England, France and Scotland can still lift the Six Nations trophy with Gregor Townsend’s men harbouring arguably the biggest regrets before their final game
Only sad old men in pubs indulge in “coulda, shoulda” talk, but we are legion among Six Nations followers, so why not? Dublin coulda, shoulda been a grand-slam decider.
Still, a grand-slam decider would have been nice. Over to the other half of the equation that never was – Scotland. To anyone, they have been the next best team in this year’s championship but, as always, they have been ravaged by the caprice of the gods and their own eternal inconsistency.in round two still hurts anyone who is not French.
So, what we are left with is messier than it might have been, but there is skin in the game. Ireland will not want to claim the title with a second consecutive defeat. It is not quite as affirming a statement.Marcus Smith celebrates after beating Ireland with his drop goal, England’s best win of the 2024 Six Nations.Scotland have material motivation too. Win, and they will claim the triple crown.
All this talk of bonus points highlights just how inappropriate the scheme is for a short home-or-away tournament such as the Six Nations. Without bonus points, “Super Saturday” would be far more super than it is going to be. True, Ireland’s massive points difference would serve as an effective bonus point, but they and England should be sitting level on points with three wins apiece, with Scotland and France on two. Instead, Ireland have been all but champions since round three.
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