:00:26. > :00:30.COMMENTARY: The Six Nations has arrived. For Wales, there was a
:00:31. > :00:45.heightened sense of expectation. History beckoned. It appeared as
:00:46. > :00:48.though everything was going to plan. But the Italians hadn't read the
:00:49. > :00:58.script and were chasing history themselves.
:00:59. > :01:03.Wales held firm. But there are questions to address, as bigger
:01:04. > :01:10.challenges loom. Good evening and welcome to the
:01:11. > :01:13.Scrum V Six Nations Special. Wales have got their campaign off to a
:01:14. > :01:20.winning start, but they were pushed all the way by Italy. Here to assess
:01:21. > :01:25.their performance, please welcome Gareth Thomas, Gwyn Jones, Rob
:01:26. > :01:42.Henderson and Martyn Williams. Gareth, welcome back to Scrum V.
:01:43. > :01:46.Great to see you. Good to be back. A win is a win. It wasn't a convincing
:01:47. > :01:50.one? No, when I looked at it yesterday, it was like a New Zealand
:01:51. > :01:54.performance. Sometimes you do enough to win. It was good talking to some
:01:55. > :02:03.of the players after. They realised there is such an expectancy around
:02:04. > :02:08.them. It was like a kick up the backsides! They said, "We can do
:02:09. > :02:12.this, we can win." There are flaws to the game and they need to work on
:02:13. > :02:17.those. It gives you something to sharpen the focus? Yes. Because we
:02:18. > :02:24.expect so much of this side, with Eno how good they are -- we know how
:02:25. > :02:29.good they are, it wasn't a vintage performance. Maybe complacency set
:02:30. > :02:33.in at half-time. Everyone went away a bit flat after the second half.
:02:34. > :02:41.You mentioned the players looked a bit tired. Any concern around that?
:02:42. > :02:47.I don't think so. The boys trained very hard last week. It's something
:02:48. > :02:51.Warren has done in the past. They will probably have a lighter week
:02:52. > :02:54.this week. You can't take Italy for granted. We were never going to lose
:02:55. > :02:59.that game yesterday. The main focus is Dublin. Dublin is next. Rob
:03:00. > :03:03.Henderson, welcome. Great to be here. Ireland were playing this
:03:04. > :03:06.afternoon. Were you pleased with what you saw? When ever you play
:03:07. > :03:13.against Scotland, you know what that you are going to be up against.
:03:14. > :03:23.Coming out 28-6 victors, that sets a great stamp for next weekend. Losing
:03:24. > :03:27.Paul O'Connell this morning, a bit of lasagne-gate has taken him out of
:03:28. > :03:33.the equation. It bodes well for next week. It will be a cracker? I can't
:03:34. > :03:39.wait. Round One is complete. What is your assessment? Without doubt, the
:03:40. > :03:47.game on Saturday night in Paris has got everyone's interest up again. A
:03:48. > :03:51.superb game of rugby. No surprise that Nigel Owens was in charge. We
:03:52. > :03:55.know - and the players know and accept - if they play like that,
:03:56. > :04:00.they won't be good enough to win. I doubt they will play that badly
:04:01. > :04:06.again. If they do, they will lose. An epic Test Match on Saturday night
:04:07. > :04:11.in Paris? That one, yeah! I thought I lost you there!
:04:12. > :04:18.LAUGHTER Yeah, you know, I called France to
:04:19. > :04:23.win by a very tight margin. This England team to me, at the start of
:04:24. > :04:28.the tournament, I think this England team are very strong. As much as we
:04:29. > :04:32.are looking forward to the next game and the tough games coming, my
:04:33. > :04:38.concern about the game just gone is the Italian game, everybody will
:04:39. > :04:42.lose one game. My worry is, when it comes to England playing Italy, they
:04:43. > :04:45.will know what they will need to do to win the Championship. Yesterday,
:04:46. > :04:49.we did enough to win. Potentially, we didn't do enough to get a points
:04:50. > :04:54.difference. While you are here, because we
:04:55. > :04:58.haven't seen you for a while, I will ask you one question. We have heard
:04:59. > :05:05.today some reports in the papers that maybe the regions are on the
:05:06. > :05:08.verge of going and forming an Anglo Welsh League. A statement we are
:05:09. > :05:14.expecting tomorrow will confirm or deny that. What have you made from
:05:15. > :05:22.afar? How much has this current row pained you? It is as clear as mud(!)
:05:23. > :05:27.Nobody knows what is going on here. As a rugby player, they train a lot,
:05:28. > :05:32.they play a lot, but they have a lot of down time. When that down time
:05:33. > :05:35.comes, you sit down and ponder. You think - as much as I believe the
:05:36. > :05:38.players go on the field and it doesn't affect them, it will slowly
:05:39. > :05:42.affect their build-up. Everybody's wondering. I want somebody, whether
:05:43. > :05:49.it be the regions or the Union, to come and say, "As a national sport,
:05:50. > :05:52.we all pay our money, we watch the games, this is where we are, this is
:05:53. > :05:58.what is happening." Let us know. Then we can stop thinking and this
:05:59. > :06:03.is going to happen, or wondering... APPLAUSE
:06:04. > :06:06.Well said. The voice of reason there, Gareth Thomas. We are going
:06:07. > :06:10.to park it now. The statement is due tomorrow, so we will talk about this
:06:11. > :06:12.more in the future. We will get back to the Six Nations and highlights of
:06:13. > :06:29.yesterday's big match between Wales and Italy.
:06:30. > :06:59.It came back to Hibbard. The blond hair flies over the halfway line.
:07:00. > :07:16.The whistle went to the referee's mouth. But it's back there now.
:07:17. > :07:20.That's a gift for Alex Cuthbert. It's a lovely little kick. This
:07:21. > :07:25.should be taken. The right-winger comes across and covers, Esposito.
:07:26. > :07:30.It is a dreadful bounce. It's a lovely kick. It is covered. This
:07:31. > :07:48.should be cleaned up. He mistimes it and misjudges the bounce.
