Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

[Ray de Galles]

Thought I'd start this one up. Can't see beyond Ireland for winners this season but doubt there will be another slam with the way the fixtures pan out.

I have avoided watching Wales play England at Twickenham all my life for fear of the way I would respond to the home crowd but I have now excepted a ticket for Saturday. I can't work out if the fact I am not drinking at the moment will make it worse or better.

Is Eggchaser retired from here now?

[Kid A]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Ireland have to start as strong favourites. They're a good side and everyone else is struggling.

England team to play Wales:
Armitage (London Irish); M Cueto (Sale Sharks), M Tait (Sale Sharks), R Flutey (Brive), U Monye (Harlequins); J Wilkinson (Toulon), D Care (Harlequins); T Payne (Wasps), D Hartley (Northampton), D Wilson (Bath), S Shaw (Wasps), S Borthwick (Saracens, capt), J Haskell (Stade Francais), L Moody (Leicester), N Easter (Harlequins).

Replacements: S Thompson (Brive), D Cole (Leicester), L Deacon (Leicester), S Armitage (London Irish), P Hodgson (London Irish), T Flood (Leicester), B Foden (Northampton).

Looks a weak front row to me. Backs should be better for the return of Armitage & Flutey. Big chance for Tait who hasn't played at 13 for England in a long time.

[Pretend Best Friend]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

I will also be at Twickenham on Saturday.

Hopefully nowhere near Harry.

[rick derris]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

I have done the "wales getting stuffed at twickenham" experience. A horrific time and boy were they stuffed!

[Pretend Best Friend]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

#freeleebyrne campaign successful!

[Tubby Isaacs]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Eggchaser seems to present the cricket on Sky Sports sometimes, but he pops up here too.

[TMA]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Welsh team for the England game:

Lee Byrne (Ospreys); Tom James (Blues), James Hook (Ospreys), Jamie Roberts (Blues), Shane Williams (Ospreys); Stephen Jones (Scarlets); Gareth Cooper (Blues); Gethin Jenkins (Blues), Gareth Williams (Blues), Adam Jones (Ospreys), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys), Luke Charteris (Dragons), Andy Powell (Blues), Martyn Williams (Blues), Ryan Jones (Ospreys, capt).

I guess they think Tom James is a better match-up with Ugo Monye, on the wing. I've seen very little club rugby outside of Heineken Cup games, but surely Richie Rees or Martin Roberts could do a better job at 9 than Gareth bloody Cooper.

I think I'd have Gough in over Charteris as well, as a match-up with Simon Shaw.

With England's home advantage, it looks like a bit of a coin-toss to me.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

I didn't understand the question. Is it Ireland's to lose? Well, yes, they won it last year. Emphatically. So, by any measure, they are the only country who have it "to lose".

Is it Ireland's to win? would have been a better question. Personally, I think no. I think Wales are going to bound back this year, like they periodically do. And Scotland always like it when it's bloody freezing, as well.

[Brandenburger Toro]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

I think we've every chance of winning it again, very possibly even a Slam, but it's going to be tough. We've the best side, I think, but also a hell of a draw.

And a lot is going to hinge on refereeing of the scrum. Everywhere else on the pitch, I think we're on paper the outstanding team.

[Ray de Galles]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Two major problems for Wales;

Wales prop Gethin Jenkins is out of the Six Nations match against England on Saturday with a calf injury.

Paul James takes his place at loose-head, with uncapped Rhys Gill coming onto the bench for the Twickenham game.

The news follows the loss of Jenkins' British & Irish Lions team-mate Matthew Rees to a calf injury - the hooker's place taken by Gareth Williams.

This hits us at the very place we would have hoped to have dominated.

My attitude to Cooper at scrum-half is the same at TMA's , mystified and fearful.

[TMA]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Yeah, Jenkins out is a big loss.

I was looking forward to seeing one of England's 'new and exciting' running back line being caught and tackled by a prop.

Just read that Rikki Flutey's out for England, with Flood coming in to replace him. That makes England's backline look very lightweight.

[Brandenburger Toro]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Another injury for Ireland; O'Callaghan is out, replaced by Leo Cullen.

That's Ferris, Fitzgerald, Leamy, Geordan Murphy, and O'Callaghan all crocked, Horan not back fit, and neither of our hookers having played much this season; yet we don't look much under strength. It's a nice place to be...

[Levin]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Toro, I'm surprised you haven't been bewailing the absence of Saxon. Or am I confusing posters here?

[Brandenburger Toro]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Nope, that's me, assuming you mean Sexton; but he's injured at the moment.

Anyway, with Cullen and McLaughlin in the side, there are too many Southsiders as it is...

I should have had him in the crock-list, though.

[Levin]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Oh yes Sexton not Saxon.

Can Italy get a win this year? Or is that an even longer shot than ever given how much better Scotland looked in the Autumn?

[Brandenburger Toro]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

A lot hinges on Gower, I think. If he comes good, they could do things. But more than Scotland's improvement, the fact that Parisse is out for the season is a massive, massive blow for them.

[The Awesome Berbaslug!!!]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Oh god, is this on again. perhaps they should hold it every four years or something like a proper international tournament. I feel that every year runs the risk of diluting the tournaments magic.

[Commodore]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

A slam seems unlikely, if Ireland are to retain the title then they'll have to win at Twickenham or Paris; a tall order I reckon.

Scotland could be dark horses here; Robinson has a point to prove and there's enough close games to suggest that four wins out of five might just do.

[Levin]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Well, at least the bar hasn't been set too high for the rest of the competition.

[Rogin the Armchair fan]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Nice stat from Guscott's researchers ahead of the England- Wales game : they're tied at 53-53 in wins, with a few draws chucked in.

So whoever wins tonight goes ahead again in that particular series.

[Wyatt Earp]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

All four sides so far pretty poor. England with the saving graces of (a) some lucky breaks and (b) a collectively fairly cool head when they got them.

Someone needs to improve or it's France at a canter, unless of course they're also poor.

[Fausto]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Yellow card was the difference. AW Jones deserves his dressing down.

[TMA]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

Yeah, the sin bin screwed us, but we also had a dysfunctional line-out and seemed to drop 90% of the contested high balls.

And we had Gareth Cooper, of course.

[Tubby Isaacs]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

I was playing with the cat and not wholly concentrating but didn't I see an excellent bit of analysis by Andy Nicol which showed Simon Shaw tripping a Welsh player who was then out of position for one of the tries?

I like the fact that rugby union isn't like football, but a bit more hysteria about that would be good.

[Guest]

Six Nations - Ireland's to lose?

That's true, Tubby; there was a certain amount of - ahem - entanglement between the two players away from the ball which provided the space for the England player to run into (Danny Care's try, was it?).

On an afternoon when everyone was pretty poor, Italy were the worst, bringing a new dimension to 'slow ball.'