Six Nations: Three big takeaways from Round two
IN THE SPOTLIGHT: Ireland and Scotland were left as the only teams in the 2023 Six Nations still in with a chance of a Grand Slam after impressive wins over France and Wales respectively, while England recorded a first victory under coach Steve Borthwick.
Keenan shows his class for Ireland
There has long been the belief that if you stop flyhalf Johnny Sexton, you stop Ireland’s attack.
But the world’s top-ranked nation now have threats across their back division and these were on show during a stunning 32-19 win over Grand Slam champions France in Dublin on Saturday.
A sensational first half was reckoned by many observers to be one of the best opening 40 minutes in Test rugby history.
It sparked into life when, after fine play by No.8 Caelan Doris and prop Finlay Bealham, Ireland fullback Hugo Keenan ran a cleverly delayed line behind a couple of decoy runners to open the scoring with a brilliantly crafted try.
Keenan was a constant thorn in France’s side, running over 200 metres in the match, with Les Bleus’ defenders having to worry about his incursions from deep in a match where veteran stand-off Sexton left the field in the 47th minute.
Scotland’s Fagerson makes the hard yards
Finn Russell grabbed the headlines for orchestrating Scotland’s record 35-7 thrashing of Wales at Murrayfield, the flyhalf pulling the strings with a series of superb kicks and passes that were behind several of the hosts’ five tries.
But Russell was able to take centre stage in Edinburgh on the back of another hugely committed effort by the Scotland pack.
As in last week’s win over England, they provided quality ball for their playmaker while also contributing to a sound defensive effort that restricted Wales to a lone try.
Matt Fagerson made his presence felt at the breakdown and in the set-piece before rounding off a fine individual display, scoring Scotland’s last try when well-positioned out wide to take advantage of Russell’s excellent floated pass.
#ICYMI: Nothing but praise for World Class Finn Russell https://t.co/W9ABXPVZX1
— rugby365.com (@rugby365com) February 13, 2023
England’s Willis comes full circle
Recalled flank Jack Willis led the way for England in a morale-boosting 31-14 win over Italy with a fine all-round display.
Not only did he score the opening try, but the back-row forward starred in defence, making 20 tackles in the 53 minutes he was on the field.
In the corresponding 2021 fixture, Willis came off the bench to score a try against Italy, only to suffer a severe injury to his right knee minutes later that kept him on the sidelines for a year.
This season has seen Willis having to cope with the upheaval of club side Wasps’ financial collapse, which led to a move to French giants Toulouse.
None of that emotional baggage was evident in Willis’ performance on Sunday, even if it weighed heavily on his mind.
“It was pretty much two years to this week that I did my knee here against Italy, so it was a little bit emotional leading up to the game,” he told reporters.
“But you’ve got to focus week to week because if you try and think about the bigger picture it gets you down a little bit. I’m very lucky to be at a great club that are looking after me in Toulouse.”
The 26-year-old added: “Emotion took over a little bit after the try. There was a lot of emotion I feel to play in an England shirt, and I looked up and saw the crowd.”
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