:07:49. > :08:01.George North building up a head of steam.
:08:02. > :08:04.Four Welsh players sprinting for that try. Good play, good pass.
:08:05. > :08:28.Great cover. Dan Lydiate was penalised there.
:08:29. > :08:44.Still advantage to Italy. They have the penalty.
:08:45. > :09:07.George North has support. The space disappears and into touch goes Alun
:09:08. > :09:16.Wyn Jones. That's very good defence by the Italians. They could do with
:09:17. > :09:20.the crowd here to lift the intensity of the Welsh side. That was a
:09:21. > :09:21.mistake. A push. A bit of interference there. A penalty to
:09:22. > :09:25.Wales. This to give Wales another three
:09:26. > :09:37.points. Despite the slip, the ball goes full
:09:38. > :10:00.and long and Wales have ten points. Plenty of strength in midfield. He
:10:01. > :10:05.is going to take it on. Sergio Parisse against George North. How
:10:06. > :10:15.did it go loose? Is this to be a try?
:10:16. > :10:26.Left hand. Parisse's left hand gets to the ball. That is a knock on.
:10:27. > :10:33.The line-out just a bit loose again. A bit deeper than they thought.
:10:34. > :10:39.Roberts is through. He has support from Williams. Williams will score
:10:40. > :10:44.for Wales! The second try. Simple. The hole created by Jamie Roberts
:10:45. > :10:47.and the try finished by Scott Williams.
:10:48. > :11:01.Again, not the best line-out. He drifts a bit too early, drifts too
:11:02. > :11:05.early. Good support on the inside. It's Alberto Sgarbi who has gone too
:11:06. > :11:09.early. He shows too much on the inside for Jamie Roberts. The angle
:11:10. > :11:24.is too good and very good support by Scott Williams. One missed tackle.
:11:25. > :11:39.Priestland. Parisse. Good play. The clock will go red. The final passage
:11:40. > :11:44.of play. Campagnaro has some pace. The kick infield for Esposito to get
:11:45. > :12:02.there. Touchdown from Priestland, who will bring this half to an end.
:12:03. > :12:11.Priestland again. The ball knocked forward.
:12:12. > :12:20.REFEREE: Advantage over. There's Campagnaro. Sarto. It's
:12:21. > :12:26.going to be a try for Campagnaro! That's a very, very good try. Given
:12:27. > :12:30.a bit of width and an excellent kick. That's exactly what they
:12:31. > :12:46.wanted. Inside to Sarto from Bortola. This
:12:47. > :12:51.is good pressure by the Italians. They are slowly going forward, and
:12:52. > :12:55.making inroads into the Welsh defence.
:12:56. > :13:01.Here comes the noise of the Millennium Stadium. They are trying
:13:02. > :13:12.to rouse the Welsh defence. Italy trying every off-load at the moment.
:13:13. > :13:20.There's Alberto Sgarbi. Just run out of patience.
:13:21. > :13:53.Cuthbert. Charteris. They've made some good ground. Here's Lydiate.
:13:54. > :13:58.Priestland is in. He might go all the way! Rhys Priestland gets it
:13:59. > :14:02.infield. The ball is loose. Charteris, it was at your feet!
:14:03. > :14:18.Great step. Dummy, step, and he is away. The ball goes back inside.
:14:19. > :14:24.Luke Charteris gets his Bigfoot to it.
:14:25. > :14:33.-- big foot to it. Penalty to Wales. This will put the game to bed. Tobie
:14:34. > :14:35.Botes, fresh on the field at scrum-half. Italy not driving
:14:36. > :14:44.straight. Sergio Parisse not happy. This one fizzes through and Wales
:14:45. > :15:06.reach 20 points. Allan sends it towards Halfpenny.
:15:07. > :15:17.Good play. He gets the ball away to Roberts. Oh no! Interception and it
:15:18. > :15:21.is going to be a run for the line. It is going to be a try and it is
:15:22. > :15:28.going to give Italy hope. It is Campagnaro again! Under the posts
:15:29. > :15:39.and it will be seven points and the game is still alive. He knows as
:15:40. > :15:42.soon as he throws the ball, Leigh Halfpenny knows Campagnaro is in.
:15:43. > :15:59.No-one was going to get anywhere near this kid. Luke McLean is
:16:00. > :16:01.defending in the line. There is space behind the defensive line for
:16:02. > :16:37.Wales to exploit. He has to kick for goal. That's good
:16:38. > :16:42.from Leigh Halfpenny. That may be good enough.
:16:43. > :16:47.Jamie Roberts down injured at the moment in this final passage of
:16:48. > :16:53.play. Priestland sends it cross-field. The ball goes loose.
:16:54. > :17:00.But a tap-on from George North. That will be the end of things. A look at
:17:01. > :17:04.the clock, a blast on the whistle. And a victory to open the defence of
:17:05. > :17:06.their Six Nations campaign for Wales, but not the whole story. It
:17:07. > :17:12.is a win, though. So, that was the game. This is the
:17:13. > :17:30.verdict. We expected a difficult match. I'm
:17:31. > :17:35.happy and proud for the young guys who played today. They tried to do
:17:36. > :17:41.everything for the team. They were unlucky, probably, in the first try
:17:42. > :17:46.of the match. After that, we find our defence and that was the key for
:17:47. > :17:52.us in this tournament. It's a loss. We are not happy for that. It is a
:17:53. > :17:58.good platform for the future. Italy were dogged. They competed pretty
:17:59. > :18:02.hard all day. We have given them a couple of turnover opportunities.
