Madness, anyone?), and it will hopefully be with this in mind that Scotland travel to play Italy. Although it was often said during Frank Hadden's reign only for the next week's results to disprove any such theory, there is now a real feeling of progress being made by Scotland under Andy Robinson and a win against Italy must be their only target to maintain the trend (and fend off the Wooden Spoon).

Our line-out is starting to fire - Ross Ford seems to throw better when he has a giant like Jim Hamilton as a target, and our top scrummaging front row of Allan "Chunk" Jacobsen, Ford and Euan Murray has been picked to compete and even go after the Italian scrum. There is a settled look to the pack, along with a bit more oomph on the bench in Hines and Strokosch.

Of course the back division was nearly wiped out against Wales with the loss of Evans, Lamont and Paterson (all returned home now, best wishes for the recovery boys) so the incomers (Southwell, Danielli, Max Evans) have a job to do but all three have their strengths - Southwell's left boot, Evans' familiarity with Parks and Danielli's nose for the try line.

The home team looked stagnant and uninspired against Ireland (who looked pretty similar) but upped their game considerably against England and played some nice offloading rugby towards the end. What price a Scotland-Italy game full of running rugby and daring trickery? The main thing we Scots are hoping is that Dan Parks - who turned from pariah to legend in the Wales game before limping off when he was needed most - proves more than a one week wonder. He has played well for Scotland before, but he needs to back it up game after game. Most encouraging was the way he brought his backs into the match, an aspect of his game that previously had gone missing between club and test level. Italy of course also have an antipodean 10 who has not had his troubles to seek off the field, and it could well be that the battle between Parks and Gower decides the game, rather than the power of Sean Lamont or the pace of Kaine Robertson.

Rory Baldwin is the Editor of Scottish Rugby Blog.

A Welsh fan gets in the spirit of things © Getty Images

France could build a very nice team with all the players that have missed one of the first two games in this year's Six Nations Championship through injury:

Benjamin Fall, Aurélien Rougerie, Damien Traille, Maxime Mermoz, Vincent Clerc, Jean-Baptiste Ellisalde, Fabien Barcella, Sylvain Marconnet, Luc Ducalcon, Sébastien Chabal, Romain Millo-Chlusky and Fulgence Ouedraogo.

If you add banned scrum-half Julien Dupuy, you would only need two back row players to have a complete line-up! Let's just hope that the likes of Thierry Dusautoir, Imanol Harinordoquy and Julien Bonnaire don't join that injury list after Friday night's game in Cardiff.

Wales find themselves in exactly the same position with players such as Gethin Jenkins, Alun-Wyn Jones, Gareth Williams and Mike Phillips missing because of injuries. And Warren Gatland is also without Andy Powell after his post-match antics saw him dropped from the squad. But even with so many important players missing, the Welsh still pose a formidable threat - for two main reasons.

Firstly, because Wales, like France, are a side that can conjure a great performances just when you don't expect it. The other reason is that Wales enter the game in desperate need of a morale-boosting victory following a defeat to England and another poor display against Scotland that was rescued in the final few minutes.

And this game could be a good time to meet the French with the record books illustrating the fact that the Les Bleus have failed to win three games in arow since Marc Lievrement took the coaching reins in 2008. In fact, this weekend represents the sixth time that France have been in that position - England and Australia in 2008, England and New Zealand (twice) in 2009 are the ones who put an end to the previous 'runs'.

What is also very worrying is that the French newspapers are already talking about Grand Slams. And France never play as badly as they do when the weight of expectation, from fans and the press, is at its highest.

It will no doubt be a very interesting game, because it will mean that either France stay on course for the Grand Slam (with two home games to follow) or the age-old question about their consistency will arise again.

Jean Palfrey

As we enter the third round of matches in this year's Six Nations, I believe Italy are ready to return to winning ways.

On Saturday, Scotland will make their latest visit to the Flaminio in Rome with a few crucial injuries and, like Italy, the same depressing '0' in the points column. That means, as many have predicted, that this week's encounter will decide who will be propping up the table at the end of the Championship. Sadly, once again, the Wooden Spoon will be the domain of the Scots and the Italians with both sides forced to defend their dignity in Europe’s most admired tournament.

Nick Mallett’s platoon will no doubt look to build upon their strong performance against England just 10 days ago when Martin Johnson's side notched a narrow win. Expect to see some strong defence, straight running lines and the pack shouldering the bulk of the workload with Mirco Bergamasco's right boot also getting a work out.

The Italians have made visable progress in defence having leaked only three tries against powerhouses of Irelend and England, but they have yet to deliver on the attacking side. Ghiraldini and co. have in fact secured just one try in two games and that one wasn’t exactly out of the top drawer (Robertson the beneficiary of an uninspired Rob Kearney).

But historically, the Azzurri save their best performances for the Scots and, except for last year, they have proved to be a real threat. No matter what. This year won’t be much different as Italy has the power and the mentality to overcome the Highlanders bid to win in Rome.

Without Chris Paterson’s killer boot and the attacking endeavours of Thom Evans and Rory Lamont (still in doubt for Saturday's game at the time of writing), Andy Robinson’s side will need to take its chances if they are to record a win.

Dan Parks, the Glasgow playmaker who was outstanding in Cardiff, will have to show his skills again in Italy but he will need to do that under considerable more pressure as the Italian back rowers will target his shirt. The front row of Castrogiovanni, Ghiraldini and Perugini will also try to drive Scotland’s pack backwards at every scrum. Rome will prove a very different challenge for Parks in particular and if he fails to reproduce the form he showed against Wales then Italy could well head to Cardiff with a priceless win under their belts.

Enrico Borra

Martin Johnson has named an unchanged side for the crucial clash with Ireland this weekend in the third round of the RBS Six Nations.

Usually, consistency of selection is lauded as a positive, but in this case I'm not so sure. After the abject display in Rome, it's difficult to see how the England management came to the decision that nothing needed to be changed.

Full-back in particular is where I would have liked to see a switch, with Ben Foden coming in for the off-form Delon Armitage. Foden has the ability and the ambition to run the ball back from deep, rather than just hoof it aimlessly to no advantage, which is what Armitage was so keen to do against Italy.

At least Foden has been brought onto the bench, which means we might see him in action - I just hope it's for more than 5 minutes in a game that's already lost.

I also think that Courtney Lawes should have been given a place on the bench. If the chips are down and things aren't going England's way, Louis Deacon is not the guy that can be called upon to make an impact and change the game. Although completely unproven at Test level, Lawes could be that sort of player - he is clearly one for the future, so it's puzzling why he isn't included.

It's a huge game on Saturday, and another one that could make or break the season for both sides. Will the Grand Slam still be on for England by Saturday evening?

Have your say at The Rugby Blog.

www.therugbyblog.co.uk

Morgan Parra was inspirational for France © Getty Images

Like many other French rugby fans, in order to prove that I know what I'm talking about, I tend to quote some of my past predictions that have paid off.

