This weekend sees the start of 2009 RBS 6 Nations, and one of the big talking points so far this week is the axing of Danny Ciprianni for Andy Goode. While Ciprianni had a few shocking performances in December, does that warrent his exclusion from the entire squad for the 6 Nations? and is Andy Goode, now plying his trade at Brive, an adequet replacement?
What are the predictions and thoughts on this weekends fixtures which are:
England v Italy
Ireland v France
Scotland v Wales
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6 comments
Ron says:
Feb 4, 2009
Finally some good competitive rugby to kickoff the year! I recall Cipriani playing in December and he had a couple of shockers so it is not really a surprise to me that he has been dropped.
England have failed to find a replacement for Wilkinson and I do not think they ever will. There is talk that Wilkinson will make a return but i doubt he will ever be as good as he was before.
My predictions for this weekend:
England v Italy – England win
Ireland v France – Ireland win
Scotland v Wales – Wales win
I will be keeping a close eye on the 6 Nations coz these are the guys who are going to be playing for the Lions!
BP says:
Feb 4, 2009
England will sneak it but be far from convincing i feel….they rode their luck too much on jonny since late 90′s and 2000′s and didnt groom a replacement, a bit like aussie with gregan, and now they’re suffereing. you saw the difference jonny made when he played in the world cup….
those armitage brothers are being talked up a lot and i think they’re pretty solid. dont think pie-thief tindle should be there and andy goode is just as bad i feel, but maybe his time at brive will reap some benefits for england, but again, by choosing goode, they’re not really planning much for the future, they should be using this game at least to give some regular/future players opportunities…keep an eye out for that Ben Foden characteron the bench, he’s been dominating and has some serious gas….
um i reckon the french could sneak it, but it’ll be a tough ask at croke park…
wales have only won once at murray field in donkey’s years, so dont count too much on that being a given, but they shuold take that as well
dont think the lions team will be that strong this year, but thats another discussion for after the 6nations…!
Guru says:
Feb 4, 2009
Yes, finally, some good rugby coming up, just a teaser before the “BIG GUNS” next week.
Well, regarding the fixtures, I pick England, France and Wales to win. I think England are still riding on past glory, don’t think they’ll fair too well against the Welsh,French and Irish. My mmoney will be on France or Wales to take the overall title. But I must concur with BP, the Lions are being talked up so much and yet i feel they will be mauled by the boks. They may put up a good fight in the 1st test but after that, they will be our breakfast, lunch and supper….easy meat
Ron says:
Feb 4, 2009
Here we go Guru – “they will be mauled by the boks”! Those words are going to be stored here and there will be no excuses!
The boks are underestimating the Lions. Let’s just watch the 6 Nations and you will see what you will be up against.
BP says:
Feb 4, 2009
the lions will be more prepared than they were when they went and got smashed down in NZ, but i still feel they’ll be lacking in bite Ron….if the boks play to their potential they should pretty much have a clean sweep of the main matches. but again, not much can be said until we see their current form in the 6 nations. they’re main problem i feel tho will be at flyhalf as none of the northern hemisphere sides seem to be able to produce anything outside of jonny. o’gara is great playing for munster and in irish/uk weather, but down south he’s a lost cause, as can also be said of stephen jones of wales. james hook is a great talent, but still to be properly tested if he even makes the lions squad. and i’ll go for trial with the lions if goode even comes close to that red jersey…!!
BP says:
Feb 9, 2009
well, in my opinion, that was a poor start to the 6 nations, italy playing their flank at scrum half giving the english the chance to build a hefty lead, only for the italians to be more competitive once a recognized scrummie came on.
the irish game was good but i reckon that ref was fairly bias towards the irish, and not being consistant. the french played well with flair but couldnt finish, and the irish did play some good rugby, so credit to them.
the welsh were also helped by a bias ref in alain rolland in my opinion. when he started blowing fairly in the second half the scots began to dominate. the commentator for bbc, jonathan davies, is the most bias person i’ve ever listened to, and i think they should invest in some more neutral commentators coz that just ruins the game. i do think that wales did play well tho, and the scots just hardly looked threatening in the first half, and undid some of their good work with sloppy hands and bad decision making.
i think the boks can lick their lips at the thought of the lions coming over, i think man for man, the boks should front up to the lions, if not better them…all depends on pdiv’s approach and selection issues….that aside and given the first round of 6 nations, i’d back the boks for a 2-1 win against the lions…