Here we go, Round Three…

Sorry, Wales. I don’t think you have a hope against Ireland.

Sorry, Italy. I love the way you play but you’re not strong enough to trouble this French team.

Which leaves the Calcutta Cup. England have shown that they can be good enough, but the Scots always play out of their skins against them. Tough call.

Hope Ted Hill gets a run out. Such a good player totally deserves the opportunity

Interesting afternoon.

Apologies to Wales for writing you off. Showed some real fight but Ireland know how to win.

Discussion point: 20-minute red card? The idea is that it is supposed to punish the player, not the team. I’m really not sure about that; I know he is Welsh, but I think I agree with Jiffy that that was a straight red all day long.

And yet another one point game? I know Scotland fans will feel hard done by, with some justification, but as I said earlier in this thread I do enjoy these close finishes, even if my blood pressure doesn’t. England were not great, Scotland played better attacking rugby and their backs are formidable, but in the end they gave away too many kickable penalties.

Great improvement from the Welsh today, fingers crossed we can keep it going. Really enjoyed both games today. Lions selections will be interesting some great players to choose from

Amor Vincit Omnia wrote: ↑Sat Feb 22, 2025 8:15 pm And yet another one point game? I know Scotland fans will feel hard done by, with some justification, but as I said earlier in this thread I do enjoy these close finishes

Scotland fell apart for a chunk of the second half and gave away what felt like a gazillion penalties. Finn’s last conversion attempt was a tricky angle, and dripping in pressure. Shame it missed, but c’est la vie.

It’s way too late to moan about it, but I felt the one England try was held up.

What’s quite weird however is that I caught the game highlights on the ITV 10pm news, and…. they showed all three Scotland tries, and a couple of the England kicks. But not the England try,

Went to YouTube and - the Guiness highlights include said try, but not any angle that would support that the ball was grounded.

Same for the BBC highlights on YouTube.

Same for the BBC highlights on iPlayer.

Weird!

The only place the footage is still available from all angles would appear to be the original ITV live footage. Where I still don’t see a ball grounded……

If I was the paranoid type I’d think…. hang on…, what was that noise behind me?……….

I was really pleased and relieved to see Wales play so much better earlier. I never thought we would win, but the manner of play was great and there were some encouraging individual performances.

Scotland were really unlucky. I thought the referee was poor all-round, and the England try was never grounded. England were mostly turgid to watch, as usual, other than a few magical breaks from the likes of Marcus Smith. If only Finn Russell had had his kicking boots on, things would have been different. But Scotland are their own worst enemies at times, especially with discipline.

mik wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 1:56 am The only place the footage is still available from all angles would appear to be the original ITV live footage. Where I still don’t see a ball grounded……

There's no angle that shows a clear grounding. That said, the person with the best view of the whole situation was standing in exactly the right place a few feet away with a perfect line of sight, and luckily he had the whistle in his hand.

welshlad wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 2:10 am Scotland were really unlucky.

I think so too. 3 tries to 1, stats on possession, territory, yardage gains, almost everything (except penalties and kicks, result and table points) heavily in Scotland’s favour.

And yet, I was discussing this with a patriotic yet rational Scottish friend of mine last night. Do you think, he asked, that if all the stats were reversed, including the result, most Scottish supporters would bemoan England’s bad luck? No, it would be hailed as a mighty, plucky, Braveheart victory against the **** English. Take the win and move on, he said.

I lived in Scotland for ten years. He’s right, as a supporter of a team or nation. But as a supporter of the game in the wider context, so are you.

As we suspected, the big game will be Ireland v France, but which French team will turn up? The one that savaged Wales and sparkled in the second half in Rome, or the one that fluffed its lines at Twickenham? Irish Grand Slam or a championship that hinges on bonus points and points differential? Should be interesting.

I thought the French were very impressive today, and it wasn't even their strongest team. It was a very entertaining match all round.

Ireland v France should be a cracker. The last time they met at the Aviva, it was a belter, with Penaud's long-range try and Dupont's physics-defying tackle on Mack Hansen.

welshlad wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 9:08 pm I thought the French were very impressive today, and it wasn't even their strongest team. It was a very entertaining match all round.

They were.

I was out walking earlier with George and Miranda Ponsonby-Ffoxwalloper, Lady Philippa, Joost van der Brikhuis and Georgina the stable girl. We got to the Swan & Sledgehammer around 3:15 and Italy were 7-0 up. Watched the rest of the game over a couple of pints of Old Diuretic. Joost wasn’t that impressed, but he’s a Bok, man.

Interesting day. Whilst it was always likely that Ireland-France could go either way, the French dominance and margin of victory was quite emphatic, especially considering they were without Dupont for most of the game. Lucu did well. With the French points differential there’s no way back for Ireland, they will be settling for second place.

Before that rather exciting late comeback Scotland seemed to be carving Wales to pieces. The way they hung in and fought back indicates that they are a side on the up, and England will need to look to their laurels next week. They looked very fragile in defence, but then so do England. Looking at both the Scottish and French sides yesterday, how the hell did England manage to beat either of them? Certainly it was a very different looking French team that turned up in Dublin.

One of the best games for quite some time, Steve

France’s, Bielle-Biarrey was sensational.

Now for England v Italy. Always like the Italian anthem, about as much as I dislike ours. An anthem should inspire you, not depress you

TheBeatles wrote:Always like the Italian anthem, about as much as I dislike ours. An anthem should inspire you, not depress you

If it's any consolation, Brian, it's not your anthem. It's the UK anthem. England hasn't got a national anthem. So, there is scope for an upbeat English one to be written or adopted.

And, I agree, Bielle-Biarrey is absolutely sensational.

welshlad wrote: ↑Sun Mar 09, 2025 3:22 pm
If it's any consolation, Brian, it's not your anthem. It's the UK anthem. England hasn't got a national anthem. So, there is scope for an upbeat English one to be written or adopted.

It’s a bit annoying to say the least. All the other Home nations have their own. But I if recall correctly the RFU chose to keep it rather than change to something like “Jerusalem” or “Land Of Hope And Glory”.

I usually mute it and the Scottish one (don’t like that one either)

Italian, Welsh and French ones are inspiring. You can tell by the players faces. Plus I like when the Irish crowd sing “Fields Of Athenry”.

Anyway, rant over. Now for the game!!