There was the one about Brian O'Driscoll in Paris in 2000 (check my previous contribution). That is easy, since a true rugby fan tends to say a lot of things, and once every 10 years, you're bound to be right from time to time. The problem is that there is always a price to pay for that kind of self-satisfaction.

You might look stupid when it comes to all your other statements. Everything I wrote about Morgan Parra and François Trinh-Duc after the game against Scotland can be thrown back at me. Trinh-Duc was elected Man of the Match by French viewers, while all the French rugby journalists voted for Parra. And both deserved it. As well as the pack, as usual. Contrition time is over. Don't worry, I'll still be able to find something to moan about next time.

As for the match itself, the best summary would be a description of the Irish faces after the game. You could clearly see that they were disappointed, not because it was a close game they could have won, but because there wasn't much they could do about it.

After 20 minutes of fierce Irish play, which saw their line-out steal two French throw-ins and centre Gordon D'Arcy be very unlucky with the bounce of a well-judged chip, France cast a spell over their ambitions. Les Bleus were 17-3 up in the 32nd minute, and they annihilated all attempts to reduce the score before half-time.

Despite the rather cold weather (- 3 at kick-off), the French performance thrilled the crowd in the Stade de France. Another performance like that, and it is very likely that this team will break the ice with their very demanding fans. The second-half just looked like an execution, when a cold-blooded Parra converted the third try, by fullback Clément Poitrenaud, scored a drop-goal and took his own revenge with a penalty kick for a late tackle on himself. It's not the first time Marc Lièvremont's boys put in such a performance, but fans now expect more consistency. That will come later.

For the time being, let's just appreciate, without forgetting that the Irish team had a great 2009. French captain Thierry Dusautoir paid respect to their achievements before and after the game. France haven't achieved anything close to that yet.

Jean Palfrey

Andy Powell has been cast into the international wilderness by coach Warren Gatland © Getty Images

We've all read the details by now. The golf buggy, the M4, the service station, the police, the breath test, the apology, the possible end of an international career. Andy Powell's act of stupidity has done what little else can - made the English newspapers realise that Wales occasionally play rugby when England aren't involved.

For three days the tabloids were awash with outrage at the actions of the Wales flanker. As the story wore on we got the damning evidence of the Under Armour-branded pants in the back of the golf cart, and then there was that dodgy Facebook photo showing Powell clearly hammered, his shirt half undone and seemingly missing a trouser leg - it was riveting stuff.

It painted a pretty clear picture of the tone of Powell's Saturday night celebrating the big part he'd played in Scotland nearly winning at the Millennium Stadium. And what a relief it must have been to Warren Gatland. He didn't have to pull the trigger - Powell had pulled the lever of his own trap-door with a moment of pure, old-school stupidity and spared him having to admit he was wrong and drop him.

If the Blues man hadn't gotten arrested and charged (the wonderfully Victorian-sounding 'Operating a motorised vehicle while unfit through drink') in the wee hours of Sunday morning, then Gatland would no doubt have faced even more criticism at his selection policy. As it is, Buggygate has diverted attention from Wales' hopeless 70-minute performance on Saturday and given the Kiwi two weeks to take stock and attempt to right the increasingly massive list of wrongs.

But once again injuries haven't made his task straightforward - Gethin Jenkins' 10-minute cameo before a recurrence of his calf injury is a massive worry, we'll need him against a monster French pack. And then there was the news that Alun-Wyn Jones will miss up to 12 weeks with a chipped bone and damaged ligaments in his elbow. Those who were calling for the Ospreys lock to be dropped after his moment of madness against England should keep an eye on how much we miss him for the last three games and promptly keep their traps shut.

But it's not all doom and gloom. With Powell gone, Jon Thomas should get back to his rightful position at six - he only plays lock at the Ospreys because he's necessary to make the lineout function, but he's not going to be preferred to Jerry Collins is he? With a proper balance in the back row, with any luck Martyn Williams will start making a nuisance of himself again. That said, being the massive worrier that I am, the first thing I thought when I heard Powell was dropped was "Well there goes our only other fit No.8 in the squad" - Sam Warburton might be an okay stop-gap, but let's all pray Ryan stays fit eh?

With Thomas moved, there should surely be a place in the squad for Ian Gough (there'd be a starting berth if it was up to me). While the veteran hasn't played much this season, he does the ugly stuff, and he always, always does the basics well - something Wales have struggled with of late. Plus with Bradley Davies and Gough in the second row, the Welsh pack would have the beef to front up to the French.

Finally, things are even looking up on the scrum-half front. For starters, professional backline sedative Gareth Cooper has been released to play for the Blues this weekend, indicating that he's finally been cast out from Gatland's affections. And then there's the intriguing issue of both Dwayne Peel and Mike Phillips making comebacks from their respective injuries this weekend. No disrespect to Richie Rees, but if either or both the Lions duo make it through unscathed I'd have them back in the squad by Monday morning - they're a class apart from what we have at the moment.

So, it's a real mixed bag on the news front as the Wales team enjoy their week off. Gatland finally seems to have come to the same conclusions that everyone else has regarding his team selection, albeit a week or two too late, but injuries, form and the spectre of the mighty French hang a long cloud over proceedings. Here's hoping the weather perks up by next week.

Josh Gardner

I'll admit it, when I saw Shane Williams welling up after he crossed the whitewash to cap what was perhaps one of the most sensational and unbelievable finishes to a rugby match, I may have shed a small tear. Not a big one, obviously, I'm far too manly for all that, but there was certainly something in my eye as the Millennium Stadium erupted...

As Scrum's Huw Baines noted afterwards, the roar in the stadium as Shane went over in the 82nd minute was unlike anything he'd ever heard before, and this from a man who's witnessed two Grand Slam deciders in the last five years. It was a roar of relief, of disbelief, of something that had seemed so unlikely just five minutes earlier miraculously coming to pass.

And yet, with a few hour's worth of perspective, the euphoria has melted away and I'm left with a feeling of frustration. Wales were awful today, they were made to look foolish by a very average and very limited Scotland side who, all credit to them, capitalised on Welsh mistakes and defended excellently, but otherwise were very, very ordinary. And let's not forget that the victory was achieved because of two yellow cards more than a vast improvement in Welsh play.

Warren Gatland was quick to point out in the week that 'he was the coach' - a none-too-subtle jab at the widespread public criticism that his team selection warranted. Well Gats, I hope you're willing to take the flak for those decisions now, as every single controversial selection choice blew up in your face rather spectacularly.

Gareth Williams played fairly badly, Gatland's Pet Powell did nothing but concede penalties, and as for Gareth Cooper well, I don't need to go over this again do I? With any luck that's the last time we see him in a Welsh shirt - even Gatland lost patience with his dreadful two-step delivery and poor kicking, wielding the crook at half time. If the Kiwi picks him next week he may find himself strung up from the flagpole of the Angel Hotel, and he may be stubborn, but he's not stupid.

Positives then, well, Shane was Shane - after being starved of possession against England, he got the ball in his hands and single-handedly injected dynamism to the Wales backline, the thought of what life will be like when one of our all-time greats hangs up his boots continues to terrify.

