It's An Emotional Rollercoaster

Here are the overwhelming emotions I have experienced during the last 6 Ireland v England matches. I stopped before 2007 but that one was (obviously) rapturous euphoria.

Guest Post

Last week I received this (unsolicited) email from my girlfriend. She's a true fan of the game:

I'm flattered you asked me to have a guest post on your rugby blog.

While I haven't finished the article I've attached the illustration that will accompany it.

The Curious Case of Dan Cole

Dan Cole is only 26. That's the thing that struck me most when reading about his bulging disc, which will rule him out of England's upcoming match against Ireland. Partly because I imagine all props to be in their thirties at least, but mostly because he looks like your Grandad's older brother, I had assumed he was a little further on in years. Even by the standards of the front row, Cole looks "mature". And he's looked more or less the same for years now, which means he looked like that when he was 22 or 23. I wonder what he looked like as a teenager? I bet he never got asked for ID. Or maybe he never was a teenager. Perhaps there's a sort of Benjamin Button scenario happening to Dan, and there will come a time when he becomes too young and underdeveloped for the punishing life of a prop forward?

A smack with the wooden spoon

This year, like most years since the Six Nations tournament began, Scotland and Italy are at the bottom of the table. Their match this Saturday represents for both of them the best chance of getting a win. With the pressure to avoid the wooden spoon weighing heavy on each side it might not be a great game to watch, but all of that tension should lead to a pretty passionate encounter. I predict a huge brawl at some point in the first half, most likely started by the meeting of two reliably fiery characters. Jim Hamilton, who seems nowadays to spend the full 80 minutes involved in off-the-ball scraps, and Martin Castrogiovanni, who manages to be both a long-hair and a tight-head, are bound to cross paths early on. Hopefully their personal battle isn't the most exciting thing about Scotland vs Italy.

Rising Stars

Luther Burrell's eyebrows are having a great Six Nations so far. Despite their inexperience, with only 2 caps to their name, Burrell's eyebrows have impressed with their strength and support lines.

Let's hear it for the girls

In recognition of the growing popularity of women's rugby, the Ireland v England women's match will be shown live on RTÉ next Saturday. Among the more excited parties will be Ryle Nugent, who has a whole new set of names to wrap his gums around. Unfortunately for Ryle most of the Irish and English players have pretty familiar-sounding handles, but if anyone can find a creative way to drag a few more syllables from them it's him. He can always console himself with the thought that the next two matches are against Italy and France, so expect a few Nugent specials in the coming weeks.

The Gallic Shrug

Say what you want about this French team, but you can't deny they know how to pout.

Captain Pascal Papé leads by example.