Preview Six Nations Rugby

Cardiff, one of the most vibrant

cities in Britain. It sparkles with

Celtic intensity. The Six Nations

championship is one hour away.

Months of preparation and weeks of

training. By now, if you are one of

the six coaches, there is nothing

more to be seen.

Everyone is talking

about Ireland and Scotland, so we

are chasing those guys.

Scotland are

really on the rise. Greg has

installed this belief.

France have

sacked their national coach.

We are

nowhere near it at the moment, there

are the whipping boys in every

competition.

Where will Wales be in

the Six Nations competition.

They

will not win it.

will not win it.

Have you thought

about the future after 2019.

How can

we be favourites, every comment

about our game is that we were

terrible.

It is the weight of

expectation for Ireland to go out

and deliver.

Same old excuses.

As a

coach, I hate losing.

No matter how

dry or long your January Feltz,

February Herald sports of springtime

and before a ball is kicked, the

relentless positivity is

overwhelming. Get off to a good

start and the talk of championships

and Grand Slams. Lose the opener and

the balloon of optimism is pricked

with six weeks left to play. Cardiff

and the Principality Stadium on the

opening day of the Six Nations, is a

very special place to be.

very special place to be. Some

serious faces, but not too many in

the national newspapers would have

backed as their front-page headline.

Greatest rugby show on earth is back

and it underlines the hope and

expectation and the enormity of the

Six Nations. We will share this over

the next seven weeks with the BBC TV

with the usual crew of Jonathan

Davies and Andy Nicholls. Martin

Johnson and Sam Warburton. John,

this is an odd expectation because

you have never been to a Six Nations

game without a vested interest?

Absolutely, we got in last night and

Cardiff was jumping. Everyone has

been waiting for this to start and

everyone is fascinating. Scotland

and Wales will be fantastic, the

stadium is buzzing.

We have some

images of you from years gone by.

I

got called up at 24 hours notice so

it was surreal to be playing in the

game. Your first view of rugby was

watching the Five Nations, as it

was. It is the envy of the Rugby

world, it is a great tournament. It

is great occasions, every match is a

great occasion. People come

together, enjoy it and enjoyed the

whole weekend. It is a fabulous

tournament.

Sam, you would love to

be playing, if it wasn't for injury,

but you can feel Cardiff in a

different way today, how do you view

it as an event?

As a player, you

enter the camp on the Monday and you

are in this little bubble. You don't

listen to the press and you are

oblivious to the hype. Now I am on

the other side of the fence and it

is building. Cardiff this morning,

roads were closed, four hours before

kick-off, traffic everywhere, it was

mental. People finding places to

watch the game. Six Nations is the

one and it has got appetites going

already.

And the game against

England a few years ago?

It was one

of my favourite games in the Six

Nations. It was incredible. I did

not ask to put this up honestly.

There was the old Samoans sidestep.

Didn't happen. As players, you

couldn't hear each other to

communicate with each other. That is

the best memory of my rugby career.

Over the next 40 minutes we will

look at the championship as a whole

before we concentrate on the game

here at the Principality Stadium. A

quick word about what might happen

this afternoon in the first of the

15 games. Jonathan, out on the

street last night, everybody was

bullish from a watch point of view,

but there is uncertainty as well?

Yes, because of the injuries. The

back blocks excavating the

>> liam-macro:

>> liam-macro: -- the backs look

exciting. After a great Automator is

a nice feeling. Martin said, it is

fantastic and a squad, they are

optimistic.

More than ever before?

With reason, it was a good autumn

series. They have travelled to a

place where they have bad memories

from, Scotland have an one here

since 2002. But they come with a

confidence but is seeping out into

the crowd. The Scottish fans always

travel well, but more in hope than

expectation. There is an expectation

today to perform. If they perform,

they have a chance because the

players love playing for Scotland

and they are doing it well.

You

mentioned the injury situation on

the build-up to this tournament has

been dominated by an epidemic of

injury affecting all six sides.