Leigh Halfpenny had his best game for Wales in some time - the young Blues winger carried the ball well, kicked from hand effectively, was decent in defence and took his try superbly. Another Blue who roared back into form was Jamie Roberts - as much as I'm getting bored of commentators referring to him a 'The Battering Ram', he was immense today, he made mincemeat of the Scottish midfield, running with authority whenever the ball was in his hands. Dan Parks may well see a red-shirted monster thundering down on his channel whenever he closes his eyes in the next few days.

Other than that, it was a performance to forget really, and you'd imagine that, while a victory like this can really build momentum, the players will be wincing when they review the film on Monday - the breakdown work and tackling were especially worrying.

Next up then, the French pain train rolls into Cardiff a week Friday. Having just watched the French decimate the Irish while still misfiring on attack, it's no bad thing that Wales have a fortnight to try and sort out their basic problems. The French defence looks frighteningly good, the scrum is monstrous, and they're creating chances all over the place. If Wales don't improve massively, this could could be one Friday night that it's worth going out for...

Josh Gardner

The power supply for my laptop broke on Tuesday. I may have all the best processors and software installed, but it's not much use if there's no power. The good news is - it saved people having to share the rollercoaster ride of my emotions regarding this evening's match in Paris. Statistically, as has been pointed out, Ireland haven't got a rat's chance. But just as Ireland's 2009 Grand Slam performance counts for little, neither does the slightly one-sided history of Ireland in Paris.

I'm really struggling with this match. The Irish backs have the ability to beat the French in an open game. If France play the same defence as against Scotland, O'Driscoll and D'Arcy will create space and tries will follow.

In the backrow, the inclusion of Ferris is just enough to edge that battle in favour of Green, but to be honest, there is very little in in it.

Up front is a different matter. The French tight five were massive against Scotland - I still don't understand how Nigel Owens did not award at least one penalty try. Ireland did well enough against the Italian pack, but I can't see O'Leary being too comfortable at scrum or ruck. And if last weekend is any indicator, both teams will be targetting the lineout for potential turnover ball.

So when you add it all together, what is going to be the difference? I would suggest that this match will be won or lost by goal-kicking. Surely Ireland have the advantage in that department with the experience of Ronan O'Gara. But O'Gara has been a little inconsistent in recent times. Not to worry - we have Sexton on the bench ... but the we lose experience! IF O'Gara plays well, I think Ireland will be able to cope with the lack of power up front, but if not (and even if Kidney replaces him early), then the superiority of the French pack could leave the undoubted potential of the Irish three-quarters somewhat 'disconnected'.

BR

A home defeat to France has left Scotland once again scrabbling for some sort of foot-hold in this year's Six Nations championship in only the second week, and this week sees Scotland journey south to play the similarly afflicted Wales.

While Wales showed worrying spark in attack (Hook in particular having at last found a home at 13), they were ultimately undone by indiscipline and with kickers of the calibre of Paterson and (gulp) Parks on the pitch Scotland should be able to punish any indiscretions - although whether Scotland could administer a 17 point punishment in 10 minutes as England did is doubtful.

Indeed the addition of Parks, who can be far from spectacular with ball in hand, should at least ensure the game is played in the right areas of the pitch. Last weekend the territory stats were ridiculous - Scotland had plenty of possession against France but most of it was used going sideways in our own 22. All the good line breaks were made from within our own half. Make the same long breaks in the Welsh 22 and Scotland could even be looking at some tries. Although with Godman out, Parks in and Morrison still clogging up the midfield a bit and another big man in standout performer Sean Lamont moved inward to 13 to accommodate his brother, I do fear for our creative spark in midfield if not our power. But Parks can spark Glasgow where they score plenty of tries. Can he step it up a gear and make himself the most unpopular man in Cardiff, where he is moving to next season?

Gatland has already begun his well-worn coaching "tactic" of trying to wind up the opposition in the week before the game (disguised as refreshing honesty), questioning the motives behind Scotland's wish for the roof to remain open. Andy Robinson, being equally as stubborn as Gatland, has rightfully stuck to his guns. It is likely that the roof being open does even matters up, given Wales are more used to playing with it shut. But the assertion that Scotland want the roof open so that we can play in muddy conditions is once again rubbish. It is again playing to the stereotype of Parks as a rainy-day stand-off. While that is a role he can play well, we in Scotland are all hoping that he can show us he is more than the stereotype and free up our new look back division filled with powerful runners (and Chris Paterson). And if it does rain and he kicks Wales into submission, well I suppose we'd take that too.

Rory Baldwin is the Editor of Scottish Rugby Blog.

Does Wales scrum-half Gareth Cooper warrant his place in the side? © Getty Images

You'll forgive me that I'm a bit tardy with this. The Wales team was named on Tuesday lunchtime, but I've been too busy to comment as I've spent the past few days railing at the heavens, tearing out my hair and wearing uncomfortable undergarments in an attempt to appease whatever power on high that the Welsh nation seems to have offended and caused our national team head coach to be cursed with the sort of blind stubborness that would make King Cnut look like a reasonable and logically thinking chap.

The consensus from anyone who had eyes, ears... any of the senses really, is that Wales' woeful performance against England was a new low point in the Gatland regime, and a tipping point in the perception of the New Zealander in the eyes of the Welsh public. "The honeymoon is over" according to the Western Mail, although truth be told, anyone but the most fair weather of rugby fans has been developing serious reservations with the former Waikato coach, his tactics and particularly his team selection for well over a year now.

We all know that the Welsh public are far from patient when it comes to national coaches, but Gatland's instant Grand Slam in 2008 bought him the most security a Welsh coach has enjoyed since Graham Henry. Yet in the last 12 months Wales haven't beaten a decent team (Argentina were very poor and England last year were dreadful), and their last two matches have seen them ship 30 points, being outscored eight tries to two in the process. It's unacceptable by Gatland's own high standards and for the quality of the current crop of Welsh players

It's a very real possibility that Gatland needs to win all of his remaining home fixtures (and probably have a good crack at the Irish away) to stand any chance of quieting the increasingly vocal lobby calling for his head, and if nothing else, he needed to show with his team choice for the game against Scotland that he was capable of admitting his mistakes and being decisive for the sake of the team.

Instead, he's done precisely the opposite, and in the process has further damaged his increasingly precarious position. Firstly, rather than accepting that Gareth Williams and Andy Powell are just not playing at the required level, the poor-but-hardly-the-worst Tom James and Luke Charteris have paid the price for the England farce.

And then there's Gareth Cooper, more than Alun-Wyn Jones or anyone else, the Blues half-back was responsible for the result at Twickenham. He's out of form, getting old, and frankly, was hardly Gareth Edwards to start off with, and boy did it show. His decision making time can be measured in ice ages, his field vision is so narrow I think he might be cross-eyed, and his delivery was so pathetic, sometimes it was hard to tell if he thought Stephen Jones was Stretch Armstrong in a red shirt.

