:00:30. > :00:39.What was yours in 2012? This? Scott Williams! Scott Williams for
:00:39. > :00:49.Wales! Or maybe this?
:00:49. > :00:51.
:00:51. > :01:00.George North. A beautiful offload. Jonathan Davies is going to score!
:01:00. > :01:10.And what about that heart-stopping moment at Twickenham?
:01:10. > :01:17.
:01:17. > :01:25.Also the score that sealed the Grand Slam?
:01:25. > :01:31.What a magnificent finish! Plenty of moments to treasure from
:01:31. > :01:36.last year. Off the they question tonight is, he can the class of
:01:36. > :01:42.2013 do it again? I am joined by Jonathan Davies, Jeremy Guscott and
:01:42. > :01:47.Martyn Williams. We have leapt Wyn Jones loose with a laptop. He
:01:47. > :01:54.offers his thoughts on how Wales can recover their no-show.
:01:54. > :02:00.Kingsley-Jones runs the rule over Ireland. We assess an England side
:02:00. > :02:05.still basking in the glory of that victory over the All Blacks.
:02:05. > :02:09.Hopefully we can kick off to a good start.
:02:09. > :02:19.Lions legend of Jeremy Guscott tells us who is in pole position to
:02:19. > :02:19.
:02:19. > :02:24.make the trip down under. But for now it is all about rugby's
:02:24. > :02:31.biggest annual tournament. We were at the Six Nations launch as the
:02:31. > :02:36.teams feared up for battle. Six-nation holders, grand-slam
:02:36. > :02:40.winners, and we are not going to give up without a fight. It is a
:02:40. > :02:47.great situation to be in it. The added pressure is quite nice in a
:02:47. > :02:52.way. For us it is important to continue
:02:52. > :03:02.at improving but you get a result. If you get a positive result, it is
:03:02. > :03:05.
:03:05. > :03:13.The Six Nations is what everyone was raised on. It is an exciting
:03:13. > :03:18.tournament. It is cracking. As you can sense from that, plenty
:03:18. > :03:23.of excitement, and a most impartial observers picked France as their
:03:23. > :03:28.favourites. Art they your favourites? They start most Six
:03:28. > :03:35.Nations as favourites, the quality and strength of this one, but it
:03:35. > :03:40.all depends if they turn up on the day. Justifiably so, they are
:03:40. > :03:45.favourites, but this year I think he will be very close with everyone.
:03:45. > :03:51.If Ireland win their first game, they have got England and France at
:03:51. > :03:56.home so they could be contenders. It is the old cliche about France,
:03:56. > :04:01.which side will Turner, but under Philipe Saint-Andre, they do look a
:04:01. > :04:05.bit more organised. If you look at the autumn internationals, they
:04:05. > :04:15.were the most consistent. They dispatched Australia as if they
:04:15. > :04:18.
:04:18. > :04:23.went there. It was so convincing. It was very controlled, very
:04:23. > :04:29.organised, and reminiscent of their club teams. They have got the power
:04:29. > :04:33.and the backs to score the tries. They look incredibly strong.
:04:33. > :04:37.backed France a few weeks ago and it is difficult to change your mind.
:04:37. > :04:41.They have had a few injuries and they probably have a short of
:04:41. > :04:46.preparation time off because all their players played last week.
:04:46. > :04:52.Like Jonathan said, the first game between Wales and Ireland, whoever
:04:52. > :04:58.wins that, France have got to go to Dublin, so I would say France at
:04:58. > :05:03.the moment but that game is going to be crucial. Frederic Michalak is
:05:03. > :05:08.key because he either plays brilliantly or he's rubbish. There
:05:08. > :05:15.is no in-between and he is not playing stand-off for his Claire.
:05:15. > :05:19.He is playing scrum-half. It has been a strange and confusing years
:05:20. > :05:25.Wales. From the euphoria of the Grand Slam last year to the despair
:05:25. > :05:30.of the first ever autumn whitewash. Gwyn Jones has been crunching the
:05:30. > :05:35.numbers and trying to figure out what has gone wrong.
:05:36. > :05:43.In international rugby, if the statistics show that 80 % of
:05:43. > :05:46.matches are won by their team's that score the most tries.
:05:46. > :05:52.Attacking line-outs often mean tries and tries mean winning. A
:05:52. > :05:57.third of all other tries come from turnovers. Only rarely are tries
:05:57. > :06:07.scored from a scrum or face play. Line and and turnovers second force
:06:07. > :06:12.-- 70 % of all tries scored. When Wales got this right, they won a
:06:12. > :06:17.Grand Slam. When they got it wrong, they lost every game in the autumn.