:18:03. > :18:06.Apart from that, defensively, our structure was pretty good. Maybe
:18:07. > :18:09.could have competed harder at the breakdown and created a few
:18:10. > :18:13.opportunities that we didn't finish off. Credit to Italy, they made it
:18:14. > :18:18.tough for us. It probably looked as if we were under more pressure than
:18:19. > :18:24.we felt on the park. We were a bit ragged at times. We probably put
:18:25. > :18:28.ourselves under pressure at certain times. In the past, we've possibly
:18:29. > :18:33.been criticised for not having ambition. We showed that today. With
:18:34. > :18:42.ambition, and a will to play, you get mistakes sometimes. The only way
:18:43. > :18:47.we could have stopped them tries if we had a goalkeeper. One was from an
:18:48. > :18:51.interception and one was from a turnover. We are the sort of team
:18:52. > :18:55.who do try to play attractive rugby and try and entertain the fans and
:18:56. > :19:01.score points. We were trying to do that on those occasions, but they
:19:02. > :19:06.didn't go our way. I think in the past, when we come under pressure
:19:07. > :19:10.like that, we might have not had the composure to finish off and we were
:19:11. > :19:16.able to do that today. So, it was a tough game. It is great for this
:19:17. > :19:24.tournament. As defending champions, every team will make it tough.
:19:25. > :19:29.Warren Gatland full of praise for the Italians. What about that Wales
:19:30. > :19:35.performance? Let's go to the Stat Pad. Unconvincing. It's a win, but
:19:36. > :19:38.things were that the in the stadium yesterday. What will prove to be a
:19:39. > :19:42.tight Championship will year, Wales will need to be much better. Italy
:19:43. > :19:46.proved to be difficult opponents. They shared in the possession
:19:47. > :19:50.stakes. They also shared in the try stakes - two tries each. It is the
:19:51. > :19:54.ball in playtime that was low for Warren Gatland. He will need it over
:19:55. > :19:59.40 minutes for the rest of the Championship. They had possession
:20:00. > :20:02.dominance in Italy's 22. They failed to be clinical enough to score more
:20:03. > :20:06.tries. A rusty Wales turned the ball over 18 times, 40% possession
:20:07. > :20:13.turnover, which manifested itself in all of Italy's 15 points. Rhys
:20:14. > :20:19.Priestland selected at 10 again. They lacked a bit of cohesion and
:20:20. > :20:25.great pressure from a rash Italian defence. When Wales lose their
:20:26. > :20:31.shape, they look a bit ordinary. Italy tried to convince runners to
:20:32. > :20:34.go back inside. Sergio Parisse spots out of the line forcing Rhys
:20:35. > :20:38.Priestland back inside and another Wales turnover ensues. It was
:20:39. > :20:42.crucially in that 22 where Wales were applying pressure. Scott
:20:43. > :20:45.Williams coming through here and Wales lack urgency to the tackle
:20:46. > :20:51.contest resulting in another Italian penalty at the breakdown. Later on,
:20:52. > :20:56.as Wales tried to pull clear, Leigh Halfpenny fails to see the outside
:20:57. > :21:00.spotter and the number 13 intercepts and goes the length of the field to
:21:01. > :21:05.bring Italy back into the game. Wales like to kick the ball long.
:21:06. > :21:09.Italy like to kick the ball off the field so Wales had lots of line-out
:21:10. > :21:16.possession, but their platform was poor yesterday. Fortunately, Jamie
:21:17. > :21:21.Roberts turned up, he got across the game line with 17 carries for his
:21:22. > :21:25.team. With so many line-outs and pressure from the Italians, Wales
:21:26. > :21:29.struggled at the set-piece. Mike Phillips often had the ball at his
:21:30. > :21:36.feet. And the one scrum Wales had on the attack, Italy applied huge
:21:37. > :21:39.pressure. Again, as you see here, difficult delivery for Mike Phillips
:21:40. > :21:43.to deal with. Wales had three opportunities to drive to score. Why
:21:44. > :21:51.didn't they? Italy were smart. They put them on the floor, All Wales
:21:52. > :21:59.forwards were on the ground. Jamie Roberts came to the party and was
:22:00. > :22:05.looking good after injury. He got his forwards into the game. He
:22:06. > :22:10.swapped sometimes with Scott Williams. The crucial moment before
:22:11. > :22:16.half-time, the battering ram gets through the Italian line and a nice
:22:17. > :22:21.subtle pass to his centre partner. Very timely for Wales. Italy's ill
:22:22. > :22:29.discipline, including the captain, Parisse, that cost him. Look at this
:22:30. > :22:32.example. Parisse just nudges Alun Wyn Jones out of the line, it was
:22:33. > :22:37.spotted by the referee. It was a needless penalty. But Halfpenny
:22:38. > :22:43.kicked three points from there. A contentious scrum decision, putting
:22:44. > :22:47.Wales under pressure. The Italian referee gives the penalty and the
:22:48. > :22:52.Italian captain disagrees with him. That was a big mistake at a crucial
:22:53. > :22:55.time in the game. My question tonight is: Are the Northern
:22:56. > :22:59.Hemisphere sides starting to work out Wales?
:23:00. > :23:05.Good question. I will bring you in on that one, Gwyn Jones. You have
:23:06. > :23:08.often called for Wales to show more variety in their play. Is there a
:23:09. > :23:15.more urgent need for that after yesterday? No, I think after the
:23:16. > :23:19.first season, after the first - halfway through the first season -
:23:20. > :23:23.people knew how Wales were going to play. The working out was done years
:23:24. > :23:27.ago. People find it hard to stop it. They are very good at what they do.
:23:28. > :23:30.They pick the players in order to execute that game plan. We didn't
:23:31. > :23:35.execute it particularly well yesterday. That is why we stuttered.
