PAUL REES PICKS HIS SIX NATIONS TEAM OF THE TOURNAMENT WITH THE MEN IN GREEN PROVIDING SIX OF THE BEST
THIS year’s Six Nations was similar to 2023 – in terms of the table. Ireland and France formed the top two, England and Scotland swapped positions behind them and Wales replaced Italy at the bottom.
Otherwise it was very different. Ireland retained the title but this time without a grand slam and their points total of 20 was fewer than the 21 they accumulated in 2022 when finishing second. France secured the runners-up spot thanks to Thomas Ramos’s last-minute penalty against England in the final match, but they finished with 15 points, their lowest total since 2019.
England’s haul of 14 was their best since they won the title in 2020 and they won more matches than they lost for the first time since then but Scotland’s 12 was their second lowest of the decade. Wales lost all five matches for the first time since 2003 while Italy, for the first time since joining the tournament in 2000, finished with a 50 per cent record.
Italy were the most improved side. Their 11 points were 10 more than last year and England were the only other team to show an increase having mustered 10 last year. Ireland were down seven and France were five worse off with the tournament the most closely contested since 2020.
Nine out of 14 matches saw the losers pick up a bonus point: the other was a draw between France and Italy in Lille. Only four of the victories were by double figure margins -Ireland against France, Italy and Wales and France in Cardiff when they scored an unanswered 25 points in the final 19 minutes.
Ireland were worthy champions. Their only defeat was with the last kick of the match by Marcus Smith at Twickenham: they had the best points difference, 84, with France, six, the only other side to score more than they conceded; they scored the most tries, 19, and conceded the fewest, seven. And they averaged the most points per entry into an opponents’ 22, 2.9.
There were 26 new caps who featured in the tournament. France blooded the most, eight, two more than Wales, England’s five all appeared on the opening weekend in Rome while Ireland confined themselves to one, prop Oli Jager who came off the bench against Wales.
Two of Italy’s new boys came from the Premiership, Exeter’s back rower Ross Vintcent and the Harlequins wing Louis Lynagh, who is joining Treviso in the summer having opted for the Azzurri ahead of England and Australia. One of Scotland’s two debutants, prop Elliot Millar Mills, was