:06:17. > :06:20.This is my money ball Theory. During the Grand Slam, Wales did
:06:20. > :06:27.everything they could to stop teams getting dangerous attacking line-
:06:27. > :06:34.outs. George and off you certain and when it Leigh Halfpenny gets it,
:06:34. > :06:40.runs. Eventually he gains a enough ground for the offload, allowing
:06:40. > :06:47.Wales to reorganise and set up the infield kick and chase. Even in
:06:47. > :06:50.extreme cases against England, Wales ignores the safety of the
:06:50. > :06:56.touchline and Mike Phillips uses his strength and power to allow for
:06:56. > :07:04.the heavy mob to arrive. And then a sector for the kick and chase. In
:07:04. > :07:10.the autumn, Wales just gave away line-outs under no pressure. It was
:07:10. > :07:13.a change of tactics that just did not work. What also helped in the
:07:14. > :07:18.grand slam was that teams were so scared of the counter attacking off
:07:18. > :07:23.George North, Leigh Halfpenny and Alex Cuthbert, if they kick to
:07:23. > :07:29.touch to avoid these threats. But Wales 14 tries from line-out and
:07:29. > :07:34.not one from a counter-attack. Dan Lydiate's infamous tackle
:07:34. > :07:39.immediately isolated players, or creating the possibility of a
:07:39. > :07:43.turnover. Off the forwards smell blood and henceforth the ball.
:07:43. > :07:50.Thought -- if turnover is in the opposition half means tries. This
:07:50. > :07:58.was the only try of the game and won us the Grand Slam. We miss Dan
:07:58. > :08:06.Lydiate when he is not there. The list worked brilliantly for Wales
:08:06. > :08:11.last year. Jonathan Davies was Wales's Exocet missile, or locking
:08:11. > :08:16.on to his target with devastating effect. You must read the play and
:08:16. > :08:21.then commit wholeheartedly. He is a game Changer, turning defence into
:08:21. > :08:27.attack, and least of penalties. However, it became a weakness in
:08:27. > :08:31.the autumn. Alex Cuthbert did not go there with any conviction. Even
:08:31. > :08:37.Jonathan Davies had lost his no- show has he misreads the clay and
:08:37. > :08:44.leaves its toll for Australia behind him. Scrums are important
:08:45. > :08:54.because 40 % of scrums now end in a penalty. With Adam Jones, we get a
:08:55. > :08:59.
:08:59. > :09:05.penalty for star without him, we don't. In the second half, Wales
:09:05. > :09:11.are outscored their opponents in attack and defence. When it came
:09:11. > :09:17.down to the wire, Wales had the edge. We were the comeback kings.
:09:17. > :09:22.But by the autumn, the cry of chamber had lost its chill. Wales
:09:22. > :09:31.gave up the lead in a free of the four matches. When fatigue sets in,
:09:31. > :09:37.he tries are scored and games and championships are won and lost.
:09:37. > :09:43.Jeremy, as a neutral observer, sort of, what have you made of Wales's
:09:43. > :09:48.reasons live? I have always believed they have the talent,
:09:48. > :09:52.particularly the back line, and they are world class. If you look
:09:52. > :09:57.at the performance of the Grand Slam, even though they lost on the
:09:57. > :10:02.summer tour in Australia, the performances were great. They have
:10:03. > :10:07.got the talent, they just lack the belief. Living in Wales, if people
:10:07. > :10:12.outside of Wales don't realise what sort of pressure they are under. In
:10:12. > :10:15.England, football dominates. You have got Swansea in the Premiership
:10:15. > :10:23.and Cardiff are doing well, if there rugby seems to be the
:10:23. > :10:28.goldfish bowl. What has happened to Rhys Priestland, his confidence has
:10:28. > :10:33.gone down. He needed some the outside him and inside him to bring
:10:33. > :10:38.him up. Mike Phillips has been a wave. Jamie Roberts has been
:10:38. > :10:42.injured. That environment is changing continually and it is not
:10:42. > :10:47.seem to be a main Voyce. Sam Warburton has been criticised.
:10:47. > :10:52.There has been a lot of unanswered questions. The only way they can be
:10:52. > :10:56.answered is by putting in a good performance. They have to believe
:10:56. > :11:06.they are no worse than last season. If they have not become a bad side
:11:06. > :11:06.
