Is Scotland v Italy in Scotland or Italy this year?

I'll go for Scotland, the Italians have a bit of fight about them

 

The wooden sporran?:P

Wow. England were actually sublime.

Against Italy, it's not that difficult... :p I admire the heart of this team but I still don't understand WHY Italy has been allowed to enter the tournament...it's not a 'rugby nation'. I feel bad every year for them...They're starting a nice collection of wooden spoon...

 

anyway, tomorrow we'll play Ireland... I'm not feeling it :confused:

Against Italy, it's not that difficult... :p I admire the heart of this team but I still don't understand WHY Italy has been allowed to enter the tournament...

 

To make the other five teams look better than they actually are?:P

looking forward to the Irish French match, as much as England have played well I don't think they're a match for either these two sides. For me, today's winner will be favourites to lift the 6N trophy.

looking forward to the Irish French match, as much as England have played well I don't think they're a match for either these two sides. For me, today's winner will be favourites to lift the 6N trophy.

 

this

early Irish try, France have hardly got out of the traps!

France have kicked themselves into a lead, Ireland discipline is very poor!

Another Irish try! 15-12

 

This game could go either way

Ireland 15-22 France

 

Irish in trouble now, France can kick their way to victory all day long!

another French penalty

 

but Irish try after 23rd phase and conversion in of the post, they're making a fight of it! :o

Ireland 22-25 France FT

 

France hold on, excellent game!

Back home, I watched the game at my parents house with my dad, which is always fun: two rugby lovers coaching the TV :D

 

Very weird game! I think I was as angry and frustrated as Marc Lièvremont during the first half, which was a nightmare to watch. Our team was totally clueless in front of this irish team who was faster and better than us. We scored by penalties, but we produced NOTHING interesting during this first half. Second one was way better (well, wasn't difficult after the terrible 40 first minutes). With the entry on the field of "old" and experimented players, we finally found some solutions! Thx to Yachvili, Jauzion & Clerc. Medard's try came from a beautiful action (finally sthg good!) and I was impressed by our combativity during the sweatdrop period where Ireland was at 5m from the finish line...what a game on both side!

We won this one thx to our strong scrum and some good fortune but the technic wasn't really there....still too many faults, hesitation, approximation...grrrrr!!

 

Now I can't wait for the "crunch" in two weeks...!!! THAT will be a tough game!! I really hope we'll see good game on both side and a 'disputed' match ^^

(and personnal message to our coach: please, pick Yachvili as first half-scrum for that one, he's always at his best during games vs England)

 

France hold on to defeat Ireland

 

Six Nations holders France clinched victory in Dublin despite scoring only one try to Ireland's three.

 

The Irish paid heavily for indiscipline as five penalties by Morgan Parra and one by his replacement Dimitri Yachvili proved to be the difference.

 

A first Test try by Fergus McFadden and a Tomas O'Leary touchdown helped Ireland to a 15-12 half-time lead.

 

Winger Maxime Medard raced through for the French try with Jamie Heaslip's score setting up an exciting finish.

 

The Irish staged a late rally but it came to nothing and Declan Kidney's men were left to reflect on their error count. Overall, they conceded 16 penalties with nine awarded against the French.

 

Ireland, knowing they needed an improved performance after sneaking a narrow win away to Italy, had made a confident start.

 

Full-back Luke Fitzgerald thought he had got in for a try in the left corner in the third minute but Gordon D'Arcy's pass to him had been forward.

 

However, the try was not long in coming as Leinster wing McFadden scored in his second Test.

 

Clement Poitrenaud was guilty of dropping the ball in his own 22, McFadden pounced on it and reappeared a few phases later to pick up and charge over from close range, with Sexton converting for 7-0.

 

France got their first point in the 12th minute through a Parra penalty after David Wallace failed to release a tackled player.

 

Sexton, though, restored Ireland's seven-point advantage after the French scrum collapsed.

 

However, Irish indiscipline in not rolling away enabled Parra to land three successful penalties which edged the visitors into a 12-10 lead. Ireland got their second try not long before half-time with O'Leary, an injury doubt all week with a stiff back, just about getting over for a try which was confirmed by the video referee.

 

Sexton sliced his conversion attempt so the Irish went in at half-time with a fragile-looking three-point advantage.

 

Parra maintained his 100% kicking record with a fifth penalty to bring the sides level before Medard scored France's only try in the 55th minute.

 

Aurelien Rougerie charged straight at D'Arcy, and when the Leinster centre missed the tackle, was able to offload the scoring pass to Medard.

 

The game seemed to be up for Kidney's men in green as the momentum was certainly with France.

 

But Ireland dug out a gutsy response and applied pressure which resulted in number eight Heaslip diving over in the corner to revive home hopes.