Let's focus on the players missing

from the Welsh and Scottish

line-ups. There are some famous

names, there is some, there is

Faletau. North, Rhys Webb and Liam

Williams. And a whole raft of

players missing from the Scottish

front row.

It is difficult with

injuries, unless it is the same

injury, the Lions tour, they have

had a lot of rugby into July. You

get less preseason to get back to

full fitness. Scotland have lost so

many players and it is

unprecedented. Sometimes it is just

a quirk. The guys in professional

rugby do play a lot more, The Games

are big, they are physical. The way

the game is played is very

attritional. It is always a

balancing act on how much training

to do with contact for coaches and

players. How much is too much and

how much is too little. Sometimes it

is difficult to nail down why.

It is

difficult. As Martin says, the

contest between rugby league and

rugby union, rugby league, limited

amount of injuries. When I came back

to play rugby union I was surprised

how physical it was. They are

cutting down in training, Sam, not

much contact. It must be difficult

to get the right balance?

It is hard

because you have two prepare for an

international Test match. From what

I have heard and seen, training

volumes have had to be reduced over

the last six months because simply

the training loads accumulate over

the season, not just again. They

have had to pull back on training a

little bit as well.

Ireland, they

have probably got the best injury

profile of all the countries. They

are almost full strength, so it is

not across the board. Biking

Scotland and Wales have been

unlucky. They are the most affected

because neither country has great

strength and depth.

Irrespective of

the injuries, they have got to

forget it, they are not playing.

Focus on the opposition, focus on

your own team. Yes, a lot of

injuries in the Scottish front row

and that will be on the minds of the

Welsh players.

One point worth

mentioning, every time Wales play

Scotland, the greatest fact in

international rugby, when Wales

played Scotland in 1963 there were

111 line-outs.

Every time you say

that fact, I want to repeat it over

and over. We think of how long the

ball will be in play today.

The

players are having to play longer?

If Scotland have their way, they

want to play fast. It takes some of

the contact out of it because it

isn't an attritional game. Maybe

Wales will be the team who want to

be more direct, kick the ball it in

the Ford is a little bit more, drive

line-outs more than they normally do

and play like that.

Let's move on

because the action is starting and

the stadium is filling up. There

were extra security checks and

forced which meant sizeable chunks

of matches were missed by crowds

waiting to get into the stadium. But

they are being entertained by the

choirs and the bands and Only Men

Aloud are onstage at the moment.

People are streaming into the

stadium, 45 minutes from kick-off.

This is how the table looked, if

needed reminding from last year. It

is worth reiterating that things

have changed. It is now four win.

You get a bonus point if you score

four tries and you get a bonus point

if you lose lose by seven points are

less -- or less. This week, Eddie

Jones has been jousting with Sonia

McLaughlin.

McLaughlin. 57 years young sweet,

Eddie, what did you do your

birthday?

We had a good training

day. We had some training with

players we thought weren't going to

be back.

A sixth successive Six

Nations title has never been done

before?

We will go for the win

against Italy.

I know you don't want

to look at the bigger picture, but

are you encouraging the players to

embrace the fact they could make

history?

The players could be part

of something special and as you

alluded to, be part of something no

other team in England has done.

You

have insisted Ireland are the

favourites, it is it Eddie Jones'

kid ology?

I don't think it is, if

you look at their form over the last

12 months, they have had some good

victories, they did well on the

Lions tour.

You have 122 out of 23

games, the bookies are making

England favourites, surely they are

right?

Always look at the form and

the recent form favours Ireland.

Are

you conscious of the fact that a lot

of praise is being heaped onto

Ireland and Scotland, do you think

England are not getting full

recognition for what they have

achieved?

It is not something that

worries me. It is fashionable to

bash England. The media always tells

the truth, so we believe what the

papers said that we haven't been

playing well, we have to improve and

get better. We're working hard to do

that.