:11:06. > :11:10.overnight. Is it still a mental problem? I just think the defeats
:11:10. > :11:16.in Australia, they are against they should have won it. They were the
:11:16. > :11:20.better side in all three Tests. On the back of those three, they
:11:21. > :11:25.started in the first game in the autumn and then confidence,
:11:25. > :11:30.momentum goes. If their confidence comes that, and that is why we have
:11:30. > :11:35.all mention the first game, it is absolutely massive. If they win
:11:35. > :11:40.that, who knows what he can achieve again? They have got the Gallagher
:11:40. > :11:46.of player to read everyone. But if they lose it, then you go to France,
:11:46. > :11:50.then you go to Italy and Scotland, and people expect them to win those
:11:50. > :11:53.games, if there was no confidence it is very difficult. They know
:11:53. > :12:00.they have got themselves into this position but now they have got to
:12:00. > :12:05.get themselves out of it. Robert Howley is in Sole charge now. He
:12:05. > :12:08.appeared in quite confident move. There is no Warren Gatland in the
:12:08. > :12:14.background of any more. Will that change things in terms of the
:12:14. > :12:20.dynamics? It will change the dynamic with the coaching team. He
:12:20. > :12:24.is very hands-on. He is going to have to take a backward step. Mark
:12:24. > :12:28.Jones has been brought in to take on the back line and that is it a
:12:28. > :12:32.step as well. The Scarlets have got a decent back line but this is
:12:32. > :12:41.another step there. It will change the dynamic of the whole coaching
:12:41. > :12:47.system. You hustle got Neil Jenkins and Robin McBryde. I think he has
:12:47. > :12:53.been unlucky. Warren Gatland was injured and he took over. The
:12:53. > :12:58.autumn was scrappy, was he there? Wasn't he there? Even if Warren
:12:58. > :13:05.Gatland was there, I still think we would have lost. We were called
:13:05. > :13:12.against Argentina. I think he needs to be given his time in the Six
:13:12. > :13:18.Nations. When Warren Gatland was absent through his injuries and for
:13:18. > :13:23.the Lions, you really need your leaders to really stepper and clay.
:13:23. > :13:31.Maybe they went missing a little bit. In the Six Nations, you need
:13:31. > :13:36.Adam Jones, Sam Warburton, Toby Faletau. All these guys who have
:13:37. > :13:40.performed in the Six Nations, they are big-name players. Leigh
:13:40. > :13:44.Halfpenny comic Jamie Roberts. Leigh Halfpenny and the Toby
:13:44. > :13:49.Faletau were the only ones who really played well in the autumn.
:13:49. > :13:54.All the regions have not been playing well. If you look at the
:13:54. > :13:59.starting 15 against Ireland, they are all in good form. I have spoken
:13:59. > :14:04.to a few of them and they are in good confidence. So as long as the
:14:04. > :14:08.individuals are on form, is that all that matters? For eight is
:14:08. > :14:15.difficult. If you are playing for a side that is struggling, it does
:14:15. > :14:20.affect morale. When you play for Wales, you get away from it. The
:14:20. > :14:24.one thing I would like to see, when everyone is down and confidence is
:14:24. > :14:30.low, you have got to the focal. Everyone goes quiet and you don't
:14:30. > :14:36.want that. You need guys screaming at each other. It is a steep
:14:36. > :14:41.learning curve that it is a young squad. Most of them have ever known
:14:41. > :14:44.success. The World Cup and the Grand Slam. As tough as it was in
:14:44. > :14:47.the autumn, I think they would have learned a lot and it will stand
:14:47. > :14:51.them in good stead in this competition.
:14:52. > :14:57.We will have a closer look at Ireland in a moment. But we start
:14:57. > :15:07.on Friday when Wales U20s travel north and it is also a big week for
:15:07. > :15:15.
:15:15. > :15:19.There was this guy, yes, a working- class kid from the middle of
:15:19. > :15:24.nowhere. His ambition was to play for Wales but people were always
:15:24. > :15:31.doing him down, saying it was not possible. You cannot do it. You are
:15:31. > :15:36.too small. You do not fit the plan, the profile. Excuse after excuse.
:15:36. > :15:45.Well, in 2000 and it, this guy won his second Grand Slam and became
:15:45. > :15:49.the first Welshman to beat crowned world player of the year. -- in
:15:49. > :15:54.2008. I could go on and on. The point is that he made up his own
:15:54. > :15:59.plan and he did it in spite of them. To achieve that, it has to matter.
:15:59. > :16:04.You have to make every training session count. Make every sprint
:16:04. > :16:09.cap, every push up, every drill, every repetition. If it does not
:16:09. > :16:13.hurt, you do not feel it. If you do not feel it, there is no point.
:16:13. > :16:18.When your lungs are screaming for and your legs are turning to jelly
:16:18. > :16:28.and your vision is blurred, what do you do? You go again. And again and
:16:28. > :16:32.
