Two weeks without playing will not have been enough to disrupt the fine Irish mechanics. For the resumption of the Six Nations Tournament, the XV of Clover defeated Wales without trembling, Saturday February 24, in Dublin (31-7), and keeps its dreams of a second grand slam in a row alive, a year after being crowned on a St. Patrick’s Eve in Dublin. A few hours later, Scotland signed their fourth success in a row in the tournament against England (30-21), beautifully erasing their disappointment following the match lost to the wire against the Blues.
The green tide which successively overwhelmed France (38-17) and Italy (36-0) at the start of the tournament became more discreet on Saturday at the Aviva Stadium. In question, unusual Irish blunders, and the valor of a young, eye-catching Welsh team – much more than the score showed at the break (17-0). A less successful match than usual, but Andy Farrell’s men nevertheless ensured the essential: a third victory in three matches, with the offensive bonus, won on the gong. Enough to maintain the lead in the competition, and advance calmly towards their “final” against England on March 9 at Twickenham. A meeting during which they could “blow away” a record from the English, that of consecutive success in the tournament, after having equaled the English on Saturday by signing their eleventh victory in a row.
Duhan van der Merwe sees triple for Scotland
In his native country, Andy Farrell – also father of English star Owen Farrell, currently on sabbatical from the XV de la Rose – will have the opportunity to get closer to his troops’ objective: winning a second successive grand slam , something that no nation has accomplished since the transition to six nations in 2000. And even in the Five Nations Tournament, the thing was very rare: in the post-war period, only England (1991-1992) and France (1997-1998) achieved this flawlessly two editions in a row.
The XV de la Rose will no longer be in the race for the grand slam. In Edinburgh, the English conceded their fourth defeat in a row in the tournament on Saturday against the Scots. Two weeks after their infuriating defeat against the Blues – on a decision by the referee, choosing not to award a Scottish try to the siren – Finn Russell’s teammates retained the “Calcutta Cup” – the oldest trophy in international rugby – by getting the best of the English.
Carried by a hat-trick from their winger Duhan van der Merwe, the Chardon XV relaunched in the competition, managing – this time – not to suffer too much at the end of the match, unlike the first two matches of the tournament, against the Welsh (27-26 victory) and France (16-20). With two victories, the Scots keep alive their hopes of winning the Six Nations Tournament for the first time. But to do this, they will have to win against Italy, and especially in Ireland, on the final day, March 10. And make sure that the Blues, who host Italy on Sunday in Lille (4 p.m., to follow live on Lemonde.fr), do not get ahead of them.