You have a significant number

of England, are you disadvantaged by

the workload the players have

compared to those in Ireland?

We

cannot control the problem. The

issue is how we respond to that. We

had our best week of training in

Portugal last week. Everybody said

the players

the players would be disillusioned

with heavy legs. They came in and

they trained the house down and we

had our best training week ever.

You

are sticking with Dylan Hartley as

captain and hooker, why is he your

go to man?

He brings a lot of

leadership to the team. Jamie George

is outstanding. The average age of

the squad is 23. The history of Test

match rugby, the last ten minutes of

the game is generally when it is won

or lost. We need to have a good team

during that time.

You have signed a

new contract, what happened to the

beach in Barbados?

That is

definitely still coming. I have been

going through the brochures. But I

have put them aside for a while. It

is a great opportunity England have

offered me to oversee the transition

to the next coach. I don't intend to

coach England past 2019 World Cup to

the next World Cup. But I would like

to make sure the next head coach

comes into a team that has good,

consistent attributes and the new

coach can add the flavour he wants

to it.

You have signed a new deal

until 2021, you know what happens

that year?

The Ashes tour.

Probably.

I don't think I could coach the

cricket side. I would love to, but I

don't think I could.

What about

Eddie Jones to coach the Lions in

South Africa, are you open to

leading the Lions?

I am open to

opportunities to coach. I love

coaching, I love coaching good

players. If someone asked me to

coach the lines, I would consider

it.

That is probably yes. Are you an

Eddie Jones fan?

You cannot argue

with his record. When he came in

people were saying, how can an

non-English guy work-out? But we

have some very strong clubs in

England and Eddie came in with a

massive amount of experience. He

said I have a lot of experience and

listen to what I say. The results

have been there, it is an amazing

record. You cannot argue with that.

He has been good for the team and

the way he talks, he is constantly

keeping them on their toes and not

letting them get complacent. When

you win, everybody says how great

you are. But you are never that far

away from losing those games and you

have to keep striving or you get

overtaken.

Sam, you played against

England before Eddie Jones, do you

detect differences between then and

now?

The squad is a massively

different. In the 2015 World Cup,

there were some more experiments,

Sam Burgess was playing 12. England

now, even though they have a similar

front five, Launchbury, Courtney

Lawes, they are world-class players

and that is what you need in the

front five. Look at the southern

hemisphere front five, they are big

athletes who ball carry an England

have a front five like that.

The one

advantage England have got, there is

no complacency because of the

strength and that they have in every

position. If you don't play well,

another player can come and take

your place. It keeps complacency at

bay. He handles it very well. He has

a little go at the players and

bounces them back up. They are a

strong force in world rugby now.

The

Italian teams have done well in the

regional pro 14 competition, is

there any reason to think they may

give anybody a bloody nose, even

England on Sunday?

I don't think it

will happen on Sunday. There has

been improvements and they are much

more competitive, playing a more

structured game. In minor happened

this year, but I am hearing there

are a lot of good young players

being developed. So in a few years,

they could be a force.

I think they

will be tough. Everyone thinks when

you go to Italy you will win and

most of the time you do. But it is

tougher than you realise. On Sunday,

and less England are at it, it will

be tough.

They have got to develop

their half-backs. There will be

stronger and more structured with

the new coaching set but it needs

the rugby brain. That is what they

are lacking, they gain management at

nine, ten and 15. They are only

going to improve. It must be tough

going into every competition as

whipping boys.

You can see

highlights of Edmund against Italy

and Rugby special tomorrow night at

6pm on BBC Two. -- England.

6pm on BBC Two. -- England. Most

people are seeing England against

silent as the potential championship

decider. Ireland are the only team

so far to beat England during Eddie

Jones' rain.

Thunderous start

guaranteed. The Irish kitchen sink

at the ready, England needing to

hold their nerve. Johnny Sexton, the

kind of man for a day like this.

Ireland on the ball, their tails are

up. Ireland with the drive.