:16:32. > :16:41.again. Because it matters. Every scrum, every tackle, at every pass,
:16:41. > :16:51.every line broke. But because it matters. In case you were wondering,
:16:51. > :16:55.that was not Chuck D from Public enemy! We are up North on Friday.
:16:55. > :16:59.Then the highlights for the Wales women on Scrum V next week.
:17:00. > :17:04.Last year, the team that came closest to this rolling Wales was
:17:04. > :17:07.England. It could have been at them lifting the Holy Grail at the end
:17:07. > :17:17.of the championship. What sort of shape of in ahead of the tournament
:17:17. > :17:21.this year? -- are they in? This is what England did to the
:17:21. > :17:25.world champions two months ago. The All Blacks had not tasted defeat
:17:25. > :17:28.for 20 matches. They are as close to invincible as you can get. But
:17:28. > :17:33.England refused to believe the hype and with that emphatic victory they
:17:33. > :17:39.went from Six Nations contenders to Six Nations favourites in the space
:17:39. > :17:42.of 80 minutes. It counts a lot to beat New Zealand in lots of ways,
:17:42. > :17:48.in terms of belief, mine set for the players, confidence and all of
:17:48. > :17:52.that. -- mind that. Equally it counts for nothing because every
:17:52. > :17:56.Six Nations game is a game in itself. I think the form book goes
:17:56. > :18:01.out of the window to a certain extent. We have to take confidence
:18:01. > :18:04.from that game but also hit the ground running at Scotland. It is a
:18:04. > :18:09.great position to be in and it is very different to this time last
:18:09. > :18:12.year when we went into a tournament. The coaches and the players did not
:18:12. > :18:16.know what to expect and there was not really that pressure. Now we
:18:16. > :18:23.are in a different situation of the back of that victory. We are going
:18:23. > :18:28.into this campaign with a team with more experience. The guys that had
:18:28. > :18:32.the 0 caps now have 12 or 13. We have played the majority of the
:18:32. > :18:36.best teams in the world. We can get off to a good start, had fully.
:18:36. > :18:42.year ago, English robbery had threatened to self-destruct
:18:42. > :18:47.following a disastrous World Cup. - - English rugby. In the last 12
:18:47. > :18:51.months, the Red Rose has bloomed once more. I think that is credit
:18:51. > :18:55.to the coaches and the other players. Players can come in and
:18:55. > :18:58.feel comfortable to go and express themselves. It is always an
:18:58. > :19:03.intimidating place, an international set-up, for a new
:19:03. > :19:07.player. For players to come in and feel relaxed and play their own
:19:07. > :19:11.game, that is what you want and I think they have done a great job.
:19:11. > :19:15.Creating the right environment is important to Stuart Lancaster, a
:19:15. > :19:21.former schoolteacher. So is bigging outside of the box, or in this case,
:19:21. > :19:24.outside of rugby. Tell me one big thing that you do. You are always
:19:24. > :19:27.looking to motivate and inspire the players and remind them of the
:19:27. > :19:32.privilege of playing for England. We have two guest speakers coming
:19:32. > :19:42.in. Andrew Strauss is one, and he can talk about England's Cricket
:19:42. > :19:43.
:19:43. > :19:46.journey, and also Jessica Ellis's coach. -- Jessica Ellis. And trying
:19:46. > :19:54.to get somebody to pick up the right time and deal with a home
:19:54. > :20:01.Olympics. England's Leger reads as follows. Played 12, won 6, drawn
:20:01. > :20:05.one. A 50% win rate. Those defeats were against three of the southern
:20:05. > :20:09.hemisphere's superpowers and Wales, the only northern hemisphere team
:20:09. > :20:12.to have beaten England Under Lancaster. The trajectories of
:20:12. > :20:16.Wales and England may be moving in opposite directions at the moment
:20:16. > :20:20.but they are on a collision course for the end of the championship.
