The MAG Vietnam Vol 8 April 2017 | Page 8

Sport

By Bruce MacKenzie

Another enthralling Six Nations championship has come and gone. England have won back-to-back six nation titles and with the win over Scotland“ equaling” New Zealand ' s run of 18( Tier 1) tests in a row. England however could not achieve the“ Grand Slam” for the competition. On the St Patrick Day weekend clash they choked against a determined and physical Irish team in Dublin the final game of the competition, 13 – 9. The game where only 1 try was scored by Iain Henderson. England did retain the Calcutta Cup over Scotland; the cup first being competed for in 1879. England has won just over half of the 123 matches, England have held the cup since 2009. The cup itself is of Indian workmanship, decorated with cobras and an elephant.

The Scots lived up to their“ dark horse” title during the competition with an early win over Ireland and a win over Wales in more than a decade. It was however short lived with the sound beating by the English side at Twickenhame by 61 – 21.

The French were competitive throughout the completion without really showing their full team potential to threaten for the six nation’ s title. The Azzurri again are wooden spooners for another year being routed in games against Ireland and Wales and Scotland. Time to take the“ blinkers off”, either add a promotion relegation format with the winners of the European Rugby Championship competition, or include Georgia into the competition outright.

RBS Six Nations Championship

Last updated 18 March 2017 at 18:55 Rank Team P W D L For Against Bonus Pts

When England captain Dylan Hartley and team-mate James Haskell asked for clarification about Italy ' s tactics and

8 The MAG Vung Tau