6 Nations Round 3 Match Predictions

After powering through a 6 Nationsless weekend, we have been rewarded with three fantastic fixtures to look forward to. Three decisive clashes take place this weekend, and all three could go either way.

Wales vs France:

No Eddy Ben Arous for France this week, as Jefferson Poirot, Guilhem Guirado and Rabah Slimani take their places in a mobile and powerful front row. Rob Evans and Samson Lee give Wales a great platform in the scrum, and the French will need to work hard to eke any penalties out of them. Bradley Davies steps in for Luke Charteris, and he will offer a bit more power than the Racing lock. France have dropped Yoann Maestri to the bench in favor of Paul Jedrasiak, Maestri’s experience will be a loss to France, but Alexandre Flanquart has the ability to more than make up for that. Damien Chouly will be asked to provide the bulk of the ball carrying for France, a task he is very well suited to. Wales have gone back to the trio of Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton, and Taulupe Faletau. Lydiate’s chop tackling will be a great asset against this massive French pack, and Faletau’s stellar form should help them win the gainline in attack.

Maxime Machenaud has stepped in for Sebastien Bezy at 9, and his vision will be a great asset for France in attack. Machenaud’s experience will also be a great help to young Jules Plisson, who remains the starter at 10. Jonathan Danty must determine how he will stop Jamie Roberts, who has been on fire throughout the tournament. Roberts’ dominance of the gainline has seen the likes of Jonathan Davies and George North running rampant through defences, something the young duo of Danty and Maxime Mermoz must remain concerned about. Virimi Vakatawa and George North will be going head to head in a truly mouthwatering matchup. These two have so much power and so much pace, and both have been at the heart of their respective sides’ success this season. Alex Cuthbert is back in a Wales shirt, starting on the right wing and hoping to recover his form of 2013. The battle between the wily veteran Maxime Medard and the fleet footed Welsh youngster Liam Williams should be fascinating.

Guy Noves brought the axe down on his side this week, that much is clear. However, this does mean that France have some real quality on the bench. With Francois Trinh-Duc and Gael Fickou waiting to come on, Wales will need big plays from their replacements. Justin Tipuric and Gareth Anscombe will provide a massive impact off the bench, a reassuring thought for Warren Gatland. All in all, it is hard to see this French side defeating Wales this weekend. Wales have been so consistent thus far, and will back themselves to beat a French team that had to fight tooth and nail to defeat Italy.

Prediction: Wales 24- France 20

Italy vs Scotland:

Both sides rely on their tightheads to secure their scrum. Scotland’s WP Nel and Italy’s Lorenzo Cittadini have been outstanding for their sides this season. Particularly given Italy’s injuries, Cittadini has been one of their best. Jonny and Richie Gray make a rapidly growing second row pair, who have the potential to be two of the best in the tournament. The return of Josh Furno is great news for Italy, as his workrate is an essential part of the Italian game plan. Whether he can hold his own against the Gray brothers will be central to the result of the match. John Hardie and John Barclay give Scotland a lethal edge at the breakdown, and Dave Denton is a great player for the Scots at No. 8. The fearsome tackling and line speed of Alessandro Zanni and Francesco Minto will help the Italians hold the Scots behind the gainline. Italy’s captain, Sergio Parisse is undoubtedly their most important player, and they will need a big day from him if they are to secure a first win of the campaign.

Both sides are heavily reliant on their scrum halves, with Scotland even calling upon Greig Laidlaw as their captain and goalkicker. The halfback pairing from last season’s tournament is back for Italy with Kelly Haimona stepping in for Carlo Canna, and joining Edoardo Gori. Duncan Taylor and Mark Bennett were phenomenal against Wales, and will be giving Gonzalo Garcia and Michele Campagnaro a massive headache. Taylor in particular was outstanding, and it’s a wonder why he has taken so long to win over Vern Cotter. Italy have found a solid new fullback in David Odiete, while Leonardo Sarto’s pace gives them a major threat on the wing. Scotland’s wingers are in great form, with Tim Visser and Tommy Seymour finding the line with great frequency for club and country. Stuart Hogg has struggled this season, but there is no doubt that he is a classy player, waiting for a moment to break through this season, a moment that could arrive this week.

On paper, we think the Scots are clearly the better team, however, the Italians always seem to up their play against Scotland. Scotland looked to be clicking much better against Wales, however we said the same thing a year ago, and the Scots imploded. That said, we can’t see the same thing happening again, and while Scotland will not run away with this one, it will be a fairly one sided affair.

Prediction: Scotland 29- Italy 10

Ireland vs England:

Ireland will be delighted to see Mike Ross return at tighthead prop, as he will solidify their front row which has been pushed around by both Wales and France. England will look to Joe Marler, who has caused major problems for Ross in the past, as well as Dylan Hartley and Dan Cole. Donnacha Ryan joins Devin Toner in the second row for Ireland, giving them not only a solid lineout, but physicality in spades as well. Speaking of physicality, Maro Itoje will be joining George Kruis for his first start. Both are in outstanding form at the moment, and they may cause Ireland a lot of problems. England (perhaps surprisingly) have not changed their back row, leaving Chris Robshaw, James Haskell, and Billy Vunipola at 6, 7, and 8 respectively. Vunipola has been unstoppable this season, something that should have Ireland very concerned. CJ Stander and Jamie Heaslip have played their hearts out so far in the tournament, and another hard worker has been added to the Ireland back row, with uncapped Josh Van Der Flier stepping in at 7. Since the start of the season, Van Der Flier has skyrocketed up the charts for Leinster and Ireland, outplaying stars like Steffon Armitage and Francois Louw.

Eddie Jones has stuck with his guns, keeping Ben Youngs at 9, George Ford at 10, and Owen Farrell at 12. Ford was totally outclassed by Jonny Sexton in this fixture a year ago, and his poor form against Italy and Scotland cannot be overlooked. Ireland’s Conor Murray has been in red hot form, which leads rather neatly into the selections in the centres. Ulster star Stuart McCloskey will make his first cap at inside centre, and at 6’4” and 240 pounds, he will present just the defensive challenge Owen Farrell loves. The matchup between Robbie Henshaw and Jonathan Joseph will be thrilling, both are fleet footed, smart, and electric playmakers, and we really don’t know which way that battle will go. The back threes are polar opposites. England’s trio of Jack Nowell, Anthony Watson, and Mike Brown are devastating weapons in attack, and will find any and all gaps in Ireland’s defence. Ireland have selected a more defensive group of players, with Keith Earls, Andrew Trimble, and Rob Kearney. Earls is really the only X-Factor player in that group, but Trimble’s brilliant defensive reads can turn defence into attack in no time at all.

Look for uncapped Ultan Dillane to make a big impact off the bench for Ireland, as well as Jack Clifford and Danny Care for England. Ireland fans will have their fingers crossed that their side can come away with a win, but not just to keep their title hopes alive, but because the “I told you so” from Joe Schmidt will be massive if they don’t. It’s very brave for Ireland to start two uncapped players at Twickenham, but the Van Der Flier and McCloskey are special players, armed with the tools they need to hold their own. This will be a tight match again, but we think that England’s form and momentum may just carry them home.

Prediction: England 22- Ireland 20