Six Nations: Week 5 Review
A scrappy affair in Rome saw Italy avoid the Wooden Spoon for a sixth year in a row beating Scotland 13-6. It means that the Scot's head coach Andy Robinson, will come under more scrutiny after a lacklustre performance by Scotland.
The game was fought between the kickers with Mirco Bergamasco striking first to give the home side an early lead when he put three points on the board but Greig Laidlaw levelled the scores on half time. Scotland were reduced to 14 men after the restart and Giovanbattista Venditti punished them by scoring the game's only try giving Italy a commanding 10-3 lead with Bergamasco adding the conversion. Jim Hamilton was put in the bin after dangerous play and then Alessandro Zanni joined him soon after as Laidlaw replied to give the Scot's a chance of stealing the win but Kris Burton popped up to score a late drop goal and condemn the visitors to a first whitewash since 2004.
Italy started the better of the two sides in the opening ten minutes as they showed the strength of their forward pack, working themselves into the Scottish 22. The home side started to go through the phases but were unable to penetrate the visitors defence but they were gifted a three point opportunity when Jim Hamilton entered the ruck from side forcing Alain Rolland to award the penalty. Mirco Bergamasco stepped up and put the kick between the posts to give Italy a 3-0 lead.
The Scot's continued to struggle with David Denton failing to release the ball after running it from the scrum and conceding another penalty. Rolland then called the penalty forward another ten metres after back chat by one of the Scottish players. Bergamasco lined up the kick but failed to connect with it properly as it sailed past the left post.
The home side maintained their domination in possession but lacked creativity to break through. Scotland finally broke out of their own half on 35 minutes as they forced Martin Castrogiovanni into knocking the ball forward with the scrum making a mistake as well. Greig Laidlaw took it upon him to kick to goal from the halfway line and superbly put the penalty through the sticks to level the scores.
The Azzurri bounced back straight from the restart going through the phases, bearing down on the visitors try line. The half went from bad to worse for Scotland after Nick De Luca was put in the sin bin for intentionally popping the ball out from the grasp of Gonzalo Canale but the penalty attempt from Bergamasco was dragged to right of the posts as the teams went into the break with the score tied at 3-3.
The extra player for Italy proved key in the first ten minutes of the second half as they scored the games only try to the delight of the home crowd. Quick recycling of the ball proved too much for Scotland as Venditti found space and handed off full back Stuart Hogg to go over under the posts. Burton easily added the conversion to give the Italians a seven point lead.
Nick De Luca returned to the fray where Scotland still continued to make unforced errors on the ball and couldn't relent the pressure put on them by Italy. Rolland gave his second yellow card of the game, again to Scotland after Hamilton was deemed to have obstructed play in the air from the lineout seeing the Scot's reduced to 14 men for a second time. The visitors kept their discipline and gave the home side no quarter as they managed to reduce the gap to four points with Laidlaw kicking from the touchline after Zanni was blown up for going off his feet at the ruck.
The match changed in favour of the Scot's as Zanni received a yellow card for the same offense as Hamilton after tackling Kellock in the air as the visitors tried everything to get back into the game but Burton put through a late drop goal to seal the victory for Italy.
Jacques Brunel will be delighted with his side's win, as this game was more about the result rather than quality of rugby. They worked well in the scrum and stole a number of Scotland's line outs but lacked a cutting edge on the attack and with the boot as they could have won the game by more than six points. Under the new management, Italy have alot more work that needs to be done.
Robinson's side played very poorly throughout the game and deserved the infamous Wooden Spoon. They never really got started in the first half and better kicking from Italy would have seen them lose by a bigger margin. What does the future hold for Andy Robinson?