 

Replacement fly-half Ronan O'Gara added the two points with a touchline conversion which went in off the far upright, but France held on.

 

France will now travel to face England, the other unbeaten side in the tournament, at Twickenham on Saturday, 26 February, in a pivotal match that could decide the likely destination of the title.

 

Ireland will head to Murrayfield to face winless Scotland in a fortnight.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/9396342.stm

England 9 - France 9

tough to call this one, could even end in a draw!

the crunch is just what I was expected.... 9-9, it could go either way...

if England can't beat France at home, there's no way they'll beat Ireland in Ireland. A draw or a win for France in the next 40 mins and we can kiss goodbye to the 6N

Congratulations, Jonny Wilkinson!:cool:

Congratulations, Jonny Wilkinson!:cool:

 

this even if he takes Dan Carter's first place:)

This second half is a nightmare.... and congrats to Jonny (who play here now :p )

 

--edit------

 

Congrats England! You guys did a fabulous 2nd half while us... :facepalm:

good game England:)

this even if he takes Dan Carter's first place:)

 

He deserves it, because he's an absolute legend.:smug:

 

Unbeaten England edge past France

 

England gave their Grand Slam hopes a major boost as they ended defending champions France's eight-match winning streak in the Six Nations.

 

Toby Flood kicked England into a 9-3 lead but Dimitri Yachvili's boot made it 9-9 at the break.

 

Ben Foden's try saw England go back in front before Jonny Wilkinson resumed his position as the leading Test points scorer with a penalty. After three games England are now the only team with a 100% record. Victory at home to Scotland on 12 March would send them to Dublin for their final game, in pursuit of a first Grand Slam since 2003.

 

France claimed their own Grand Slam last year with a nervy victory at home to England and it was another gripping encounter at Twickenham, where heavy pre-match rain led to greasy conditions and made handling difficult throughout.

 

England started well before letting the French back into the game but, once they sorted out their problems at the breakdown and cut out the unforced errors, the hosts looked increasingly assured.

 

Martin Johnson's men managed to steal the first French line-out and then got a big drive on at the first scrum to earn the opening penalty of the match, which Flood duly drilled between the sticks from wide on the left.

 

France's narrow win over England in Paris last year had been based on their advantage at the scrum and it was a big statement from the English eight that things would be different this time, but the hosts immediately squandered their advantage from the restart.

 

They secured the kick-off comfortably but shovelled the ball down the line and Shontayne Hape was buried by the French defence in front of his posts.

 

The Bath centre was inevitably penalised for holding on and recalled scrum-half Yacvhili, who kicked France to victory in 2005 when they last won at Twickenham, levelled the scores.

 

A second penalty at the scrum in England's favour was soon followed by two French off-sides in five minutes and Flood kicked the hosts into a 9-3 lead with just over quarter-of-an-hour played.

 

Despite the slippery ball England were putting together some flowing attacks but once again silly play immediately handed France the chance to cut the gap.

 

Talismanic France number eight Sebastien Chabal was hammered back in a double tackle by Nick Easter and Dan Cole but, when the ball popped loose, Easter could not resist illegally using his hand in the ensuing ruck to push the ball back.

 

It was right in front of referee George Clancy and Yachvili trimmed the gap to three points.

 

Two minutes later France got the better of England at a scrum for the first time and the resulting penalty saw Yachvili level the scores.

 

It was a bad moment for Johnson's men because they also lost loose-head prop Andrew Sheridan, making his comeback after the back problem that kept him out of the Italy game, to a calf injury sustained in the scrum.

 

After England's early dominance France had come roaring back into the game, helped by a lack of composure from the hosts, and the travelling fans responded with a rousing chorus of La Marseillaise.

 

Les Bleus were also beginning to get the upper hand at the breakdown as England's reluctance to commit sufficient numbers began to cost them.

 

On the stroke of half-time Yachvili missed a long-range penalty that would have given the visitors the lead for the first time, but after England's problems in the first half, it was France's turn to struggle at the re-start at the beginning of the second half.

 

Tom Palmer - who went on to take man-of-the-match honours - charged down Yachvili's clearance to kick to set up a threatening position and although Mark Cueto was held just short of the line, when England swept the ball to the left, Foden showed pace and power to finish well.

 

Flood could not convert from the touchline but he nearly set up a second try almost immediately.

 

The England number 10 appeared to combine sweetly with Ben Youngs before the scrum-half sent Chris Ashton cruising over for what would have been his seventh try of the championship, but Flood's return pass to his Leicester team-mate was ruled to be forward, making Ashton's trademark swallow-dive superfluous.

 

Just as in the first quarter of the match, England were back in control, aided by committing more men to the breakdown.