:23:36. > :23:40.I don't think anyone in the Northern Hemisphere has proven they can beat
:23:41. > :23:43.Wales regularly. If we want to beat the Southern Hemisphere sides, that
:23:44. > :23:47.is a different matter. Northern Hemisphere, they haven't stopped us
:23:48. > :23:50.yet. Rob, you know Warren Gatland. Is he a stubborn character that will
:23:51. > :23:57.stick to his guns despite any criticism? You could say that. He's
:23:58. > :24:02.a guy that will look at the squad of players and he'll get a game plan
:24:03. > :24:05.based on what he has at his disposal. No-one can argue with the
:24:06. > :24:10.fact that Wales have been outstanding for the last couple of
:24:11. > :24:14.seasons. They stuttered a little bit on Saturday. You can always watch
:24:15. > :24:22.the videos, you know what they are going to be doing, but you have to
:24:23. > :24:28.stop us! I think with game breakers in the back three, it takes a bobble
:24:29. > :24:32.of a ball or one side-step and Wales can get 7 or 14 points clear. So
:24:33. > :24:38.he's not worried about other people looking at the videos of Wales. He
:24:39. > :24:41.is probably enjoying it. Italy were effective yesterday, they came and
:24:42. > :24:45.played and no-one gave them much of a chance before the game. They had
:24:46. > :24:48.done a job on Wales? Yes, that is when Wales have struggled, when they
:24:49. > :24:53.haven't been able to get over the game line. And have the quick ball,
:24:54. > :25:00.which Argentina did to us a couple of autumns ago, Samoa, and when we
:25:01. > :25:05.do struggle we go to a Plan B. You have won three Championships, a
:25:06. > :25:11.Lions tour playing a certain way, why change it? They will stick to
:25:12. > :25:16.their guns and we would like to see free-flowing, so many passes, but
:25:17. > :25:23.they don't need to change it. It's a proven formula. Scott Williams was
:25:24. > :25:29.playing in the middle. If you look at last year, our centres passed the
:25:30. > :25:46.ball six times for every 20 times they had the ball. Yesterday, Scott
:25:47. > :25:52.Williams, on -- it takes the contact area wider and we normally hit
:25:53. > :25:58.narrow with big runners. They don't have to fold. They can shadow
:25:59. > :26:02.across. Also, it takes the intensity out of the game. It's not the game
:26:03. > :26:06.line battle that we normally do so well at. I want to see that develop
:26:07. > :26:10.in our game. Scott Williams added a new dimension to us behind. Gareth,
:26:11. > :26:16.on this notion that Wales are slow starters and we have seen it time
:26:17. > :26:19.and time again - we saw it last year with that first half against
:26:20. > :26:24.Ireland. But they peaked by the time of the England game. You can't judge
:26:25. > :26:27.the team on the opening match of the Championship This team are a good
:26:28. > :26:33.team. They haven't gone bad overnight. What they have done,
:26:34. > :26:37.which Welsh teams have not been - they have not handled being
:26:38. > :26:44.favourites. I never played in one of them! They handle the fact of being
:26:45. > :26:47.favourites, it is a difficult tag. To win playing badly and realising
:26:48. > :26:52.they can get better, to me it's a good thing. I'd rather see this. To
:26:53. > :26:56.me, I'd rather have seen yesterday and realising we have something to
:26:57. > :27:00.work on than a 50-point victory. We go to Ireland, with our tails up
:27:01. > :27:11.thinking everything is right. On that... APPLAUSE This team have
:27:12. > :27:18.never really blown sides away. We - with the exception of England. We
:27:19. > :27:21.have to mention England! They are the masters of grinding out tight
:27:22. > :27:25.victories. I think the notion of them going out and putting 30 or 40
:27:26. > :27:29.points on teams, they don't do that. You have been in that camp, you
:27:30. > :27:33.understand how Warren Gatland and his coaches work. What will training
:27:34. > :27:37.be like this week? Wales do have one extra day compared to Ireland. Will
:27:38. > :27:43.they put through their paces? Or will it be a more mellow week of
:27:44. > :27:48.training? Not sure. That is why I'm not panicking. You look at Gatland's
:27:49. > :27:54.record and the big crunch games, we mentioned England last year for the
:27:55. > :27:57.Grand Slam, Third Test for the Lions, this management team are the
:27:58. > :28:03.masters of getting the boys right for the big deciding games. I still
:28:04. > :28:07.think - I know the Irish boys have won European Cups. The Irish team
:28:08. > :28:13.haven't won a big one yet. Wales will turn up next week. Wales didn't
:28:14. > :28:17.use their bench yesterday. You have Hooky on the bench who can change
:28:18. > :28:21.the game. If you want to open it up, you can bring the bench on to open
:28:22. > :28:28.it up. There's a lot more to come. You would like to see Hooky? I love
:28:29. > :28:32.to see Hooky come off the bench. He takes the structure away from the
:28:33. > :28:39.Welsh team and you give him, he is playing out in France. He - he is a
:28:40. > :28:43.player who you praise him because he does amazing things. He has to mess
:28:44. > :28:52.up to get to that amazing thing. He is a player that excites and he can
:28:53. > :28:56.come on. APPLAUSE The one thing that no-one's mentioned is the fact that
:28:57. > :29:00.Italy played quite well. They have developed as a nation. They are
:29:01. > :29:10.playing in the Pro 12. Their players are getting exposed to the Hian --
:29:11. > :29:13.Heineken rugby all the time. They have backs that can catch a ball and
:29:14. > :29:17.they are looking to distribute. I think that their performance
:29:18. > :29:22.yesterday was very, very good against a good Welsh side and maybe
:29:23. > :29:26.Wales had one eye on next weekend and took their foot off the gas at
:29:27. > :29:32.half-time. We can't mention Italy without mentioning Sergio Parisse.
:29:33. > :29:37.Yet again, immense on the field yesterday? They got Italy on the
:29:38. > :29:43.front foot and he does everything. He plays it 15, 10, 9, he had a big
:29:44. > :29:47.performance yesterday. Congratulations to him, in defeat,
:29:48. > :29:52.of course. We will talk about the Ireland game in detail in a little
:29:53. > :30:01.while. The Under 20s and Wales women also played this weekend.