Italy (3) 13
Tries: Venditti
Conversions: Burton
Penalties: Bergamasco
Drop Goal: Burton
Scotland (3) 6
Penalties: Laidlaw
Wales secured their third Grand Slam in eight years after a tight game at the Millennium Stadium saw them run out 16-9 winners over France. A physical game between the sides saw a solitary try scored by Alex Cuthbert, who cancelled out Dmitri Yachvili's early penalty to give the home side a 7-3 lead halfway through the first half. Leigh Halfpenny added three points to their lead to put the home side 10-3 up at the break.
The second half became a tight affair with both sets of defences featuring highly in the game, as Lionel Beauxis and Halfpenny traded penalties with the latter sinking a magnificent 52 yard kick. A late penalty from Yachvili increased the nerves of the Millennium Stadium crowd but childish play from substitute Francois Trinh-Duc saw Halfpenny restore Wales's six point lead and hold out to lift the RBS Six Nations trophy.
Wales flew out of the traps with Rhys Priestland offloading to Jonathan Davies but he was tackled just short of the line. France hit back through Dmitri Yachvili when Gethin Jenkins was penalised for bringing down a rampaging French maul. Yachvili kicked the penalty through to give the visitors an 11th minute lead. Shortly after, Rhys Priestland had the opportunity to bring Wales level with the French but his kick rebounded off the post to the relief of the visitors.
The French slowly made their way up the field towards the Welsh 22 but a crunching tackle from Dan Lydiate on Thierry Dusautior saw him relinquish the ball which Priestland picked up and passed to Cuthbert. Cuthbert ducked and weaved through three challenges down the wing and dived over to give Wales a try. Halfpenny added the extras to put the home side in control of the match.
The creative and free flowing France side we had come to know were wasteful in possession as on a number of occasions, they punted the ball forward. The French defence stayed strong for the duration of the half as they kept out Wales until a challenge from Davies saw the ball come loose and the play driven back as France tried desperately to recover the ball, the following ruck ended in a penalty to the home side after a number of players were found to be off their feet. Halfpenny, who had taken over the kicking duties from Priestland, increased the gap to seven points.
After the break, it was the French who came flying out the blocks as they drove forward with numbers on the far side. The ball was chipped through but the bounce went against the visitors as Jenkins managed to regain the ball but conceded the penalty. Beauxis stepped up and put his kick from the far side through the sticks to decrease the gap from seven points to four.
Five minutes later, strong defending by Wales then saw them turn the ball over after Wesley Fofana failed to release the ball in the ruck. Halfpenny decided for the audacious kick to goal from 52 metres as the home side looked to extend their lead and relieve the pressure. Halfpenny's kick had the distanced and just stayed between the posts to add another three points to the board. Numerous waves of attacks from France were held back by a resilient Welsh defence that was able to turn over the ball on a number of occasions.
Wales knew that they only had to hold out and it would see them win the Grand Slam but the visitors were still posed a threat despite being beaten in possession and territory. A high kick then created chaos as it drove the home side back into their own 22. Quick ball from the French saw the ball out wide but a poor decision by Imanol Harinordoquy to cut inside instead of feeding Louis Picamoles saw play held up metres from the try line. Craig Joubert blew for the penalty to France under the post which Yachvili duly put over to make it a very close final five minutes.
The home side responded straight from the restart after Trinh-Duc was swamped by players and bundled out of play. However, Joubert whistled for the penalty after Trinh-Duc threw the ball away after being tackled. Halfpenny capped off a solid game at full back putting over the penalty as Wales saw out the last few minutes to win the game.
Warren Gatland has put together a very strong Welsh outfit which is by far the best side in the Northern Hemisphere. Their outstanding defending was at the forefront of their campaign success alongside today's try scorer Alex Cuthbert, who took his try opportunity with both hands. Once they go up against the likes of New Zealand, Australia and South Africa, we will start to find out how strong they really are.
France seemed to miss a pinache when going forward as they were held back well by some very good defending. They were still wasteful in possession as they kicked a number of attacking chances away for territory rather than going for the try. Phillip Saint-Andre will have to take his team back to the drawing board after a shaky Six Nations tournament.
