France, Italy and England registered wins on a dramatic opening weekend of the Six Nations.
Here, we look at five things that were learned from round one.
England march on
One game in and England are looking every inch the title contenders talked up inside and outside the camp, with their destructive first half in a 48-7 savaging of Wales confirmation of their resurgence under Steve Borthwick. Steve Tandy’s side were woeful, but England still displayed patience and ruthlessness as they built an unassailable lead. Tries were left out on the field after the interval, their bench failed to provide any impact and Tommy Freeman at outside centre is still a work in progress, but they will rightly head to Murrayfield on Saturday with a swagger after such an emphatic start to the tournament.
Crisis-stricken Wales limp on
How far Wales have fallen was laid bare in a first-half at Twickenham that brought about their 12th-successive Six Nations defeat dating back to 2023. These are grim times for Welsh rugby and Tandy, their head coach, must now regroup his players in time for Sunday’s visit of France to Cardiff. It is a mountainous task because they appear to have hit rock bottom and addressing the self-destructive indiscipline that cost them dear against England is imperative ahead of round two.
Townsend under pressure
Italy’s ambush of Scotland at a Stadio Olimpico lashed by torrential rain is a welcome development for the Six Nations, but the alarm bells will be ringing louder than ever in Edinburgh. Head coach Gregor Townsend was forced to field questions about his future in response to the 18-15 loss as patience wears thin with a regime that has consistently failed to make a talented team add up to the sum of its parts. Coming after a disappointing autumn, the pressure on Townsend will only grow if they are unable to wrestle back the Calcutta Cup from England. On recent evidence, Scotland are going backwards.
Farrell considers changes
“This Irish team are on the ropes and everyone is coming after them,” former Ireland second row Donncha O’Callaghan said after Andy Farrell’s men had been swept aside 36-14 in Paris to add momentum to the slide that began in last year’s Six Nations. Although ravaged by injury – especially in the front row – Farrell refused to excuse a passive display and is now weighing up whether to swing the axe in search of a reaction against Italy. Fly-half Sam Prendergast is among those looking over his shoulder after his defensive frailties were exposed once again.
Champions France lay down a marker
France looked unstoppable as they surged to a 29-0 lead against heavyweight rivals Ireland, showing an array of strengths including the slickness of their finishing. But there were enough signs of vulnerability in the third quarter to give England hope of preventing their Six Nations title defence turning into a procession. A drop off in intensity saw their grip on the game loosened, allowing Ireland back in and a rising England side will see an inconsistency to be exploited.