Williams and Powell you can just about forgive - the pack had a decent game (lineout not withstanding) last week - but Cooper's performance was terminal. It's the sort of game that ends international careers. In his first game in charge, Alix Popham angered Gatland so much with his bad performance, he's not been seen for Wales since, and it's the same for Gareth Delve. Yet Cooper, despite the fact that we played about 100 times better when Richie Rees came on, despite the fact he hasn't had a good game for Wales in about two years and despite the fact that Dwayne Peel is now fit enought to play for Sale, retains the No.9 jersey.

Not only is it infuriating, nonsensical, and frankly makes Gatland look like a coach who can't admit his mistakes to the detriment of the team - it gives his detractors the sort of ammunition that could ultimately bring him down. The papers are full of comment pieces already, the websites have got polls asking what team you, the more sensible Joe Public would pick if you were in charge.

It's the sort of second guessing that can easily build a head of steam, it enforces the perception that Gatland is wasting some of Wales' most important talents with his own arrogance and stubborness, and it's the sort of thing that could easily lead to him finding a P-45 in his pigeonhole come March.

Only a truly convincing performance on Saturday can prove his point, yet with Gareth Cooper at nine, Gatland's Titanic seems to be rapidly heading towards danger...

Josh Gardner

After a win over old foes Wales on Saturday by 13 points surely everything is rosy in the life of an England supporter?

Well not necessarily so, as there were a few stark reminders of the Autumn Internationals and the flaws that have plagued this England team in the past year. Don’t get me wrong, there were some major positives as well and the squad generally looked like they were moving their rugby in the right direction. A very satisfying victory by all means, but if England want to mount a serious challenge for the title this year, then there is still some work that needs to be done within certain aspects of their game.

Their next match is the perfect opportunity to try some new plays in the backs and attempt to plug the leaks in their defensive display of last weekend. Martin Johnson has stuck with the mainstay of his team making only two changes – one in the front row and one in the centre.

Johnson has taken the decision to pick Dan Cole at prop ahead of David Wilson. A brave but sensible decision. The front row struggled against Wales, especially on Wilson’s side of the scrum. This may not have been viewed as such as crisis had Wales’ British Lions hooker Matthew Rees and prop Gethin Jenkins played – but they didn’t and yet an under strength Wales pack dominated this facet of the game from the off. This week England face one of the best front row practitioners of the modern game in Martin Castrogiovanni and this needs to be combated. In Dan Cole, England have a strong scrummager who is also very mobile around the pitch. Cole has proven his worth for Leicester this season and as he trains with the Italian at club level, this may just give England a bit more solidarity up front.

Behind the front row the pack looked solid, Nick Easter carried for a gain consistently, and James Haskell’s two tries spoke for themselves whilst the second row dominated the line out from the outset, stealing countless amount of ball from the Welsh. A special mention has to be reserved for England Captain Steve Borthwick though. He was imperious in the line out and strong at the breakdown, Borthwick’s turnover early in the second half led to the impressive Danny Care crossing the whitewash for England’s second try. The England skipper managed the lineout supremely well, making a mockery of Wales’ in the process and his decisions as captain proved rewarding at crucial times for England. It was a performance that will go part of the way in proving his doubters wrong – myself included!

Behind the scrum, the shackles were let off the pragmatic Danny Care. It was a pleasurable sight to observe the little scrum half instigate quick tap penalties and produce darting breaks around the fringes. However, Care’s passing was not the quickest and at times very wayward. A few sessions of passing practice this week would certainly not go amiss for the Harlequins number 9. His relationship with Jonny Wilkinson at fly half was undoubtedly better than that in the autumn but Wilkinson still sat very deep when receiving the ball. This could well be put down to the lack of a sizeable inside centre outside of him and leads me to Martin Johnson’s only other selective change.

Riki Flutey was absent from the Wales game due to a thigh injury but the Kiwi born centre will be a very welcome addition to the England midfield come Valentine’s day in Rome. Having a proven ball carrier such as Flutey on the shoulder of Wilkinson may give the fly half the confidence to play further up the field and vary the attack. Flutey does not only increase the attacking options for England but also shores up what was a very suspect defence last Saturday.

The lack of size and organisation in the centres for England was exposed by the powerful running of Jamie Roberts and the more elusive James Hook. Italy likes to attack this area of the pitch and will certainly be targeting this as a weakness in the England camp. Mirco Bergamasco or Kaine Robertson coming off their respective wings and hitting flat ball at pace off fly half Craig Gower is a ploy that is persistently used by Nick Mallet’s men and if England defend the way they did against Wales then rewards may well be reaped in the Stadio Flaminio for the home team. Flutey is the defensive manager in the England midfield and he will be a very welcome addition to the England midfield.

The back three must have been an area that Johnson considered tinkering with. It was a big surprise that the only person left on the England bench against Wales was Ben Foden. Delon Armitage looked decidedly unsure under the high ball at full back and never really attacked with great purpose. The back three looked very one dimensional with ball in hand and never once looked to change the focus of attack. Foden offers this ability in spades with an eye for a gap and a very elusive running style which creates openings for others. I think that we will see the Northampton full back make an appearance in Rome and let’s hope he makes his mark leaving Johnson considering his options when Ireland arrive at Twickenham on the 27th February.

Johnson is right in making these changes but more importantly he has shown faith in a team that showed more resilience than attacking prowess in their first match of the tournament. The game against Italy will give us a good indication of where this squad is heading under the tutelage of Martin Johnson. I just hope it is in the right direction and more importantly that the result is one of a positive nature to consolidate their position as contenders for the crown.

Andrew Daniel writes for The Rugby Blog

This weekend France face the 2009 Grand Slam champions on home ground. Ireland skipper Brian O'Driscoll has already made history by leading his team to a Grand Slam and has set his sights on back-to-back success - the only real proof that your team is the best, having stamped your authority home and away.

And if there is one Irishman who knows what it takes to win in Paris-Saint Denis, it is BOD. He has already scored 8 tries in 10 games against France, which is his best haul against any international side. Ten years ago the wider rugby world discovered a 21-year-old centre who managed to ridicule the French defence single-handed on his way to a hat-trick of tries.

On that famous day Ireland won 27-25 to register only its fourth victory on French soil since the Second World War (1948, 1952, 1972 and 2000). So, if you just look at the stats then it seems logical that France should win. But as we know, stats don't say everything: both in 2006 and 2008, after a bad start, Ireland fought back and pushed the French all the way. Ireland are destined to taste success in Paris again one day and no one is more likely to inspire that success than O'Driscoll. I was in the Stade de France in 2000, with my son. And I remember very well that in order to comfort him after the French defeat, I told him that he had witnessed the birth of a star. How right was I (yes, it does happen once every 10 years).