:20:20. > :20:24.finish in Cardiff, I have never been there, to be honest. I am
:20:24. > :20:28.looking forward to going to the Millennium Stadium. It would be a
:20:28. > :20:35.great crescendo. There will be ups and downs all of the tombs along
:20:35. > :20:41.the way. -- for all of the teams. You have met Gerry Lancaster. How
:20:41. > :20:46.has he turned the teams around? Results, not brilliant. Knocked out
:20:46. > :20:52.of this world. But he is a good organiser, a good planner, and he
:20:52. > :20:56.thinks deeply. What he makes up for in his lack of experience in
:20:56. > :21:01.coaching, is his selection of people to do the job. Andy
:21:01. > :21:04.Farrell's name was not mentioned and he is huge in the England
:21:04. > :21:08.organisation and for good reason. You do not just love somebody
:21:08. > :21:12.because they have got the good name. Man of Steel, fantastic rugby
:21:12. > :21:15.league player, it is what he says. You have to believe what somebody
:21:15. > :21:19.tells you. That is what coaching at the highest level is about. You
:21:19. > :21:23.cannot teach them to pass and tackle. You have to inspire them
:21:23. > :21:27.and get them to believe. Andy Farrell has a knack of getting to
:21:27. > :21:33.connect with the players at this level and Lancaster spotted that
:21:33. > :21:38.inspiration and brought him in. Rowntree has great credentials and
:21:38. > :21:44.they work on the skills, but in his captain, me included, people were
:21:44. > :21:47.wondering what he was doing in the team. But he has a quiet strength
:21:47. > :21:57.and confidence and that it defies Lancaster and the squat. There are
:21:57. > :21:59.
:21:59. > :22:02.no superstars in that side. -- that defines Lancaster and the squad.
:22:02. > :22:07.Talking about inspirational and organisational stuff. Lancaster was
:22:07. > :22:13.talking about guest speakers. How important is that the stuff outside
:22:13. > :22:21.of rugby? I think it is invaluable. It can be an intense environment.
:22:21. > :22:26.We listen to the same voices 24/7. When you bring in to the camp
:22:26. > :22:30.somebody from the outside, it is inspirational. It is good to hear
:22:30. > :22:39.from people outside of rugby and it set in stone what it is all about.
:22:39. > :22:46.It is bigger than you. Sports psychologists, some players like it
:22:46. > :22:50.and some do not need it. One thing about England, they are in a good
:22:50. > :22:54.place. They are happy, coming off the back of a tremendous win
:22:54. > :22:58.against New Zealand. But they lost again to Australia when they should
:22:58. > :23:07.have beaten them. Again, they have got a great start because they are
:23:07. > :23:11.playing Scotland at her and I don't think Scotland will not go well. --
:23:11. > :23:17.Scotland at home. They have some very good players. Whether that
:23:17. > :23:20.result was that good, they will have to back it up. You cannot
:23:20. > :23:24.underestimate the feeling one those boys will have beaten New Zealand
:23:24. > :23:29.and gone away. When they turn up in the cap, the feel-good factor will
:23:29. > :23:36.be huge. Like pasta will bring that back down because you have to
:23:36. > :23:41.remind them that New Zealand was eight weeks ago. -- Lancaster will
:23:41. > :23:49.bring that down. They were not expected to beat the All Blacks and
:23:49. > :23:59.now a 2000 at Twickenham will expect them to beat Scotland.
:23:59. > :24:23.
:24:23. > :24:26.a few days until the Six Nations After Wales's opening match against
:24:27. > :24:32.Ireland, they are on the road for three games in a row, facing
:24:32. > :24:36.everybody away from home. It was a similar story back in 2005, and you
:24:36. > :24:42.do not need me to remind you that Wales won the Grand Slam. We have
:24:42. > :24:51.been assessing how we have fared against the Blues in all that time.
:24:51. > :24:57.The Blues have been the blue tit team in recent years. They won
:24:57. > :25:01.Grand Slam in 2010. But France's only blip came last year when the
:25:01. > :25:09.4th place was their only finish outside the top three since the
:25:09. > :25:17.turn of the century. But since then, Andre has brought stability to
:25:17. > :25:26.their performance. They beat Samoa, Argentina and Australia. This class
:25:26. > :25:33.when they get it right. They have some great players from Clermont
:25:33. > :25:38.and Toulon. One cautionary note, since that win in 2005, Wales have
:25:38. > :25:42.drawn a complete blank in Paris. Even though they are moving to a
:25:42. > :25:47.new home in the study and a bigger this year, it has been the same old
:25:47. > :25:52.same old for the Italians. Only once have they managed to finish
:25:52. > :25:56.out of the bottom two by recording two wins in a season. They came
:25:56. > :25:59.against Wales and Scotland. Italy have recorded all of their Six
:26:00. > :26:09.Nations wins against them, except from one famous victory against
:26:10. > :26:10.
:26:10. > :26:19.France in 2011. Once again, the Italian hopes will be carried on
:26:19. > :26:23.the broad shoulders of their one Scotland have suffered the most
:26:24. > :26:27.dramatic turnaround of anyone over recent months. After a clean sweep
:26:27. > :26:37.from their summer tour including a win in Australia, three autumn
:26:37. > :26:38.