Henderson. A fifth score in the

Green of Ireland for Henderson.

Ireland are into double figures. The

cleanest of strikes from Owen

Farrell. That is a monstrous kick

from Johnny Sexton. Owen Farrell,

keeping England in touch. Ireland,

bring England crashing to earth.

The

match in Paris against Ireland

starts at 4:45pm and Paul O'Connell

will be part of the commentary team.

How are you?

Good afternoon.

How do

Ireland feel about being favourites

for the Six Nations?

The bookies are

very rarely wrong. I don't think

Eddie is far wrong, Ireland have a

very settled team working under an

excellent coach. The coaching staff

is getting stronger and stronger

with Andy Farrell coming in as well.

Behind that you have great coaching

going on in the provinces. Stuart

Lancaster has had a massive effect

at Leinster. 14 of the squad are

playing in Ireland today. Leinster

have been working with Stuart

Lancaster for the last few months

and they have elevated how they

played. Top team in Europe at the

moment in both defence and attack. I

think Ireland are in a very good

place. The fact they play away from

home against France and against

England and have never beaten the

two of them in the same year away

from home since 1972, maybe in an

Irish person's eyes, tells us the

favouritism in the way of the

English.

I was reading an interview

with Rory Best, the Irish captain

this morning and he said there are

some experienced players. He said

playing in Paris was like nowhere

else because of the assault on the

senses. You have played there many

times, what does it feel like?

They

generally start very well here. We

have been on the back of some

incredible games here where we have

given ourselves a massive mountain

to climb. It will probably be

something similar today. They will

have a lot to prove and they have

been under pressure, but when you

talk about experience, the French

are far less experience than the

Irish. The front row for the French

have. I think there is 16 the entire

front bench here today. Ireland, in

terms of experience are a lot

further down the track than the

French. The provinces have done well

against the French sides succumbing

to France and winning isn't as big a

deal as it used to be the Irish

sides and coming to Paris isn't as

big a deal as it used to be. Ireland

will be in a good place to handle

the pressure and the motion.

Thank

you very much, we will be there in

plenty of time for kick-off. France,

anybody. What can we expect we just

don't know?

France, even if they

were disrupted, they have great

athletes and in the scrimmage, they

give you a challenge there. They

have so many foreign players in

their competition, it has taken away

a lot of their natural character and

how they play. I think they are

looking to get back to how they used

to play. Be interesting to see how

they go.

Typically French, they suck

their coach at the start of the Six

Nations. They replaced with a

similar type coach. A lot of coaches

coming through the French Top 14 and

it would be good to elevate some of

them.

them. This could be the future. It

could be a good selection by Jacques

Brunel.

When you saw the French

selection, there were some

unfamiliar names, could this be the

devil may care approach that fans

are saying, we are at the starting

block, 18 months before a World Cup

and actually, they could do

anything?

There is no expectation on

the French, which could be dangers

for their opposing team. Paris is

one of the most hostile of the

ground you play in. If you are

defending and going backwards five

phases in a row, the crowd get on

top of the team and you can see them

growing with confidence. You have to

make sure that doesn't happen. A lot

of young teens do this, they go out,

they play with no fear. That is

probably the best way to express

themselves.

Look at identity and how

they play, nobody can work it out.

Whether they are trying to play like

the club sides are but they have the

overseas forwards, it is very slow

and stodgy with a lot of kicking.

This young French side looks like,

we will go back to the old style of

a big pack, win the set piece and

see what happens.

It will be a

fascinating match in Paris this

afternoon. If you have just switched

on and we are working our way to the

prospect of all the sides in this

Six Nations. We are starting in the

Principality Stadium and the

atmosphere is building. Let's move

to Scotland who come here with

enormous expectation, given what

happened during the autumn

internationals. We saw a new

Scotland, bold, enterprising,

energising and exciting Scotland?

It is a big chase by Tommy Seymour.

It is that man Jones.

It is that man Jones. What a vital

score for Scotland.

score for Scotland.