Before, Irish players were either fast, talented, powerful or fierce. Great Irish players could boast two of these qualities, legends maybe three - but Brian O'Driscoll has them all. This is why he is very much appreciated by French fans (and not just for a shared "love" of English rugby). But we don't like him enough to accept defeat in Paris on Saturday. The ideal scenario would in fact see him score a try but see France win. An ideal scenario is a nice way to say "this is what we would like to happen but we know it won't happen". France and Ireland have the same overall strengths: a strong pack, fast and powerful backs and the ability to do something "unexpected". What is not good news for France, is that on top of that, the Irish players are more experienced and have a master kicker, Ronan O'Gara.

If France are still able to win on Saturday, it will be a huge boost for the young French players and it will also prove that French coach Marc Lièvremont was right when stating his team can win without a world class kicker. But that means France must be able to produce many tries - not likely going by their opening game against Scotland.

Jean Palfrey

France only notched two tries despite dominating the Scots at Murrayfield © Getty Images

According to the BBC, the man of the match for France's demolition of Scotland was back row Imanol Harinordoquy. For French sports newspaper L'Equipe it was lock Lionel Nallet and for the French TV broadcasters, including former captain Fabien Galthie, is was prop Thomas Domingo. While the French TV viewers voted for centre Mathieu Bastareaud, not because of his overall perofrmance but for his two headline-grabbing tries (this is what you get if non-rugby specialists are asked to determine such things.

And just in case you didn't watch the game and would like to have a better understanding of what happened, French rugby newspaper Midi Olympique voted for Domingo, Bastareaud, Harinordoquy and captain Thierry Dusautoir.

The fact that this list features four forwards underlines how dominant the French scrum was. It also serves as confirmation that France has found a group of players good enough for the 2011 World Cup. Add Sébastien Chabal, Romain Millo-Chlusky, Fabien Barcella and Louis Picamoles, and you can start feeling confident about the near future - but only when it comes to the forwards.

When it comes to the seven other players on the field there remains an issue. What is worrying is that with all the possession against the Scots, the French only managed to score two tries. With wingers and fullbacks such as Vincent Clerc, Cédric Heymans, Julien Malzieu, Aurélien Rougerie, Alexis Palisson, Maxime Médard or even Benjamin Fall, surely you're bound to score if you have the ball. So what happened to the ball between the pack and these fast guys?

It got lost within the French Bermuda triangle formed by an unimaginative fly-half and two powerful centers. And it was easy to guess that scrum-half Morgan Parra is still young, maybe too young, and inexperienced to utilise al these otions and give any kind of guidance.

Unfortunately, Jean-Baptiste Elissalde was injured, and therefore wasn't able to play at least 10 minutes, and prove that players with speed and power will always need a brain too.

The only other point of note for the French is that no other team can be proud of their first performance in this year's Championship. But is that really a reason to be satisfied?

Jean Palfrey

Wales' Alun-Wyn Jones reflects on defeat at the hands of England © Getty Images

The moment Wales lock Alun-Wyn Jones tripped Dylan Hartley and deservedly was given a yellow card, we all knew it was going to cost us. Quite how badly it ended up costing us was still a shock - shipping 17 points in the 10 minutes Jones was in the bin cost Wales the game, and gave England the belief to kick on against a poor Italy team next week.

Of course Wales fans have plenty to grumble about, not least Simon Shaw taking out Gareth Williams as England attacked at the start of the second half - allowing Danny Care to run into the channel the hooker was covering and score. There were also schoolboy errors, the basics were forgotten, the lineout was pathetic, and all in all Wales continued the rapid spiral into futility that they began in last year's Six Nations.

What bright spots there were - when Wales started to play with pace and conviction after Adam Jones' try, before the interception try broke their resolve, did very little to calm the questions being raised about Warren Gatland's competence.

This period of positive play coincided with Wales bringing on several replacements, all of whom I suggested should be in the starting line-up earlier this week. But of course, by the time they all came on, 70 minutes in, it was far too late.

Gatland's Pet (Andy Powell for those who didn't read my previous entry) actually made some nice bursts in the second half, but he was a penalty machine as normal. Then there's Gareth Cooper - you could hear the sniggers from the Red Rose crowd when Gatland mystifyingly anointed him as starter, despite the former Gloucester man not being able to get a sniff of action this season. He was pedestrian, his service was a liability, and he showed the creativity of a tackling doll. Then his 'understudy' Richie Rees came on, and all of a sudden, Wales were firing, the backline was moving, and tries were scored. Coincidence?

Charteris looked like the player he's always been - a very tall man who's not very strong, not really all that in the loose and somehow, not good at the lineout either! Gareth Williams played like a man who'd been dropped in at the deep end out of the blue - it's hard to blame him, but his lineout throwing was dreadful. Huw Bennett's strong cameo should pencil him in for a start next week if Matt Rees is still out.

It's easy to criticise a coach more than a player, but Gatland's Wales reign is starting to have the ominous look of his last few months with Ireland. The performances are becoming an embarrassment, and he seems to be lacking the skills to arrest it. He's also again showing his worrying tendancy to stick with players when common sense says they're badly out of form. The assistants aren't doing much better - Howley's attacking plan seems to have been lost in the post, while Edwards' much-vaunted defence is leaking tries like a sieve.

Wales coaches don't have a great track record in the run-up to World Cups - just ask Graham Henry or Mike Ruddock - so Gatland will need a big performance next week against Scotland if he wants to quiet the dissenting voices. The Kiwi's blood is in the water, the sharks are circling, and the jury's out whether the Welsh side has the heart, drive and motivation to pull their coach out of the sea...

Josh Gardner

I predicted that Ireland would score counter attacking tries today, but for that to happen Italy will need to attack. I had assumed that Italy would kick for position, and hope for Irish mistakes on which to build (and strangely when they did in the 1st half, they scored); but it seems Mallet's tactic is to hold on the ball for as many minutes as possible (even if that means just leaving it at the base of the ruck); win penalties at scrum-time and hope they can slot them.

Hopefully better 2nd half tactics from Italy in this 40.

BR

The inglorious Bastareaud? © Getty Images

Up in Scotland we have a notoriously one-eyed local paper, the Press and Journal. Everything in its hallowed pages is found to have something to do with its home town, Aberdeen, or the surrounding area.

Several of the Scotland team are favoured, having once plied their rugby trade in Aberdeen, such as Chris Cusiter, Jason White and new flavours of the month Ruaridh Jackson and Moray Low (who is from Moray - what they would do if they found out Dougie Hall was from Dingwall I can only guess). Legend has it that when the Titanic went down, the headline was "North East Man Lost at Sea". This was till now their most famous headline. However when looking through their Six Nations preview today, I saw the following, surely deserving of the title: "Stopping the inglorious Bastareaud".

In addition to being a fine example of headline writing, I think this goes to the heart of Scotland's troubles on Sunday. We, Scotland, have a fairly lightweight back division and a pack that while beefy is not massive in the absence of Murray and Hamilton. France have picked their usual heavyweights up front while the likes of Bastareaud, Jauzion and Rougerie all have size on their side against their opposite numbers. Trinh Duc likes a batter too. It looks like France aim to go through rather than around Scotland. Our defence was solid against Australia, but can it hold up a second time against a beefier attack?