:26:38. > :26:43.defeats, the last recently, was enough for Robinson to call it a
:26:43. > :26:47.draw. Stepping out of the shadows, his number two, a very well-known
:26:47. > :26:50.figure in Wales. Latterly with the Ospreys, then previously as part of
:26:50. > :26:54.the coaching team that delivered that long awaited Grand Slam in
:26:54. > :26:58.2005. But despite the history, there have been no divided
:26:58. > :27:03.loyalties. There is respect and it is a privilege to play with the
:27:03. > :27:07.Welsh boys. The fact is that my loyalties lie with the Scottish
:27:07. > :27:12.boys and I want to see them perform. Nothing is better than seeing
:27:12. > :27:18.Scotland win. Scotland's Six Nations record is almost identical
:27:18. > :27:23.to Italy's. Stuck in the bottom two and asked half a dozen campaigns.
:27:23. > :27:28.The only time Wales have lost, home or away in seven encounters, it
:27:29. > :27:32.took seven penalties from Chris Paterson in 2007. Given Wales's
:27:32. > :27:42.excellent recent record against the Scots, losing to their former coach
:27:42. > :27:43.
:27:43. > :27:48.Scott Johnson in the blue of Scotland now. He threatened to wear
:27:48. > :27:53.a kilt at the Six Nations launch. You have played with him and worked
:27:53. > :27:58.under him. Is he the man for the job? Scotland have struggled in the
:27:58. > :28:03.past with their attack. I can only speak from experience. He was the
:28:03. > :28:06.most attacking coach that I have ever worked with. It is difficult
:28:06. > :28:11.being a number two rather than a number one, so it will be
:28:11. > :28:15.interesting to see how he get along. It is a different coaching team.
:28:15. > :28:22.Scotland potentially could be a banana-skin for Wales, in Edinburgh,
:28:22. > :28:27.definitely. We were talking about Scotland having a good pack, which
:28:27. > :28:33.will make a difference. Yes, he is very straight down the line, an ex
:28:33. > :28:39.army guy. It is a pretty much one- way conversation. He tells you, you
:28:39. > :28:43.do it. If you do something different, then you run around and
:28:43. > :28:47.you do some press ups. He is tough on the discipline. He will have
:28:47. > :28:53.that kind of respect from players who have watched him. He
:28:53. > :28:57.understands the game. It will be hard for a Scotsman to listen to an
:28:57. > :29:02.Englishman, giving coaching advice on how to beat England. It all
:29:02. > :29:06.seems peculiar to me. I am sure he will do a decent job. He is any
:29:06. > :29:10.there for 12 weeks and they have to get their heads around that as well.
:29:10. > :29:18.So Gotland play a pressurised game. Their defence is good but they do
:29:18. > :29:23.not create enough. -- Scotland play a pressurised game. Unfortunately
:29:23. > :29:28.they have not got the 12-10 axis that creates a lot and that is
:29:28. > :29:33.their Achilles heel. Let's get back to Wales and the opener against
:29:33. > :29:39.Ireland. Kingsley Jones has compiled a detailed dossier on the
:29:39. > :29:45.men in green. Wales's opening game against
:29:45. > :29:48.Ireland is massive and could make or break either team's tournament.
:29:48. > :29:57.Ireland's talisman Brian O'Driscoll is back but the captaincy has gone
:29:57. > :30:02.to Jamie. Will he be able to cope with the pressure? This is him at
:30:02. > :30:07.his devastating best. Low body position, strong tackle, winning
:30:07. > :30:12.yards for his team. Not only is he a battering ram, he plays his first
:30:12. > :30:16.receiver, creating space for the people behind him. Can Wales target
:30:16. > :30:24.him? Yes. He likes to carry high and free his hands in the tackle.
:30:24. > :30:34.That leaves him to say that -- susceptible to turnovers. Wrap him
:30:34. > :30:35.
:30:35. > :30:40.up, stop him getting the ball away, and he can give penalties away.
:30:40. > :30:48.Healey often turns a slow ball into quick ball. He gets the team to go
:30:48. > :30:51.forward. Around the fringes, nice and a low, pick and go, valuable
:30:51. > :30:58.yards around the edges. Buddy can carry the ball like Brian
:30:58. > :31:02.O'Driscoll. Can you target him? Yes. He likes to play too much and he
:31:02. > :31:12.will run off on his own and get himself isolated and give penalties
:31:12. > :31:19.
:31:19. > :31:26.Wales can target the scrum. Mike Ross has been a big player in
:31:26. > :31:30.recent seasons. There is a lot of pressure in this scrum. And if the
:31:30. > :31:35.replacement has not played on the right side as much as last season
:31:35. > :31:40.there look what happened then. This really took the momentum out of
:31:40. > :31:48.Ireland a's game and cause them problems on the day. This is
:31:48. > :31:53.something Wales must target. And lastly we look at the half backs.