Wales (10) 16
Tries: Cuthbert
Conversions: Halfpenny
Penalties: Halfpenny (3)
France (3) 9
Penalties: Yachvili (2), Beauxis
The final Six Nations game of 2012 was won by England, as they outgunned an under par Ireland at Twickenham winning 30-9. The victory for Stuart Lancaster's side has only enhanced his reputation with the England team and leaves the RFU with a big decision on their hands.
The first 40 minutes was a battle between Owen Farrell and Jonathan Sexton as they duelled it out for the lead of the match. Farrell won the contest scoring three penalties compared to Sexton's two. The kicking contest continued between Farrell and Sexton as they both put over another three points for their respective sides but the England front pack were directing the play and managed to score a penalty try halfway through the half. Quick thinking by Ben Youngs from the penalty was the games second try as they ran down the clock to secure second place in the table.
The weather was to play a pivotal role in the way both teams attacked as numerous knock on's occurred but it was the home side that took the initiative early on from the scrum when they forced Ireland to concede the penalty. Farrell lined up the kick at goal and nailed it to give England a second minute lead. This woke Ireland as a scuffed clearance from Farrell put the home side on the back foot, with Rob Kearney going for an ambitious drop goal attempt which cannoned off the upright.
Sexton did manage to level the scores as his penalty swerved through the posts after Brad Barritt hacked the ball clear from an offside position. Ireland were failing to compete in the scrum against their opponents as they conceded another penalty this time when the ball was kicked out of scrum illegally. Farrell's second kick of the match sailed through the posts to give England the lead once again.
England were found to be offside at the line out which gave Ireland a chance to clear their lines with a scrum but again it proved to be their downfall as they conceded the penalty. Farrell took the chance given to him as he increased the home sides lead to six points. Ireland were proving most threatening from the kicks in the air as poor handling was giving them a way into the game. Rob Kearney's kick into the sky was fumbled and recovered by Tommy Bowe who began to drive towards the try line only to be thwarted by Chris Ashton. The Irish did reduce the deficit on half time after England failed to release the ball in the ruck gifting Sexton three an easy points.
Little was being given to the back line on the attack as the two sides were defending valiantly however Farrell was able to play in Tom Croft who found the gap and galloped for the line. Croft was agonisingly close to the line only to drop the ball just before he was about to offload Ben Foden. The scrum from Ireland was then turned over and collapsed by Ireland which saw Nigel Owen's award the penalty. Farrell maintained his 100% record making it 12-6. Sexton brought Ireland back into the game with another three points soon after.
The Irish scrum continued to be a constant problem as the strength of the England pack shone through as they scored a penalty try. Farrell added the simple conversion. Ireland had no answer to the commanding England scrum as it was penalised again gifting Farrell another three points to make the score 22-9.Try as they might, Keith Earls jinxed his way through the England defence to sprint away but found himself in a cul-de-sac of English players.
Substitute Ben Youngs showed great initiative from a penalty deep inside Ireland territory as he side stepped the defence to ground and wrap up a clinical England performance. Farrell dragged the conversion to the left of the posts but made up for it with an easy penalty late on.
Lancaster will be thoroughly delighted with the way his team performed especially as England's record against Ireland hasn't been good reading. The scrum was definitely the talking point of their game as it has seen a massive improvement since the teams last met. The one thing left to decide is who will lead England in the autumn internationals?
Declan Kidney's side did not turn up today as they were out performed in all departments by their opponents. The lack of leadership was a big miss for the Irish with the likes of Brian O'Driscoll out through injury although playing four weeks in a row left the whole team massively fatigued for today's game. Ireland will look back on this Six Nations as a missed opportunity due to various injuries.
England (9) 30
Tries: (Penalty try), Youngs
Conversions: Farrell
Penalties: Farrell (5)
Ireland (6) 9
Penalties: Sexton (3)