Discounting the French as poor travellers would be rash, after all they travelled well enough to New Zealand in the summer. But Scotland will need a strong support to lift them during the long periods of defence, and an extra measure of precision will be required on the odd occasion they have possession and space. As they discovered in the autumn, every kick and pass matter at this level. Being okay is no longer acceptable. Thom and Max Evans will relish the opportunity to play together again and prove themselves more than one season wonders, while I hope that Phil Godman has the will to prove his doubters wrong and really fire that backline. If the ball gets out past Morrison more often than not, then we should be able to at least trouble the French, and with a little bit of luck (and 99-cap Chris Paterson) anything could happen.

If it rains, the pundits will say it favours the Scots, but this - as it has been for seasons now - would be inaccurate. Scotland want to play a fast, offloading game and go wide when possible. Like ze French flair, no? If it rains, conditions will more likely favour the current crop of Les Bleus and their inglorious batterers.

Rory Baldwin is the Editor of Scottish Rugby Blog.

So here we are again, the 2010 Six Nations begins this weekend. The excitement, the passion, the glorious away trips for the fans in Rome and Paris and of course an English Grand Slam...well maybe!

This year’s championship has the potential to become one of the tightest of the last decade as there are numerous nations that could put their hands in the air to stake a claim to climb to the zenith of European rugby.

The question is: whose hands will be on the coveted trophy come mid March? More importantly for me though, could it be England? The excuses for the poor showing in the Autumn are gone and England need to move forward, yet at the same time they need to remember last year’s Six Nations in which they were the top try scorers, pushed the grand slam winners to within a point in their own back yard and demolished the French whilst playing the sort of rugby that hadn’t blessed the hallowed Twickenham turf for many a year.

The platform and the players are there for England to achieve positive results but they need to be released from their shackles and allowed to play the sort of rugby that has led to them being entrusted with the most famous white shirt in the rugby world in the first place.

All England fans want to see Jonny Wilkinson playing on the gain line, Nick Easter carrying the ball with Dallaglio-esque force, Mathew Tait utilising his pace on the outside and Care sniping with quick taps and darting breaks around the fringes of the breakdown.

If Wilkinson can play on the gain line and attack more positively than he has in recent times, a talented back line will have the freedom to express themselves and play a more attractive style of rugby over which English fans can rejoice.

However, with the positive comes the negative. There are major doubts about England’s front five and the sort of power – or lack of – that they are going to possess at the set piece. Tim Payne has had a rocky season in the scrum and David Wilson is an unproven talent from Bath in the front row.

In the engine room, doubts still linger over the head of the England captain Steve Borthwick. To avoid the negative press and pressure concerning not only his captaincy but his place in the team, Borthwick needs to lead from the front and prove his worth to the English public. The front five is certainly an area of England’s game that will get targeted by their opposition as an area of weakness to be exploited.

This leads me to the main area of worry for the English fans; mobility in the pack. A back row that includes James Haskell and the ever-impressive Lewis Moody will add competitive edge to the team but their dynamic support may be limited by a less athletic second row and a number eight.

The first match against Wales will not only be a massive indicator as to how England intends to play, but it will also have a significant bearing on the way their championship will progress. A win will no doubt breed confidence and send England to Rome brimming with confidence. A win in Italy sets up a Grand Slam charge and who knows, Paris on the 20th March could just be a great occasion for an English supporter.

I know what you are thinking, a typically over optimistic Englishman that is only going to be disappointed come the end of the tournament, but I genuinely believe that if England get a positive result in their first game and impress at the same time then the championship is a possibility. I sincerely hope I will not be eating a big slice of humble pie when Saturday comes.

Andrew Daniel writes for The Rugby Blog

Italy appear to have consigned their woeful 2009 Six Nations campaign to the history books and are entering this year's battle with renewed hope and faith in their ability.

Last year Nick Mallet's side completed a tough tour of the southern hemisphere where they registered three close defeats against the powerful Wallabies (twice) and All Blacks (by far the most encouraging one). On the back of that tour the Azzurri delivered an extraordinary string of performances during their November campaign against New Zealand, South Africa and Samoa, beating the Islanders for the first time ever and putting and end to the long losing streak that dated back to the 2008 win in Rome against Scotland.

Now the Six Nations will show what futher progress has been made by Mallett and his troops and whether last year was simply an illusion or if Italy are finally ready to play active part in this glorious competition. Don’t be fooled folks, Bergamasco and Co will still be battling for last place with the Scots but with the future of the game in Italy at stake, all eyes will be on the way the Azzurri approach their matches, especially the ones played at Flaminio.

Every team goes out with the intention of competing, but it is true that success begins at home and even though Italy only have only two fixtures at the Flaminio to look forward to, Mallet knows very well that the England and the Scotland encounters will be crucial and will be drilling that into his side. For the first time since 2004 the Azzurri have the chance to build some real momentum. After what will no doubt be a terribile start in Dublin against the defending champions, England will visit the “Capitale” and two weeks later the Scots will follow suit.

With a little luck the Azzurri may travel to Cardiff in round four with some confidence and hope that their hosts opt to use the 'easy' fixture to experiment. And then Italy will have the chance to win its second away game of its young Six Nations history. I honestly think this could happen, even in such a competitive environment as the Six Nations and even without the guidance of Sergio Parisse, sidelined by a knee injury.

If the Azzurri are able to conjure the defensive intensity that they displayed in June and November, and if they succeed with a kicking game based on the boot of Gower and McLean, then they may surprise one or two. The Italian scrum is still one of the best in Europe and with the return of the rolling maul, Leonardo Ghiraldini and his cohorts are ready to threaten the Home Nations - and France.

Enrico Borra

At 14:30 on Saturday the 2010 Six Nations kicks off at Croke Park. It will be the last season at the home of GAA. And, as an Irishman, I would need to be confident that Italy will finish their run of games there as – played 2; won 0; lost 2. The result should be familiar. The Irish team too has a familiar look.

The promise of Sexton rejuvenating Irish rugby from outhalf has been dashed by injury and we will see the wise old head of Ronan O’Gara in the green 10 shirt. His head though is not the worry, it’s the rest of his body (particularly in defence) where the question marks arise.

Will it matter on Saturday? I would suggest not. I am confident that even a long-retired, unskilled, unfit lock forward like me being selected at 10 would not have varied Mallet’s tactics to any significant extent. Mallets choice of Gower is of little tactical consequence either - the Italians will be kicking the ball away! As a result the attacking abilities of Canale and Micro Bergamasco will be neutered. Kearney, Bowe, and Trimble will be chasing back most of the day. The former two should be able to return it with a little interest; the latter’s recent form suggests he may be able to make a similar distance by keeping the ball in hand. This back 3 getting up to full tilt and teaming up with another form choice in D’Arcy will provide Ireland’s biggest threat. I’m confident that there will be 3 counter-attack tries scored between these 4 players.