:31:54. > :31:59.Murray is a threat, a big strong player, but is he technically that
:31:59. > :32:03.good? He often less his team down with his kicking game. His kicks
:32:03. > :32:09.can be flat, allowing counter- attacking opportunities, putting
:32:09. > :32:19.his team under pressure. If I was Alex Cuthbert Fort George North, I
:32:19. > :32:22.
:32:22. > :32:26.But don't forget, Brian O'Driscoll is back. He can be defenders for
:32:26. > :32:30.fun, he creates space for others, and is one of the best defenders in
:32:30. > :32:38.the tournament. And he is the most experienced player in the Six
:32:38. > :32:42.Nations. Brian O'Driscoll is back. He is not
:32:42. > :32:50.catch him though. You spent the day with him yesterday. Does he feel
:32:50. > :32:54.aggrieved? He is a top bloke. He's not going to be around much longer
:32:54. > :32:59.and he said he's disappointed because he is a proud Irishmen. He
:32:59. > :33:03.was injured in the autumn and Jamie Heaslip did a good job, so
:33:03. > :33:08.naturally disappointed, but he will still be like a leader on the field
:33:09. > :33:14.anyway. He's that type of bloke. But he's really looking forward to
:33:14. > :33:19.this because he has only played a few games. He is really fresh and
:33:19. > :33:26.this could be his last Six Nations. I want to talk about the Wales
:33:26. > :33:31.injury situation. A bit of a crisis in the second row. That aside, are
:33:31. > :33:35.there many selection dilemmas? back row is an issue with Dan
:33:35. > :33:40.Lydiate being out. Are they going to go with Sam Warburton and Justin
:33:40. > :33:45.Tipuric together? I think they should. I think Justin Tipuric is
:33:45. > :33:50.the best player in Wales at the moment. If you look at the way Sam
:33:50. > :33:54.Warburton tackles, he is very similar to Dan Lydiate. In the
:33:54. > :33:59.second row, if Ian Evans is fit, I would put him straight back in
:33:59. > :34:05.because I think he is that important. Apart from that, if the
:34:05. > :34:13.back line more or less picks itself. I think they will go with Dan
:34:13. > :34:17.Biggar. He has got a few issues, particularly in the pack. I think
:34:17. > :34:21.Number 10 will be interesting. He will definitely go with Dan Biggar
:34:21. > :34:28.because he has been the form player if they can he bring that regional
:34:28. > :34:32.form to the international stage. He is a confidence player. With James
:34:32. > :34:38.Hook, you don't know what he's going to bring. Does he control the
:34:38. > :34:42.game? But it has been unfair because he has been flown in
:34:42. > :34:48.sometimes. You know what Dan Biggar can do for you so you could start
:34:48. > :34:58.with him. Or you could say, let's give James Hook a run, see how he
:34:58. > :35:07.goes, and if he is not controlling it, then bringing damn. -- -- then
:35:07. > :35:12.a bringing Dan Biggar. If I wanted to win I would probably go with it
:35:12. > :35:18.Dan Biggar. International rugby is about consistency and stability.
:35:18. > :35:23.You have got to go for Dan Biggar. But he has got to run it. What he
:35:23. > :35:32.does for the Ospreys, or bring the centres in, good kicking, and let
:35:32. > :35:35.him run it. Don't let Mike Phillips boss it. And bring Jamie Roberts
:35:35. > :35:40.and Jonathan Davies enter the game. Those guys charging down the middle
:35:40. > :35:47.against anybody is going to be causing problems. Against Ireland
:35:47. > :35:53.last year, they could not handle Jamie Roberts and George North.
:35:53. > :35:59.Play the game in the Irish territory. And Dan Biggar is very
:35:59. > :36:05.vocal and he has got to come onto this stage and say, I am in charge.
:36:05. > :36:12.He has got a Ossett, as he does for the Ospreys. That is what he did
:36:12. > :36:16.not do last time. It is very difficult though.
:36:17. > :36:21.We will talk about the Lions in a minute but 40 years ago today, the
:36:21. > :36:31.greatest try ever seen was caught just down the road. It has never
:36:31. > :36:42.
:36:42. > :36:51.seen so past and we have never It is just nice to be able to
:36:51. > :36:57.recollect it. It just gives you a special thrill to think that you
:36:57. > :37:04.will still want you to talk about it. Really, you can't put a value
:37:04. > :37:14.on that so it is not what it is worth, it is what it has given us
:37:14. > :37:24.
:37:24. > :37:34.for the last 40 years. That is a That is brilliant! John Williams.
:37:34. > :37:35.
