The bruising battles that make up the RBS Six Nations 2018 will be kicking off in early February and it is England look to step out against their rivals to defend the crown that they have won in the last two seasons. Will anyone be able to knock them off their perch this time around? Last year the action threw up a really competitive competition with France, Ireland and Scotland all taking points off of each other in the challenge to catch England.
It was the rise of the Scots which was one of the most notable features of the 2017 Six Nations Championship and it will be interesting to see how well they go this season. Can they push on? The action starts on February 3rd, 2018 with Wales v Scotland in what should be heated battle at the Millennium Stadium, especially after the Scots snapped a record nine-match losing streak against the Welsh. Will the Grand Slam be achieved? Will anyone get the Triple Crown?
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Reigning Champions
England goes to the tournament as the reigning champions as they look to try and pull off a three-peat. They are even money at Boylesports to win the Six Nations this season as well. They have won it in the last two years and if they were to manage to land another Six Nations title this time around, they would create history, being the first side in the Six Nations format of the competition to have won it three times in a row. Twice before they have been in this position and have failed to convert. England streaked away to the title last year, winning their opening four matches and they were helped out by a competitive battle behind them with Ireland, France and Scotland all talking points off each other. England were denied the Grand Slam once again though as Ireland took them down in Dublin in the final round of matches.
Betting Odds
England Even money, Ireland 7/5, Scotland 12/1, Wales 16/1, France 20/1, Italy 1500/1
Fixtures
Week 1:
Wales v Scotland (February 3rd)
France v Ireland (February 3rd)
Italy v England (February 4th)
Week 2:
Ireland v Italy (February 10th)
England v Wales (February 10th)
Scotland v France (February 11th)
Week 3
France v Italy (February 23rd)
Ireland v Wales (February 24th)
Scotland v England (February 24th)
Week 4
Ireland v Scotland (March 10th)
France v England (March 10th)
Wales v Italy (March 11th)
Week 5
Italy v Scotland (March 17th)
England v Ireland (March 17th)
Wales v France (March 17th)
Main Contenders
England are the frontrunners, trading as even money favourites at Boylesports to land the title for the third season running. They have been taken to a new level under Eddie Jones and will be the ones to catch. They are blessed with a lot of talent and while they struggled to get going at times last season, especially early on in matches, they will be better and stronger for the experience. This time around, while they do have to go to France, they will get a final home game against Ireland and that could be crucial. Last season they were denied the Grand Slam for the fifth time in the history of the Six Nations (third time by the Irish).
Ireland themselves, having earned great wins over South Africa and New Zealand in the last couple of years, they are the only ones to have beaten England with Eddie Jones as boss of the Red Rose. There were some vulnerabilities with them last season as both Wales and Scotland got the better of them, and those were blows which damaged their chance of catching England in the long run. But they are on the up, without question and are likely going to be the only ones who can actually stop England from winning the title and they will have appeal in the Boylesports Six Nations 2018 winners market. Will it come down to a final weekend decider between the two?
Other Challengers
Scotland earned themselves a lot of plaudits last season for a much more positive approach to the game. Will they be able to get under the skin of the likes of Wales and Ireland again? They probably are not going to be able to push on enough to get in the mix for the championship, but under Gregor Townsend, they reached a high of 5th in the IRB World Rankings and their win over Australia last year will have made even more people sit up and take notice.
Wales just went missing last season in terms of performance quality and commitment. They did have a great chance to beat England last season were it not for the misfiring boot of Jonathan Davies but they just overall weren’t sharp enough or competitive enough on a consistent basis. They didn’t put in too bad of performances in the Autumn Internationals, but they still look a bit rough around the edges are likely looking at a mid-table finish.
France were a little better last season to what they have been, but they are lacking a spark. The home support doesn’t fully seem to believe in them and with a change of coach again it is just more turmoil and a lack of stability there. There is just little continuity with them and while they will challenge in their big home games against Ireland and England, they are still likely to come up short. As for Italy, coach Conor O’Shea has actually given them a little lift despite losing all games last season. They have some exciting players but are likely to need at least another year under O’Shea to get themselves going. Wooden spoon.
Prediction
England are the ones to beat and they are likely going to land the Championships Title. The crucial game could be on Week 5 when they play host to Ireland. They would surely have to get it right this time around against the men in green. Ireland would have to stamp out those drops in levels which saw them lose crucial games last season. England just look more settled and have more depth to grind their way to the title, but the Grand Slam may elude them.