Should the Italians decide to run the ball through the middle, I can’t think of any centre in world rugby who I’d prefer to be covering than O’Driscoll. Stopping the Italians should not pose a problem, but it will still be a test to dispossess them. The whole Irish backrow will be looking to turnover plenty of ball at the breakdown. The new boy McLaughlin at 6 has this great opportunity to show us his ability while the obvious choice, Ferris is unavailable. I’m not sure if a big performance would be enough to leapfrog the Ulsterman, but ensuring his position as second choice, should ensure ample caps, given the injury history of the Lion. If McLaughlin is capable of that step-up he, along with his experienced partners (Wallace and Heaslip) they should be able to match the Parisse-less Italian backrow. Sole and Begamasco were once a key threat from the Italians, but are not the play makers they once were.

If Italy are to get anything from what I envisage will be a limited game-plan, then they are going to have to make a dent in the Irish scrum and lineout. Mallet’s surprise choice seems to be Geldenhuys at lock. Many people suggesting that Bortolami was the obvious choice to partner Del Fava. Ultimately none of the 3 will bother Paul O'Connell. Kidney’s last minute inclusion of Cullen is a worrying reminder of the squad stagnation of the O’Sullivan era, but then Donncha O’Callaghan was not exactly the form lock in Ireland right now either. It seems Kidney prefers to fall back on experience. And experience is going to count for a lot in the tight five. I expect Mallet will introduce Bortolami sooner rather than later, but it remains to be seen if that substitution will have the required ‘impact’. The Italian scrum bothered the SH teams in November. The props (Perugini and Castrogiovani) are serious old-style scrummagers, commanding 140-odd caps between them.
But then you have John Hayes – let’s face it, the bull has not been introduced for his mobility around the park. Healey at loosehead is much more of a open-play option, but it is Kidney’s selections at hooker that raised the most eyebrows. Flannery is picked despite only just returning from injury, combined with the Lazarus-like appearance of Rory Best on the bench after an operation in September to ‘join his head back on’ could be seen as risky. Medical wisdom suggests that Best’s head is unlikely to fall off in the scrum, but he only has about 100 minutes of rugby under his belt this season, and not even at a high level. Both hookers though should be pupping for it – I think we’ll see a big performance from both, and even the late inclusion of Cullen shouldn’t bother their ‘darts’.

OK – I’m full of confidence on this one.

I read one Italian piece this week, where the Irish were accused of having the champagne in the fridge already – were it not taking up valuable Guinness space, I think it would be justified. Ireland 6 tries to 2 and a handful of penalties each!

BR

Cast your mind back to the 2007 Rugby World Cup final between South Africa and England. What do you remember (apart from the barmaid’s name)? Most likely, you’ll remember four things: several successful Percy Montgomery penalties, a correctly disallowed England try, South Africa lifting the William Webb Ellis trophy, and possibly the brand of beer you were drinking.

The 2007 final was not a classic. A score of 15-6 generally never is. But it highlighted much that has troubled English rugby in the three years that have passed since that defeat at the Stade de France. Namely, a lack of mobility, a lack of quick ball and - most painfully - a lack of ingenuity with ball in hand.

Lost in the shunt-and-manoeuvre style of that 2007 final was a moment that provides an important reference point when understanding Martin Johnson’s team selection for England’s Six Nations opener with Wales. The moment came just two minutes after half-time in Paris, when a 21-year-old Mathew Tait accelerated onto a poor pass to scythe through the best defence in the world, providing the platform on which England came within an inch of scoring a crucial try – only for Mark Cueto’s in-touch boot to attract the attention of the officials.
For all of the 80 minutes of kick and counter-kick, ruck and counter-ruck that went either side of it, Tait’s electric contribution took England closer to a potentially game-changing try than anything else. Had Cueto’s boot stayed in play Tait’s break would have been one of the great World Cup moments, not to mention an inspirational boost to his team in the same way Jason Robinson’s try injected momentum against Australia four years previously.

Johnson’s selection of the Sale Shark for Saturday’s visit of Wales is a major positive for England, a recognition that they need to be far less concerned with how the opposition are going to play and more focused on their own style of rugby. Former Wales international Eddie Butler, quite rightly, touches on the kind of negative thoughts that have prevented England coaches adopting a bold approach in the past.

“There is a problem for England,” writes Butler in The Guardian. “Wales will be issuing an invitation of their own to their opponents to play an attractive game. Wales often struggle to escape the stranglehold of a mighty England pack, and by the time the game escapes its rigid structures it is too late for Shane Williams in space to make much of a difference.

“But if the game is deliberately loosened by England, Wales may consider a fair proportion of the hard work done. And if you're going to experiment with liberty, it constitutes a major risk to do so against experts in broken-field rugby.”

Butler’s point is a good one, and his theory may come home to roost if the likes of James Haskell and Lewis Moody are unable to disrupt Wales’ penchant for the Harlem Globetrotters’ approach at Twickenham. But the question must be, if you cannot experiment at home to the fading power that is Wales, when can you experiment? Surely it would be suicide to allow Tait and fellow centre Riki Flutey to exchange pleasantries for the first time against France, Ireland or in an autumn international against South Africa.

England have little over a year before the 2011 World Cup to improve a 50% winning average under Martin Johnson, something they will never do by basing their own style of play on the opposition. Tait has been the gate-keeper to England’s future for years, he has dazzled at U16, U18 and U19 level – as well as in international Sevens competition when he won the Dubai event. He is the third youngest England debutant behind a certain Jonny Wilkinson, and World Cup-winner Mike Catt once labelled him “the future of English rugby”.

Having spent a year working with one of the best centres in world rugby, All Black Luke McAlister, Tait is reaching maturity at the age of 23, the same age Wilkinson won the World Cup. Other centres such as Dan Hipkiss and Jamie Noon are undoubtedly more battle-hardened, perhaps even more defensively aware than Tait, making them less of a risk against James Hook, Shane Williams and Co. But it is the phase of the game that sees England with ball in hand that Johnson must address, is addressing, and in that context Tait’s maverick moment of 2007 is just one example of why he has to be the undisputed selection throughout the Six Nations, so that maybe in the next World Cup his thrilling break is the rule, not the exception.

Never has there been a more important fixture for Martin Johnson. His tenure as England's Head Coach has been marked by several ups and downs - probably more downs than ups - and the opening fixture of this year's RBS Six Nations is likely to determine the direction of England's fortunes.

A win over Wales would get the championship off to a flying start. With Twickenham packed to the rafters, nervous excitement in the air, Centenary celebrations to kick things off, an ambitious performance and an opening victory would go down exceptionally well with the crowd.

Most importantly, it would lift spirits within a camp that was besieged by criticism in the Autumn, and it might just set the players on an upward trajectory. A week later in Rome, it really ought to be two out of two, and then confidence will be much higher when Ireland visit Twickenham at the end of the month.

Three wins out of three heading into the Scotland game would make a Grand Slam match against France a distinct possibility, and who would have imagined that after the dismal displays at the end of last year?

However, it could all be so different. A second consecutive home defeat to Wales on Saturday and the downward spiral will continue. The media will pick over the bones of failure, pointing the finger at the likes of Johnson, Steve Borthwick and Jonny Wilkinson, and the mood in the camp will be lower than low.