:30:02. > :30:08.Up until a few moments ago, it did look like a Wales win. The Italians
:30:09. > :30:12.came back so strong. So, bitter disappointment for the Welsh side in
:30:13. > :30:19.their Six Nations campaign. Wales went into the game as favourites and
:30:20. > :30:25.quickly dominated the pack. A slick pass Bihar Ris gave Wales their
:30:26. > :30:33.first -- by Harris gave Wales their first try. Only a penalty by Wilkins
:30:34. > :30:37.followed. Going into half-time, they had just scored 8 points. The second
:30:38. > :30:43.half started the same with Wales leading. Italy came back fighting in
:30:44. > :30:53.the final quarter with a try. Wales replied with a successful second
:30:54. > :30:57.penalty. But the Italians had the last say with a try in the closing
:30:58. > :30:59.moments of the match. We are very disappointed with the result. We
:31:00. > :31:03.have worked really hard this year. We were hoping for a win. There is
:31:04. > :31:07.nothing we can do now but move on as a team and hope for a win against
:31:08. > :31:10.Ireland. Not the result the women's team were hoping for, but it was a
:31:11. > :31:14.different story on Friday night for the Under 20s when they took on
:31:15. > :31:25.Italy. The Under 20s kicked off their
:31:26. > :31:28.campaign with a comfortable win against the Italians. Wales were
:31:29. > :31:32.clear front-runners when it came to possession. Even with a strong
:31:33. > :31:40.Italian defence. But a try and a couple of penalties pushed Wales
:31:41. > :31:50.into an early lead. COMMENTARY: Ben Roach makes good
:31:51. > :31:57.head way. It's a walk-over for Adams.
:31:58. > :32:12.Lloyd waits. Gets it out to Price. A change of angle again.
:32:13. > :32:22.Wales at the very end do get a third try. That's the icing on the cake
:32:23. > :32:27.for Wales. Man of the match went to Wales Scott Matthews.
:32:28. > :32:32.So plenty of new faces, plenty of chances and plenty more to come from
:32:33. > :32:42.the young side. Congratulations to the Under 20s.
:32:43. > :32:45.England opened their account yesterday with a tough assignment,
:32:46. > :33:18.an away trip to Paris. We are off and running. Pape for
:33:19. > :33:29.France driving it up. Doussain. Plisson, his first touch for Huget!
:33:30. > :33:35.What a start for the Six Nations! The worst possible start for
:33:36. > :33:40.England. And conversely, France will take anything that's given. That
:33:41. > :34:03.came from a failure to take the initial kick-off. Good tackle by
:34:04. > :34:07.Nyanga. He is deeply involved. Huget against Goode. A second try for
:34:08. > :34:18.Huget, a second try for France! What an opening quarter. Penalty.
:34:19. > :34:28.Advantage England. Care takes it quickly. Danny Care on his own. Five
:34:29. > :34:35.metres short. Hartley. Mike Brown. Has he scored his first try for
:34:36. > :34:43.England? A lot to do here. One, two, three, four. It is Mike Brown's
:34:44. > :34:58.first try for England in his 22nd game.
:34:59. > :35:11.Chris Robshaw comes away with it. Vunipola. The players hanging on to
:35:12. > :35:15.him. The kicking game worked. The passing game worked. England are
:35:16. > :35:22.level! It is now the French who are under the cosh.
:35:23. > :35:40.The pass is wild for Fofana. Fickou! The finish by Fickou. He is going
:35:41. > :35:44.around under the posts and France are going to steal it!
:35:45. > :35:54.APPLAUSE Heartbreak for England at the death there. How gutted will
:35:55. > :36:00.England be there? Don't really care! APPLAUSE
:36:01. > :36:04.They will be - it was a brave - they showed character to come back and
:36:05. > :36:09.played really well. They look a decent side. Yes, there is nothing
:36:10. > :36:15.worse than losing in the last minute. It is devastating. It was
:36:16. > :36:20.heartbreaking. Fickou crossing for that try. Do you think the fact that
:36:21. > :36:23.England had such an inexperienced backline, maybe they didn't have the
:36:24. > :36:27.composure to see out an important Test Match like that? There is a
:36:28. > :36:32.young player that was starting out on his career, Nowell, he had a
:36:33. > :36:36.shocker. He has been very good for Exeter. He was poor at the weekend.
:36:37. > :36:41.He put hids hand up for that. The pack was outstanding. In the
:36:42. > :36:46.backline, they have no real 10 impetus. I would have been happy to
:36:47. > :37:00.see George Ford playing there. They look a lot more dangerous. At the
:37:01. > :37:05.same time, Burrell did well. The French step it up. Nyanga is
:37:06. > :37:17.brilliant, he was the man of the match for me. On France, they have
:37:18. > :37:24.had a fairly torrid time. Do you think their luck are about to
:37:25. > :37:28.change? They can beat anyone, but over the last - but they managed to
:37:29. > :37:32.pinch it yesterday. England deserved to win that match in the end. They
:37:33. > :37:36.shouldn't have lost that in the end. Maybe this is a rebirth. That is all
:37:37. > :37:42.they need. We know the talent they have got and the intensity of the
:37:43. > :37:48.top 14 gives them enough quality to play there. It is just inconsistent
:37:49. > :37:51.selections at halfback. If they can get consistency there, they have the
:37:52. > :37:56.player base. It was a great Test Match. Do either of those sides
:37:57. > :38:01.convince you as potential champions? Yes, there was a slight part of me
:38:02. > :38:04.that was a little gutted that England lost. That means the rest of
:38:05. > :38:08.the tournament for them, they have to up it. Again, there is no
:38:09. > :38:13.complacency with them. They have gone on the road. They have lost to
:38:14. > :38:17.one of the top four. They realise now that against another top four,
:38:18. > :38:21.they can't slip up again. That is my fear for Wales having to go to
:38:22. > :38:26.Twickenham in a few weeks' time with England already having lost. Sure.
:38:27. > :38:30.Never easy. Thanks, guys. There has been another game today. Wales' next
:38:31. > :38:38.opponents Ireland were in action against Scotland.
