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