In this scenario, facing Italy at the Stadio Flaminio is a much more frightening prospect. Two years ago, there was a four-point margin when Italy hosted England, and a win is by no means guaranteed - imagine the reaction if England lose in Rome and are left at the bottom of the table with Ireland, Scotland and France still to come? The Wooden Spoon would not be out of the question.

This year's Six Nations will be as competitive as ever, and a strong start for England is imperative. Without wanting to pile on too much pressure, it really could be 'make or break' at Twickenham this weekend.

Have your say on the Six Nations at The Rugby Blog.

Will Wales coach Warren Gatland be smiling come Saturday night? © Getty Images

Chances are, there's a large number of Welsh fans who came over all Marty McFly at around 1pm this afternoon. After all, who wouldn't fancy a quick trip back in the DeLorean to yesterday evening, and the optimism that came with the news that Lee Byrne's baffling ban had been overturned, and he'd be free to play against the old enemy on Saturday evening.

"Hey this is looking pretty good," we foolishly thought to ourselves. "We might have a few concerns at scrum-half, what with Mike Phillips out, and I'm sure we'd all be happier with Rear Admiral Henson doing less messing about in boats and more playing rugby, but as it all goes, that's a pretty strong team on paper there."

And then 1pm arrived, and with it, news of injury doubts and the spectre of Warren Gatland's increasingly suspect selection policy that had rumbled on for much of the morning proved to be sadly correct. And just like that, the optimism was gone.

As the team was released, the text-messages, phonecalls and emails bounced around the Welsh faithful - not only had we lost two Lions in Matt Rees and Leigh Halfpenny, but expected names who weren't injured were absent from the team sheet.

At scrum-half the expected inclusion of either Martin Roberts or Richard Rees was supplanted by a collective sigh when we read Gareth 'Two-Steps' Cooper's name. With that went any hope we had of Stephen Jones getting rapid service – after all, while Cooper is experienced, he can't even get a game for his region and it smacks of a worrying conservatism that seems to have come over the Wales management team in recent months.

And then there's Andy Powell - otherwise known as 'Gatland's Pet'. While the Blues' battering ram had a sensational burst onto the international scene, his performances since then have ranged from 'anonymous' to 'liability'. Back in the days of the ELVs, the moving of the offside lines gave him the space to build up a head of steam, leading to those eye-catching runs. But with the ELVs gone, his effectiveness as a ball carrier has similarly vanished. Combine that with his propensity for knock-ons and stupid penalties given away in both attack and defence and it makes his inclusion over the likes of Jonathan Thomas puzzling.

And finally, there's Bradley Davies. It seems unfair to pick on such a promising young player, but his inclusion at the expense of old warhorse Ian Gough seems foolish and rather naive on Gatland's part. Martin Johnson might have picked an attacking line-up, but encounters with England are never a showcase of finesse and subtlety, Gough might be in the twilight of his career, but his physicality and graft could be a vital weapon off the bench in the closing stages.

So, the headlines will be taken up by the loss of Rees and Halfpenny, but truth told, Gareth Williams has been the best hooker in regional rugby for a while now, and some have had concerns that Halfpenny and Shane Williams are too similar in style, so a flyer like James should at least provide a different option out wide. The real problems might well be with the un-enforced changes (or lack thereof) that could really cost Wales this weekend.

It's not all doom and gloom however - the centre partnership that everyone's been saying Gatland should pick for nearly a year now has finally come to fruition, with Roberts at 12 and Hook at 13. It looks a lot more promising than the other options we've seen, and come Saturday night we'll either be hearing a chorus of 'I told you so' from the Welsh faithful, or there will be some very quiet red-shirted men drinking in the bars of Cardiff...

Josh Gardner

So here it is, the big Six Nations kick-off. We've been waiting so long for the good old Championship to begin but French fans will have to wait just a little bit longer with our first game scheduled for Sunday. Until then we'll have to contain our hope and nerves but come the first whistle we can return to condeming Lievremont for his selections, blaming the referee or one of our own players for missing an "easy" opportunity.

Only one thing is sure, unless France win 50 0, the fans will moan at the end of the game. Firstly, because a good French rugby fan always moans about Les Bleus, no matter the performance or result. The only time he doesn't is when he/she talks rugby with a fan of another country. He then turns into blatant chauvinist.

The other reason the French will no doubt be be moaning is that they will have looked at the other games and found reason to be worried - be it an outstanding performance, or because one "favourite" got upset. And with England and Wales playing against each other on the opening day, it is 100% sure this second scenario will happen.

So French fans try to comfort themselves by saying that since 2000, France has only lost once against Scotland. Even if it was in 2006 (20-16), and also on a Sunday. Three other encounters between the two teams were played a Sunday and France won each time with two of the matches at Murrayfield. So French fans will hope these statistics won't be betrayed.

But true French rugby fans also know that Andy Robinson coached his team for an historic victory against Australia last November. And that is not good news. In fact, it will only make us more nervous before the game as we wait for Sunday to roll around.

Jean Palfrey

Will France coach Marc Lievremont opt for a more direct approach in this year's Championship? © Getty Images

For the first time since he took charge of the French squad, Marc Lièvremont has announced that the goal this year is to win, not only the Championship, but a Grand Slam. And obviously, in order to deliver, he is ready to change his plans.

Over the last two years he has made a habit of saying that the most important thing was to have a game plan, to build on your own strategy, not to rely on turnovers and 'French flair'. Now, with a line-up that could include Yannick Jauzion, Mathieu Bastareaud and Aurélien Rougerie I am not so sure not sure Les Bleus will be focusing on dummies and "artistic" plays.

The fastest way to the try line is straight forward. The fans might not be very happy with a system that will put aside a long tradition of passing centres and fast slim wingers, but if France wins the titlet, and maybe a Grand Slam, the same moaning fans will be the first to rejoice.

With players such as Damien Traille or Maxime Mermoz injured, Lièvremont is lucky enough to still be able not to select Toulouse stars Cédric Heymans, Yann David and Maxime Médard. The final cut for the 23 players list could even see wingers Vincent Clerc (Toulouse) and Julien Malzieu (Clermont) watch the first game against Scotland on TV. This would then see new wonder Benjamin Fall (Bayonne) start on the wing, while utility backs Fabrice Estebanez (both Brive) and Alexis Palisson could be on the bench, since they can cover all positions from 10 to 15.

French fans will be disappointed by at least on one, even before kick-off: Sébastien Chabal will not be in the squad after he had to withdraw because of his back, joining Romain Millo-Clusky in the long list of injuries. I'm not sure their substitutes (Julien Pierrre and Yohann Maestri) will attract as many non rugby fans as crowd-pleaser 'Seabass'. It seems that Lièvremont, whom everyone thought was a quiet and peaceful man-manager, is also a gambler. Either he is very confident, or he knows the fan expectations are very high, and he wants to put some pressure on his players.

Jean Palfrey