 

They saw Flood limp off but Wilkinson came on to retake the Test points scoring record from New Zealand's Dan Carter, lifting his total to 1190 and giving England an eight-point lead with 30 minutes to play.

 

Once again indiscipline at the re-start from England gave France a shot at goal but Yachvili could only hit the woodwork. Just before the hour mark the otherwise impressive Aurelien Rougerie knocked on as he tried to dot down a Francois Trinh-Duc grubber kick over the English line.

 

If either chance had gone France's way they could have been right back in the game but the luck was on England's side and the longer the game went on the more secure they looked.

 

Ashton butchered a chance with a wild pass after a typical break through the middle from a Wilkinson inside pass and Tindall had a late try disallowed for a double movement after a surging attack by the hosts.

 

But despite their inability to add to their total they kept France scoreless in the second half as Johnson's England moved within two victories of a Grand Slam.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/9406593.stm

 

Italy 16-24 Wales

 

Wales secured a second 2011 Six Nations away win as they held off Italy's stern challenge at Stadio Flaminio in Rome.

 

James Hook kicked a vital late drop-goal to keep the Azzurri at bay in a frenzied, mistake-ridden clash. Italy's Gonzalo Canale scored the opening try, with Morgan Stoddart levelling and Sam Warburton getting Wales' second.

 

Stephen Jones kicked eight points and Hook the vital drop-goal, but Mirco Bergamasco missed three shots at goal. Having lost 26-19 in their opener to England and won 24-6 against Scotland at Murrayfield, Warren Gatland's side can now look forward to their 12 March showdown in Cardiff against Ireland. Wales seemed to be on top in the opening stages, setting up the opening penalty for fly-half Jones after three minutes only to gift the Azzurri the chance that led to the opening try. Having entered the game determined to move Italy's pack around, Wales fell victim to their own approach.

 

Hook launched an attack outside his 22-metre line, but lock Bradley Davies' poor pass left Stoddart unable to gather. Instead Italy centre Canale picked up before kicking ahead and inevitably beating Davies to the line. The visitors struck back through Stoddart for a score awarded by the video referee amid the frantic action that showed no sign of abating.

 

Amid the constant movement and regular mistakes and misjudgements, the Welsh scrum was under pressure and their taking at the restarts left much to be desired. But those fundamental aspects of the Welsh first-half performance were countered by Italy's shaky line-out. Even so the Azzurri were able to draw level after 12 minutes when Mirco Bergamasco made up for his earlier fluffed conversion by striking his first penalty attempt. Wales number eight Ryan Jones looked to be in trouble when he took a blow to his right shoulder in a tackle on hooker Leonardo Ghiraldini.

 

But he recovered to watch as Shane Williams, celebrating his 34th birthday, launched the move that led to Wales' second try. Williams took scrum-half Fabio Semenzato's poor clearance under no pressure, moved infield and sent Lee Byrne through a gap in Italy's disjointed defence.

 

Hook took the move on and found Warburton at his shoulder, the flanker running in for his first Test try for Jones to convert. Warburton then thwarted an Italian threat with some good work, only to kick ahead when his defensive efforts paid dividends and Mitchell came away with the ball only for the flanker to ignore the overlap outside him.

 

But Wales were able to claim a 10-point interval lead after Stephen Jones penalties. First the fly-half punished prop Martin Castrogiovanni for lying on Mike Phillips after halting the scrum-half's charge in which he flattened opposite number Semenzato. Then lock Santiago Dellape fell offside, allowing the Welsh 10 to give his side a 21-11 half-time lead.

 

Bergamasco was unable to do likewise after visiting skipper Matthew Rees' high tackle, his shot going wide. But the Azzurri had the upper hand in the third quarter forward exchanges, their big ball-carriers up front causing big problems for Wales while underlining their superiority in the scrums. Williams stole away with loose possession and kicked ahead only for Hook's follow-up hack to bounce into touch in goal.

 

As Italy pressed again the pressure on Wales' defence finally told for home skipper Sergio Parisse to hold off Jones' challenge and cross at the corner. Bergamasco was again off target with the conversion, leaving them five points from the lead. But Italy were at least able to revel in an attacking game that belied their reputation for being unable to profit anywhere other than up front.

 

There was relief for Wales when Castrogiovanni was penalised at a scrum deep in the visitors' 22, but a not-straight throw-in by Rees at a line-out 15 minutes from time reminded Wales they remained vulnerable. Rees' mistake led to the scrum penalty which replacement fly-half Luciano Orquera also failed to convert. Wales were under pressure throughout most of the second period, but it was to no avail as, in a rare moment in Italy territory, their forwards gave Hook enough time and space to drop the goal that allowed them to hold out.

 

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/9406749.stm