:37:35. > :37:44.Brian Williams. A great dummy. David. The halfway line. Brilliant
:37:44. > :37:54.by Quinnell. This is Gareth Edwards. A dramatic start. What a score!
:37:54. > :37:56.
:37:56. > :38:00.This Six Nations this critical for those hoping to make on the playing
:38:00. > :38:10.for for the Lions tour. Every week we will be inviting a tended game
:38:10. > :38:11.
:38:11. > :38:14.to take a Lions starting 15. Jeremy Guscott is the first.
:38:14. > :38:21.The first selector his Jeremy Guscott. Before you start moaning
:38:21. > :38:28.that Jeremy could not pick a pair of matching socks. This is the
:38:28. > :38:32.trickiest selection, taking 18 the for the Six Nations has started. No
:38:32. > :38:37.Alex Cuthbert end of a free and Leigh Halfpenny out of position.
:38:37. > :38:47.Despite being a silky skills merchant, he has gone for two big
:38:47. > :38:48.
:38:48. > :38:56.Jonathan Sexton at Number Ten. Mike Phillips will be slightly about
:38:56. > :39:02.being left out. Dan Lydiate is in the back row, but his and Sam
:39:02. > :39:08.Warburton bread to be captain? Alun-Wyn Jones has done it all
:39:08. > :39:18.before in the boiler house. No doubt in the front row. The best,
:39:18. > :39:22.
:39:22. > :39:32.the best and the best. For English, five Irish and six Welsh. Thank you
:39:32. > :39:35.
:39:35. > :39:43.Phil Bennett will be making his choice next week. Jeremy, you had
:39:43. > :39:48.endear yourself to the Welsh audience. I knew where I was coming.
:39:48. > :39:52.Sam Warburton is missing there Dan Lydiate is in. Robshaw has not
:39:52. > :39:57.shown that he can compete at the highest level with the best players.
:39:57. > :40:02.He has shown great leadership qualities also. Sam Warburton is
:40:02. > :40:07.pretty much the same. On form, the word he does is probably more
:40:07. > :40:12.collective. We have seen Sam Warburton make match-saving tackles.
:40:12. > :40:19.The one he made on Manu Tuilagi last year was phenomenal. But we
:40:19. > :40:29.need to see more of that. I agree with league macro at number six and
:40:29. > :40:33.number 8 but the number seven is very contentious. Warren Gatland
:40:33. > :40:37.has gone on record as saying you need an out and out seven. Robshaw
:40:37. > :40:42.is a fantastic player and a great leader but I still question whether
:40:42. > :40:48.he is again absent out seven. He will be interesting if Justin
:40:48. > :40:51.Tipuric does play seven and plays really well for Wales. The players
:40:51. > :40:59.all public be downplayed talk of the Lions but it is going to be the
:40:59. > :41:02.backdrop of this Six Nations. I interviewed Brian O'Driscoll, he
:41:02. > :41:07.said that every a Lions tour, Ireland have played well and they
:41:07. > :41:11.get a lot of players on the tour. That will be at the back of their
:41:11. > :41:16.minds. Last year, if you are picking the Lions on last season,
:41:16. > :41:21.all of the Welsh players would go. Now, if they don't get the results,
:41:21. > :41:27.will Warren Gatland the the Welsh boys? He is a huge season for
:41:27. > :41:32.everyone. I think it is going to be really close and the start is very
:41:32. > :41:38.important. To get that momentum and confidence than you are not chasing
:41:38. > :41:42.the competition then. He is not get easier. If you get injuries.
:41:42. > :41:49.have got very little time left but I am going to come see you for a
:41:49. > :41:55.prediction. Wales against Ireland? Wales, like last year, three or
:41:55. > :42:02.four points. Ireland, only because you said Wales. I think Ireland
:42:02. > :42:07.going as favourites. That is all from us. Thank you for watching.
:42:07. > :42:17.Just five days until Wales play Ireland. We thought we would leave
:42:17. > :42:20.
:42:20. > :42:24.you with the thoughts of Eddie Off we go again, this is our thing.
:42:24. > :42:34.We don't win the World Cups, we don't win summer tours, autumn
:42:34. > :42:41.series, no, but this what we do. There is no time to stop, no time
:42:41. > :42:47.to pause even, because to have caused is to doubt. And to doubt is
:42:47. > :42:55.out. So we marched to be on the move, to be on the move is to
:42:55. > :43:00.escape the shadows that haunt us. There are always demons in Wales.
:43:00. > :43:10.For it is all going horribly wrong for Wales. So we marched like
:43:10. > :43:21.
:43:21. > :43:27.pilgrims passed away shrines. St Alexander the Great. Can we do it