| Six nations previews  Wales
France
March 18 Millennium Stadium, 3.30pm
Irish eyes will be trained on the Millenium Stadium on Saturday afternoon
as anything other than a French victory would re-ignite Ireland’s
championship chances.
France have been strangely unimpressive despite being top of the table.
They have mixed defensive frailty and Gallic flair in almost equal measure
and only in the England game did the French play at anything near their
full potential.
As their defeat to Scotland on the first day demonstrated the French are
prone to be a little arrogant when facing weaker teams and that might
be Wales best chance of causing an upset.
The men from the valleys have been in turmoil this season, the resignation
of Mike Ruddock and absence of the experienced Gareth Thomas has left
them looking rudderless and shorn of confidence. But With Gavin Henson
closer to match fitness they should improve on their dismal performance
against Ireland. Stand-in coach Brad Johnson has failed to recapture the
devil-may-care flowing rugby of last season.
Their forwards play with the same level of commitment but this is a Wales
team which relies on making quick breaks from the scrum and none of their
players looks to have the belief or composure to produce those to any
effect on Saturday.
In winning the Grand Slam last year Wales showed the can beat anyone on
their home patch and with the media spotlight firmly off them for the
first time this season they may be able to relax a little more and play
at something closer to their true potential.
If they do that, particularly with their partisan home fans behind them,
they are capable of beating any team in the world.
But with France showing signs of hitting top gear against England it’s
hard to see them surrendering the Championship in Cardiff. Complacency
and a tag as bad travellers might cause a few nervous flutters in French
hearts but ultimately Les Blues should emerge victorious by a comfortable
margin.
Verdict: France win
Scotland-Italy
March 18 Murrayfield, 1.30pm
Scotland will be hoping to end their best Six Nations campaign for a
number of seasons on a high by defeating Italy on Saturday.
These sides are polar opposites in many ways. Scotland are disciplined
and excellent in defence not having conceded a try against either England
or Ireland but rarely look like scoring a seven-pointer themselves.
Italy are improving in all areas of the pitch but are still weakest
when forced to defend against teams who playing running rugby.
With those facts in mind this could be a game where the teams cancel each
other out with a grim, hard-hitting game, decided by the line-out, packs
and place kickers with few, if any tries to thrill the crowd. Scotland
are highly organised and in Chris Paterson have a place kicker at the
top of his game.
Italy will want a victory to show for their best ever Six Nations campaign
but they may not get it against a confidence fuelled Scottish outfit.
Verdict: Scotland win
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