Rugby

[firehazard]

Round 2 here we come! Quick predictions:

England-Italy: On the performances of last week, should be a substantial England victory. But Italy have been difficult to break down at Twickenham in recent years, so it may not be quite as easy as some are predicting. England to win by 12-15.

Ireland-France: I reckon Ireland will be sharper than they were in Rome, with Sexton and Heaslip back. France didn't look all that against Scotland, and Ireland should win in Dublin. Ireland by 10-12.

Scotland-Wales: Most difficult to call. Welsh backlash, or continuing Scots improvement? Not sure who'll win it, but it'll be very close: 3 points in it either way.

We should be at Twickenham, probably freezing our asres off.

[firehazard]

Hard-fought victory for Ireland, Wales did what they needed to beat Scotland, and a convincing win for England, though patchy at times. Italy started off strongly, and the Italian supporters always enjoy themselves!

A few pics from our day at Twickenham:
https://www.flickr.com/photos/15437467@N07/sets/72157650763614056/

All set up for a massive clash in Dublin in two weeks' time?

[Welshie]

Great pics FH, and a very nice round up! Not much more to add, apologies for not being as active as usual, discret access to foums is not as easy as once was! Anywya a few weeks off and back to round three. France in Paris, dont fancy it much! Now is it going to be England or Ireland for the championship, and Scotland or Italy for the wooden spoon (although i do feel Scotland did not have much luck on Sunday!)
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

So here comes Round 3...

Scotland-Italy: Scotland probably deserve a win. Italy have looked ok at times (they started and finished the better against England), but at Murrayfield Scotland should be too good for them. Scotland by 10-12.

France-Wales: France have been pretty disappointing so far. Wales bounced back well against Scotland, and have a decent record in Paris. Wales to win by 5-8.

Ireland-England: Biggest match so far. Very hard to call. But with Ireland on a winning run, and Sexton back in the team, I reckon they may just sneak it by a few points.

Good luck!

[Welshie]

Well a good weekends rugby gone, and i had 2 surprises:
I did not expect Italy to win, but they did so well done them.
I did not expect Wales to win, but any win in Paris is a good win so i will quite happily take it.
Great game between England and Ireland, it was pretty brutal! Anyway well done Ireland, and i'm looking forward to going to Cardiff to watc the Wales v Ireland match on the 14th.
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

I too didn't think Italy would win in Scotland but they showed some real passion at the end, and thoroughly deserved it. Parisse's reaction at the final whistle was wonderful to watch. Really pleased for them, and the result was good for the 6N - the tournament needs a competitive Italy.

I did have the feeling that Wales would win in Paris; and again they totally deserved it. France very disappointing again. And the result did wonders for my fantasy prediction stats.

Sets up a very big clash in Cardiff in two weeks' time, with an Ireland team that are pretty impressive at the moment. Though they'll be hoping that Sexton's fit - they blew England away while he was on the pitch, but looked just a bit vulnerable after he went off.

Anyway, you should have a great day at Cardiff, Aled. We're due to be at Twickenham for the Calcutta Cup the same day...

[Welshie]

Cheers FH, Cardiff tomorrow, am very much looking forward to it!
I think Scotland will have a hard and long afernoon at Twickenham tomorrow.
Hoping Sexton has an of day, then we could see a Wales win, but doubt it. Still a good weekend!
I think France will win, but they look very vulnerable, so if Italy fancy it on Sunday, i will give them a cheer!
Enjoy, i can nearly taste my first pint of Brains IPA!
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

Cheers, Aled, hope you have a great day! A win for Wales would be a pretty popular result among the crowd at Twickenham, I reckon.

Wales-Ireland: This could be very close. Ireland are on an impressive run, but Wales have bounced back well after the loss to England, and are at home on a Saturday afternoon... Probably an Irish win, just about, but not by many.

England-Scotland: If England can put their performance in Dublin behind them, it could be a substantial victory. Having Mike Brown back may help. Scotland will up their game against England (they always do). England by 12-15.

Italy-France: Saint-André has changed half the French XV, so it's hard to know what to expect. It'd be good to see another win for Italy. Let's say Italy by 3-5.

[firehazard]

Hope you had a good day in Cardiff, Aled. We watched as much as we could of the Wales-Ireland match on a screen in one of the bars at Twickenham. Though the bar was so full that we couldn't actually get in there, so it was a very distant view, and the picture kept breaking up. But it looked as if Wales deserved a hard-fought victory.

The Calcutta Cup match was all a bit frustrating. I've rarely seen England create so many chances, but they may well regret not taking them in the end.

Italy-France was truly dire. The first half was one of the worst halves of 6N rugby I've watched in years. But France may have built up a bit of confidence for their visit to Twickenham now.

Anyway, it's all set up for an intriguing final round next Saturday, with three possible tournament winners...

A few pics from Twickenham. Though it was too cold for photo-taking really: https://www.flickr.com/photos/15437467@N07/sets/72157651369650592/

[Welshie]

Well i had a good day in Cardiff FH, and in true Pogue Mahone style i got a bit drunk, along with Dad, Brother, sister and some old friends!
Great result for Wales, it was a pretty brutal game, and the physical clashes were very hard.
Sorry to say Scot v England was a bit hazy (too much Brains Beer), and after spending all day in Cardiff on Saturday i spent all of Sunday with the family...so i did not see the the France v Italy game!
One more weekend to go.
Cheers
Aled

[Welshie]

Final weekend, with a lot of excitment who will lift the trophy?
Ireland should beat Scotland, but the Scots are due a bit of luck so who knows. (they also owe the Welhs one from 1999! LOL)
I cant see Wales losing against Italy, but you never know stranger things have happened!
England should win, but France have not shown any skill or flare, so maybe Saturday. (but i doubt it)
Enjoy all.
Cheers
Aled

[firehazard]

I've no idea what's going to happen tomorrow, to be honest. And my predictions have been even worse than usual so far. I'd probably go for wins for Wales, Ireland and England, but am not even going to try to predict the points, or who'll end up on top.

One prediction that will probably come true is that I'll spend a long time in front of the TV tomorrow.

Here's hoping for three good games. Shame it all finishes so quickly!

[firehazard]

Brilliant final day of the 6 Nations on Saturday, three astonishing matches.

I thought Wales had done enough to win it after the first match. Then thought Ireland had done enough to win it after the second. Then towards the end thought England might just pull off the impossible... but they needed to have finished off more of their chances in the previous match to have clinched it (I think there'd been a feeling that that was the case among the Twickenham crowd at the end of the Scotland match).

Anyway, congratulations to Ireland on a deserved victory. What a fantastic tournament it is. Best few weeks of the year.

[firehazard]

I appear to have managed to buy two tickets for the world cup final...

[Welshie]

Apologies for being late in answering: Well said FH what a great final day of the 6 Nations. Well done on those tickets. I'll be at the Ireland v France match at Cardiff, should be a good game.
Club rugby and WC warm ups to enjoy until Sept now.
Cheers
Aled