Six Nations 2024: England aren't back, Ireland's title should be cherished
The 2024 Six Nations is over with Ireland crowned champions once again after success in 2023.
France came in with high expectations but missing Dupont and Ntamack they were a shell of their previous side. There is optimism for Borthwick’s England after a strong finish, while Wales were underwhelming.
Scotland were Scotland, but change is in the wind with Italy delivering a stellar campaign which is great news for the championship.
Here are five takeaways from this year’s tournament.
Don’t take Ireland’s success for granted
Ireland’s back-to-back titles in the Six Nations feels like it is surrounded in disappointment after grandiose expectations of a walkthrough Grand Slam. If it seems crazy that’s because it is. Every title should be taken with two hands as a campaign can go perilously wrong in a heartbeat.
Peter O’Mahony has been an international player since 2012 and this is his fifth title in 12 years. Only two of them have been Slams. His red card against Wales in the opening round of the 2021 Six Nations derailed their campaign and a two-point loss to France the next week ended it.
Ireland have set themselves up for a chance at a Six Nations three-peat in 2025, something not achieved since the expanded tournament started in 2000. France won four consecutive titles from 1986-89 but two of them were shared. There have been many repeat champions but three outright titles consecutively has never been done since 1883.
And no, Ireland do not need to win a Rugby World Cup to be considered great on the international stage. The All Blacks team for most of the 2000s were feared, respected and considered great but did not win either the 2003 or 2007 World Cups. They won the Tri-Nations in 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, churned out multiple World Players of the Year and beat everyone in between.
Conversely this current Springboks group achieved a singular great feat going back-to-back but had next-to-no substance in between. They were good, but went title-less in the Rugby Championship, couldn’t win rivalry trophies, lost too much at home, and produced a shocking win-loss record against other top Test nations. Greatness is not just measured in World Cups.
When Ireland meet the Springboks, one win on South African soil will prove they are the better side. Two wins by South Africa is expected while losing at home would be a shock and embarrassing for the world champions.
Italy’s rise is great for the championship
Italy could have finished with a 4-1 record this year which is remarkable. They beat Wales and Scotland, had a last-gasp chance against France fatefully taken away with the ball falling off the tee, and were in with a chance to beat England eventually only losing by three. Their match against Ireland was the only uncompetitive fixture.
The U20 side has been building for years and the top side is now bearing the fruits of that hard work. Inside centre Tommaso Menoncello is a freakish prospect. The defence led by openside Michele Lamaro and Sebastian Negri has a real edge to it that has been missing. Ange Capuozzo was the golden boy last year and this year was largely irrelevant, which shows that actually have some depth. Capturing Louis Lynagh was just a bonus.
A stronger Italy is great news for all in the tournament. Hopefully it is sustained and the results at U20 level continue.
France’s bad World Cup hangover
France were this year’s disappointment after failing to rebound from the Rugby World Cup quarter-final exit. Their balloon was popped in round one by Ireland highlighting just how much they have been impacted. The question being circulated now is, have they wasted one of the best French teams ever? And the answer is yes.
Aside from the pain of the Rugby World Cup, they have won just one Six Nations title in 2022. They should have had the spoils in 2020 and 2021 with Dupont playing at a level unrivalled in the game. They had dominant Toulouse and La Rochelle teams to build from. This should have been a dominant era for French rugby with multiple Six Nations championships even before the Rugby World Cup.
But they blew those opportunities with losses to Scotland in 2020 and 2021, despite beating the winners in those years (England and Wales).
With all the talent they’ve had in the 2020s under Fabian Galthie, they haven’t even come close to the French teams of the 2000s. Serious underachievers.
England aren’t back
While England are a ‘proper’ rugby nation, their former reputation has not been restored. It takes sustained success, of which England don’t have any currently, to earn that right. And what’s more is England’s own players should be thinking the same way, down the same line of thought that Jamie George is.
They showed they are improving with two proud performances to finish their campaign against Ireland and France. The backs started to click and show some exciting play. They can say they prevented Ireland getting a Grand Slam. That is the highest achievement of their Six Nations campaign, which for England, is a failure. Wales were awful, they nearly lost to Italy, they were dismal against Scotland and they got pipped by France.
But “we stopped Ireland from getting a Slam” is miles away from collecting the trophy on the podium, something Ireland actually did.
They travel to New Zealand in July to face the first All Blacks side of the Scott Robertson era. If Borthwick can bottle the Twickenham magic from a fortnight ago and bring it with him, they will be competitive.
If they are a tired bunch of souls mentally not ready, they will be put away like the side Borthwick captained himself in 2008. Having lived it, he is the right man to prepare the side for what is coming.
A win on New Zealand soil will truly indicate the mettle of this team and whether they are capable of winning the Six Nations anytime soon.