:38:39. > :39:07.The ball in. The power of the number 8 nearly got him there on his own.
:39:08. > :39:18.Sexton out into the open. Marshall inside. The captain for the corner.
:39:19. > :39:24.Hogg tries to take him. Heaslip scores. Is there a foot in touch?
:39:25. > :39:28.You might want to have a second look at this one. It was a great
:39:29. > :39:35.defensive effort. Hogg tried to - the crowd don't agree - but it's the
:39:36. > :39:42.right decision. Ireland getting closer. Wide it goes now. Big
:39:43. > :39:47.defensive thump comes in. Great tackle on Tuohy. Wide now and
:39:48. > :39:53.Ireland can get the ball. The try is there for them and Trimble crosses.
:39:54. > :39:56.Ireland have their try as the clock goes red. What a time to score. What
:39:57. > :40:04.a try! Ireland have gone once again for
:40:05. > :40:08.this position. The kick for touch. They go for the line-out. The
:40:09. > :40:13.line-out works. Here comes the drive. This time it's a gallop
:40:14. > :40:21.towards the line. Surely the try. It has to be. It is! A try for Ireland.
:40:22. > :40:24.Heaslip coming up with it. There were two men there. The try is there
:40:25. > :40:48.for Ireland. Good off-load and Chris Henry steps.
:40:49. > :40:53.Finds support from Cronin. Rob Kearney stretches for the line. A
:40:54. > :41:00.try for Rob Kearney. Ireland are winners in this match now.
:41:01. > :41:12.Still they come, Ireland. So close. A little chip through now. It might
:41:13. > :41:23.work well for Ireland. Kearney - did he get it down? That's clearly out.
:41:24. > :41:27.No final try. A shake of the head. The whistle from the referee.
:41:28. > :41:29.Another whistle will follow to end the match and the boos of the crowd
:41:30. > :41:40.will turn to cheers. A convincing win in the end for
:41:41. > :41:44.Ireland. I spoke to Keith Wood just after the game. I asked him how
:41:45. > :41:48.impressive they really were. I thought they were fairly impressive
:41:49. > :41:52.once they got going. Scotland had all the play, all the territory, all
:41:53. > :41:55.the possession for the first half. They didn't seem to have any
:41:56. > :41:58.cutting-edge. Ireland took whatever chance they got in the first half.
:41:59. > :42:04.Then, by the time the second half started, they upped the intensity.
:42:05. > :42:09.Not a huge amount. But maybe 5-10% and put themselves in a good
:42:10. > :42:12.position. Plenty of food for thought for Wales then. Going back to
:42:13. > :42:16.yesterday's performance, a lot of the press here saying it was
:42:17. > :42:21.lacklustre, stless. What did you make of Wales? I thought they were a
:42:22. > :42:26.bit rusty. I thought they looked a bit tired with 15 or 20 minutes to
:42:27. > :42:31.go. I think a lot of people don't quite understand exactly how hard it
:42:32. > :42:34.is to play against Italy. They sap every ounce of energy out of you.
:42:35. > :42:38.They are very physical. I thought they played very well. They would be
:42:39. > :42:43.disappointed that they didn't come away from Cardiff without getting
:42:44. > :42:49.closer on the scoreboard, or getting a win themselves. Wales struggled a
:42:50. > :42:54.little bit. It was workmanlike. Keith, let's move on to the big one,
:42:55. > :43:00.the crunch game in Dublin. Ireland versus Wales. Both Warren Gatland
:43:01. > :43:04.and Brian O'Driscoll insist they have put their differences to one
:43:05. > :43:07.side after the Lions. You can bet every TV programme will be talking
:43:08. > :43:13.about that supposed grudge in the build-up to that game? I think to be
:43:14. > :43:17.honest, there will be no chat about Gatland in the Irish camp or
:43:18. > :43:21.O'Driscoll in the Welsh camp. They want to go out and play the game.
:43:22. > :43:24.Everything that happened in the past should stay in the past. However,
:43:25. > :43:29.that will be entirely different in the media and in the fans on both
:43:30. > :43:33.sides of the Irish Sea. It will be the topic of conversation for
:43:34. > :43:38.everybody. It is a really big game. It's one that Ireland know that they
:43:39. > :43:42.have to win. They want the momentum to go ahead and try and deliver on
:43:43. > :43:45.their promise and for their new coach and try and make certain they
:43:46. > :43:49.can get something out of the Six Nations. I think without a shadow of
:43:50. > :43:53.a doubt, they would be looking to try and win the Six Nations and win
:43:54. > :43:56.a Grand Slam. That's the mindset that most of those players would
:43:57. > :44:00.have. It's the mindset that the coach would have. They will be
:44:01. > :44:05.aiming and hoping to go that way. OK. Great to talk to you. Thank you
:44:06. > :44:09.for joining us. A measured Keith Wood there. Warren
:44:10. > :44:13.Gatland was annoyed at the press conference when the subject of Brian
:44:14. > :44:17.O'Driscoll was raised. He insists differences have been put to one
:44:18. > :44:23.side. The fans aren't going to forget about it? They are not. To
:44:24. > :44:28.me, that is the spice. As a fan and a player, the atmosphere creates, it
:44:29. > :44:31.makes it a special thing. In that cauldron, there will be an added
:44:32. > :44:41.spice. So the Irish will be extra loud. The Welsh are going to go
:44:42. > :44:46.there and they will want to outsing the Irish. Having played on the
:44:47. > :44:53.Lions tour with him when he got injured, it was all about O'Driscoll
:44:54. > :44:57.at the time. He said, "Get on with it, don't worry about the hype." He
:44:58. > :45:02.was on a plane the next door and gone. He has 120-odd caps because he
:45:03. > :45:07.is a great rugby player and a great person. As far as he is concerned,
:45:08. > :45:14.his focus is Ireland winning. I like the hype. Kick it up even more! I