Wide it goes now

and Taylor in for a try. Great try

for the All Blacks.

Jonny Gray,

tries to switch and he scores for

Scotland. Seymour gathers it. Gives

the past. Is there still life in

Scotland here at Murrayfield? Stuart

Hogg is through. Stuart Hogg for the

corner. Can't quite get there and

the whistle blows. The cruellest

sound for Scotland here at

Murrayfield. Chance for McGuigan.

Can he win the race? McGuigan scores

for Scotland.

for Scotland. Sean Maitland for the

corner. Sean Maitland slides. Chaos

at Murrayfield. Hugh John 's -- who

Jones, scoring again. Half-century

against the Wallabies, who would

have thought?

It was that result in

particular against Australia means

the journey south has been

undertaken with such relish by

thousands of Scotland fans even know

it is 16 years since they won in

Cardiff and a decade since they won

on the opening day of the Six

Nations. Gregor Townsend is with Lee

McKenzie.

This is your first Six Nations as a

coach, have things just got more

serious?

I think so, it is a great

tournament. The build-up has been

more pronounced than what happened

in November and we are excited to

play. It is a brilliant stadium to

play in and we cannot wait to put

what we have done in training onto

the field.

The last time Scotland

won in Cardiff, you are still

playing, what is the key to turning

Scotland's fortunes round?

You have

got to take your opportunities but

work hard to create them. Six

Nations tend to be physical matches,

especially the first one. There will

be mistakes as the teams played the

first games. So working hard,

working for 80 minutes, making sure

the last 20 minutes, we are in with

a chance of winning.

Some different

faces, like Wales, a side which has

been dictated to by Injera, do you

know how good the Scottish side is?

We have been impressed by how they

have trained. They played well in

November and we have made changes to

the team as well. The way they

combine training gives us a lot of

belief we can go out and play well.

Training is different than playing

and we have a team that will try and

play their own way and stop what we

are trying to do, so we had to adapt

to that on the field.

Thanks, good

luck.

Andy, years of former team-mate of

yours, how do thing he has grown as

a coach?

Great temperament as a

player, way of reading the game. He

has brought that into his coaching

as well. He's also quite ruthless,

made some big calls over the years.

Mainly Glasgow, getting rid of some

of the backroom team. He knows what

he's doing and he knows how wants to

play. You heard him talking about

what a great stadium and atmosphere

it is. He will be relating back to

the team all week. A lot of them

haven't played here before. He said

he will go out and enjoy playing in

one of the best stadiums in the

world.

You talk about because he is

prepared to make, one of them was

picking Ali Price when he could have

brought Greg Laidlaw back into the

side?

Ali Price come he knows from

his Glasgow days. He brings pace and

tempo into the Scotland game and

that is how Scotland want to play.

Having someone like Ali Price doing

that is outstanding. What an

experienced player to come off the

bench with ten minutes to go and it

is tied Scotland are defending

Billy, it is the right way of doing

it.

We keep talking about Scotland

scoring lots of tries, but in the

autumn they did concede a few tries,

especially against Samoa. Is there a

concern about their defence?

You

always want to have a good defence,

especially away from home. The key

for them is getting the excitement

in the game, not feeling the

pressure or the expectation but the

excitement and the opportunity of

winning here for the first time in a

long time.

Scotland will have a the

back game and thought, this is not

good enough. They said if we concede

that many tries, we will not win

games. Wales will have said the

same. Especially with the injuries

on the front row. Ali Price can get

the ball away very quickly. Wales

will try to get stuck into them.

It

won't surprise me, I know everybody

said there are ten Scarlets on the

watching, but there will be times in

the game when Wales get to the

middle of the field and deliberate

goat tied. They will want to

challenge the Scottish front five.

So can Scotland handle the

expectation they have never had

before I get an away win? It will

set up their Six Nations

brilliantly.

The more we talk about

it, the louder Delilah gets, it is

so exciting.