Wales will get kicked Down Under
Wales may have won 40-6 less than six months ago against the hopeless World Cup Wallabies, but Australia will turn the ship around very quickly.
Their Super Rugby sides have been extremely competitive against New Zealand sides meaning Joe Schmidt can pick a strong homegrown Wallabies team.
Openside flanker Fraser McReight isn’t just the form player in Australia, but the entire competition. He’s a future 100-cap Test player just coming into the peak of his powers. Harry Wilson has to play No 8 alongside him. Josh Flook isn’t the flashiest centre but he is the best one available. Schmidt can pick a side based on form and chemistry out of his top Super clubs, the Reds, Brumbies and the Waratahs and mould them with his game plan.
The Wallabies don’t need the overhyped stars and Schmidt isn’t likely to give them selection preference anyway. Wales aren’t the same team from six months ago either, and that’s why the two will collide for a World Cup reversal.
Comments on RugbyPass
Danny Care. Lang in die tand.
1 Go to commentsBig empty stadium does nothing for atmosphere but munster are playing well with solid performance
1 Go to commentsYes, Fiji can win the World Cup! With that belief plus their christian faith🙏 and hard work it is achievable. Great article. Ian Duncan Fiji resident 1981-84
2 Go to commentsInteresting comments about Touch. England’s hosting the Touch World Cup this year and the numbers have exploded since their last World Cup in 2019, something like 70% more teams and 40 nations taking part. And England Touch have made a big thing about how many universities are in their BUCS University Touch Championship as well as Sport England membership. Can only see this growing even more domestically as more people become aware of it
10 Go to comments“Cortez Ratima is light years ahead of anyone on current form, while TJ Perenara has also skyrocketed into contention following the unfortunate injury to the talented Cam Roigard.” At last some sanity. Hitherto so many pundits have been wittering on about Finlay Christie to the point one wondered if they were observing a FC in a parallel universe where the FC they saw wasnt just the mediocre Shayne Philpott project of Fosters hapless AB reign in the real world. Ratima, Perenara and Fakatava are the ONLY logical 9s for Razor now Roigard is crocked.
2 Go to commentsThis game was just as painful as the Hurricanes game. It was real fork-in-the-eye stuff.
2 Go to commentsNow if they could just fire the Crusaders ground PA guy who likes to play his dance music and just loves the sound of his own voice the entire game, even when play is going on. And I thought their brass band thing of a few years ago was bad.
5 Go to commentsUnfortunately when you lose by far the two form players this season in Roigard and Aumua, you're left replacing two game changing Tanks with a couple of pea-shooters. Which is also about the speed of TJs pass.
2 Go to commentsBit rich coming from the guy with zero loyalty to anyone or any team, including happily taking a players place in a league world cup squad because well, SBW wanted to play in it and thus an already named player got told he was no longer going. And airing stuff like this, which may or may not be true, doesn't exactly say you're a stand up guy either SBW. Just looking to keep his name in lights as usual.
38 Go to commentsTamati Tua. …the Taniwha NPC midfielder. Ollie Sapsford, Hawkes Bay NPC midfielder…doing well
2 Go to commentsFiji deserve to be in the rugby championship, fans love seeing the Fijian national team play, the Fijian Drua is a wonderful idea but the players can still be stolen to play for NZ and AUS…
2 Go to commentsThe first concern for this afternoon are wheather forecast…
1 Go to commentsWhy cant I watch Rugby games please?
1 Go to commentsBeautiful shot from Finau, end of story. Gutted for Shaun Stevenson though.
4 Go to commentsThe Chiefs definitely didn’t win ugly. They had the superior scrum, a dominant lineout, and their defence was excellent once the Waratahs scored their two tries (thanks to some lucky refereeing calls mind you). They put pressure on the Waratahs lineout throughout the game, and the mind boggles as to why the referee did not award a yellow card or a penalty try against the Waratahs for repeated scrum infringements on their own try line before Narawa’s first try. And the Chiefs were slick with their passing and running angles on attack. It was a dominant performance all round, even with many questionable refereeing decisions.
1 Go to commentsWasnt late. Ref 2 assistants andTMO all saw it so who are you to say it was?
4 Go to commentsAre the Brumbies playing the Blues twice in a row?
4 Go to commentsBig difference from the Saders. Forwards really muscled up and laid a solid platform. Scooter brought some steel and I liked the loosie combination. Newell has been rather disappointing this season but stepped up big time - happy also to see Franks dot down. He should do that more often! Reihana had a good game and there seems to be more flair and invention with him in the saddle. McNicoll plays well from the back and is reliable plus inventive when he joins the line. Keep it up chaps!
5 Go to comments🤦♂️🤣 who cares who’s the best . All I know is the All Blacks have the star coach but have few star players now …
35 Go to commentsJe suis sûr que Farrell est impatient de jouer avec Lopez et Machenaud et d’être entraîné par Collazo… 🤭
1 Go to comments