:45:15. > :45:19.love it. LAUGHTER It's what we live for as a fan. We want something
:45:20. > :45:24.else. It is all part of the drama? It is very naive. Warren knew this
:45:25. > :45:27.was going to come up and this was his response. He was very annoyed it
:45:28. > :45:31.was being brought up. What it will probably do is people won't ask him
:45:32. > :45:36.directly in the press conferences about it, but they will ask everyone
:45:37. > :45:44.else and it will be a constant theme of the week. As Gareth says, that is
:45:45. > :45:47.what lots of people want. Yes, for the two camps, it will be largely
:45:48. > :45:53.irrelevant. For everyone else, it is part of the drama. Rob, you know
:45:54. > :45:57.Brian very well. You played with him in that Test series in 2001. Give us
:45:58. > :46:01.an insight into the mind of the man. This is probably his last Six
:46:02. > :46:05.Nations. It is his 15th Six Nations tournament, which is incredible. How
:46:06. > :46:09.competitive is he? The fact that he didn't take part in that Third Test
:46:10. > :46:19.in the Lions. Will he want to go out on a high? Of course. He's the
:46:20. > :46:23.record cap for Ireland. He's a guy that works as hard off the field,
:46:24. > :46:30.getting everyone together and united so the team is focussed on what they
:46:31. > :46:34.are trying to do. You have all seen the videos about him slapping Austin
:46:35. > :46:40.Healey with a table tennis bat. We would love all to do that at some
:46:41. > :46:45.stage! LAUGHTER He's a guy that is 100% determined
:46:46. > :46:48.and focussed. I know for a fact when he wasn't selected, the
:46:49. > :46:53.disappointment is there. When the team won the Test series, he would
:46:54. > :46:59.have been the first person to pat everyone on the back, possibly not
:47:00. > :47:05.Gatty. Gatty, he made a decision based on what he thought was the
:47:06. > :47:11.right team to take the field... It was the right team! The results
:47:12. > :47:17.prove it. APPLAUSE It is one of them - I will say, however, I'm a massive
:47:18. > :47:22.fan of Ryan's and having played with him, I think for a man of that
:47:23. > :47:26.calibre, who has been a figurehead for the Lions for so many tours now,
:47:27. > :47:29.it would have been a fine way for him to go out if he had been
:47:30. > :47:33.involved in the match day squad. As it happened, he could have brought
:47:34. > :47:42.him on with ten minutes to go and given him a proper swansong.
:47:43. > :47:48.APPLAUSE Rob made an interesting point there,
:47:49. > :47:52.and Sam Warburton said this, these boys are great mates now. The idea
:47:53. > :48:00.that they hate one another is nonsense, isn't it? I didn't realise
:48:01. > :48:05.O'Driscoll was partly Welsh as well! I didn't know you were a comedian
:48:06. > :48:11.either! They are good mates. On and off the field. I totally agree with
:48:12. > :48:15.the boys. It adds to the hype. Warren knows it is going to be built
:48:16. > :48:20.up. He is probably a bit frustrated with the performance yesterday. Yes,
:48:21. > :48:23.look, as well as you get on off the field, once the whistle goes on
:48:24. > :48:30.Saturday, there will be some atmosphere there. In terms of
:48:31. > :48:34.Ireland today, what did you see in that performance that Wales will
:48:35. > :48:40.need to be concerned about? We saw lots of intricate loops and running
:48:41. > :48:48.with Sexton and O'Driscoll and that high tempo passing style that has
:48:49. > :48:52.won Heineken Cups. It's very effective. Does it translate? Wales
:48:53. > :48:56.feel comfortable against Ireland. They have played them in some big
:48:57. > :49:00.matches, the quarterfinals of the World Cup. That was the big game and
:49:01. > :49:05.they blew them away. Wales will respect what they can do, but they
:49:06. > :49:09.won't be scared of them. I tell you what, for all their passing play,
:49:10. > :49:16.their set-pieces were outstanding. I thought their scrum, the driving
:49:17. > :49:21.line-out caused Scotland all sorts of problems. I thought the Irish
:49:22. > :49:26.pack were way too strong for the Scottish today. The scrum - last
:49:27. > :49:30.year's Championship, we had 38 scrums and we had 25 penalties
:49:31. > :49:35.awarded. We had 20 of those penalties. That is a massive part of
:49:36. > :49:40.the way we play. Against England, 13 scrums, 11 penalties and free-kicks
:49:41. > :49:47.to Wales. We dominated from that position. Yesterday, 11 scrums,
:49:48. > :49:50.penalties went 4-4. So it's a lottery when referees come to it. In
:49:51. > :49:56.their perception, who is winning this battle, I don't think they
:49:57. > :50:02.think Wales is dominating given the penalty. Are you trying to compete
:50:03. > :50:08.with Jeremy Guscott as King of the Stats? You might want to get out
:50:09. > :50:11.more. Gareth, Ireland have played today which means they have one
:50:12. > :50:15.fewer day to prepare. How much of a difference does that make? It does
:50:16. > :50:20.make a difference. I read some articles and talked to some players.
:50:21. > :50:25.The primary focus now is their recovery. So that when they play,
:50:26. > :50:32.they are at their maximum. It is a massive part of playing now. 24
:50:33. > :50:36.hours makes a big difference. Time tomorrow, they will be back out on
:50:37. > :50:40.the field. Tomorrow for the Irish boys, it is all about recovery. They
:50:41. > :50:44.are 24 hours behind. When you look at the games, Wales need that extra
:50:45. > :50:48.24 hours. Ireland have a little bit more confidence. They don't need the
:50:49. > :50:52.extra 24 hours. Thank you, guys. We will talk selection in a moment.
:50:53. > :50:59.First, a reminder of yesterday's game. This time through the eyes of
:51:00. > :51:07.the fans. We were in the house of the John family.
:51:08. > :51:14.I do not like that. What do you mean? I don't like it. He looks
:51:15. > :51:46.terrible. Through a brick wall which is called
:51:47. > :51:52.Hibbard! I don't think he is going looking for a date on the rugby
:51:53. > :51:56.pitch, is he? There are so many more people on that field better looking
:51:57. > :52:00.than Leigh Halfpenny. Alex Cuthbert is a definite! I'm not a fan of
:52:01. > :52:08.Halfpenny. COMMENTARY: Williams will score for
:52:09. > :52:31.Wales! Yes! APPLAUSE Gatland's laughing. Second half will
:52:32. > :52:36.be much better. Didn't you say the second half was going to be good? I
:52:37. > :52:40.have to give it to the Italians. Their food is amazing. We were too
:52:41. > :52:47.flat. There is no-one to stop him. No
:52:48. > :53:03.depth. No pace. He's everywhere. Too many Italians
:53:04. > :53:11.on there. We shouldn't be hanging on to a game against Italy. Winning and
:53:12. > :53:27.playing bad is a sign of a good team. That was a terrible game.
:53:28. > :53:33.APPLAUSE Thank you very much to the John
:53:34. > :53:39.family. Very entertaining stuff. Selection now. That is what we are
:53:40. > :53:44.going to talk about now. Gareth, centres is a topic that we have all
:53:45. > :53:51.been discussing. Jonathan Davies played a half for the Scarlets in
:53:52. > :53:57.the LV Cup. What do you do, if he is fit, to you chuck him back in? Yes,
:53:58. > :54:02.Jonathan Davies and Jamie Roberts complement each other. I think we
:54:03. > :54:07.are comfortable with our centre pairing. Jamie Roberts was
:54:08. > :54:11.outstanding yesterday. APPLAUSE I think he was man of the match. He
:54:12. > :54:18.was my man of the match. I don't know who picked the Italian centre.
:54:19. > :54:21.To me, it... Jonathan! There you are then. That says it all. They are a
:54:22. > :54:25.centre pairing that is tried and trusted. Going to Ireland, you need
:54:26. > :54:30.tried and trusted. Rob, what do you think? To be honest with you, he was
:54:31. > :54:34.arguably one of the players of the series over in Australia. Just
:54:35. > :54:38.coming back from a big injury, playing a half at the weekend, I
:54:39. > :54:43.don't know whether throwing him back in to the Aviva against Ireland in
:54:44. > :54:48.one of the games of the competition is the right thing to do. If he is
:54:49. > :54:53.fit, put him on the bench. I don't think he's had enough game time to
:54:54. > :54:57.come straight back in. What do you think Gatland will do? Good
:54:58. > :55:02.question. I think he will stick with the pairing from yesterday. I think
:55:03. > :55:06.he will stick with Scott. I don't know how he went yesterday. He came
:55:07. > :55:12.off at half-time. It's a great position to be in. Three world-class
:55:13. > :55:15.centres. The intensity of the game next week, I think it is difficult
:55:16. > :55:18.to find your match fitness there. I think he will stick with the boys
:55:19. > :55:23.from yesterday. Talking about match fitness, we saw Sam Warburton come
:55:24. > :55:27.on for 15 minutes yesterday. He hadn't played since the Australia
:55:28. > :55:32.game in the autumn. He seemed to cope well. Will you chuck him
:55:33. > :55:42.straight back in and if so, at the expense of who? I think he will
:55:43. > :55:48.start. A big game for Justin Tipuric yesterday. He didn't manage to pinch
:55:49. > :55:53.a ball or to win a penalty. So, that's the thing that separates him
:55:54. > :55:57.and Sam Warburton. He's got the rest of the game. I think they will go
:55:58. > :56:03.back. What Warren said after the game, he was a bit disappointed in
:56:04. > :56:08.how competitive they were. That says, that is what Sam delivers so
:56:09. > :56:13.well, so Sam will start at 7. And Lydiate will stay at 6. The
:56:14. > :56:16.perennial question, Gareth, the Welsh fly-half position. Some
:56:17. > :56:20.criticism about Rhys Priestland. No bigger an authority than Barry John
:56:21. > :56:28.bigging him up today. Who would you go with? I would stick with
:56:29. > :56:33.Priestland. APPLAUSE I thought he played well yesterday. Some people
:56:34. > :56:38.can say a couple of kicks went astray, but again, you have tried
:56:39. > :56:41.and trusted. You can't - we can't glorify these boys for ten games
:56:42. > :56:45.because they play amazing and then warrant a drop because they have a
:56:46. > :56:49.couple of bad instances in a game. I believe that he is a good enough 10
:56:50. > :56:53.and he holds the backline well together and brings the centres in
:56:54. > :57:05.well. One word, who is going to win? Wales. Wales. Wales. APPLAUSE
:57:06. > :57:09.Ireland! Like he was going to say anything else! That is all we have
:57:10. > :57:11.time for. Thank you very much for watching. Please show your
:57:12. > :57:23.appreciation for Gareth Thomas. APPLAUSE Gwyn Jones. APPLAUSE Martyn
:57:24. > :57:30.Williams. APPLAUSE And Rob Henderson! APPLAUSE We will be back
:57:31. > :57:34.at the same time, same place next week, after that crunch game against
:57:35. > :57:38.Ireland. We hope you can join us. We are very much looking forward to it.
:57:39. > :57:41.There is so much to think about, so much to ponder. Good night.
:57:42. > :58:02.Week one - Italian job done. Nothing fancy but a win's a win. Now for the
:58:03. > :58:12.big one, Ireland v Wales. So many questions. What will the weather be
:58:13. > :58:17.like? Has Warren been forgiven? And is Keith happy now? Will John Fox
:58:18. > :58:23.make it and make a difference like last time? Will we have a bit of
:58:24. > :58:28.river dancing from George, or even his old man? Could cheeky Mike
:58:29. > :58:32.chance his arm again? Or will it all come down to the boot of Halfpenny?
:58:33. > :58:37.He knows all about close shaves these days! And will Irish eyes be
:58:38. > :58:42.smiling or seething?