Wales Under-20s claimed their first Grand Slam a year ago and will open up the 2017 Under-20s Six Nations away to Italy on Friday night. I think if Pete [O’Mahony] was available, it maybe might have made things a little bit more of a conundrum for us because he has really good collateral with us.
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And intriguingly they predict the Scots finishing third in the Six Nations which means that on paper they will finish above one of either Ireland, England or Wales.
Meanwhile former Scotland centre Alan Tait said the current side stood comparison with the 1999 team of which he was a member that won the last Five Nations title in 1999.
They are missing key players such as Chris Robshaw and Billy and Mako Vunipola through injury, but welcome back the likes of Maro Itoje, James Haskell and Jack Nowell.
Cotter said yesterday: “Although it’s a reasonably settled squad, it’s nice to have an uncapped player and some reasonably new players in the team, who bring their enthusiasm along with the others”.
Although he will start in defence against France, there is a good chance Itoje could drift into the blindside flanker position with Chris Robshaw out injured.
“It will be a hard Championship”, said Riccioni.
Heaslip, 33, is mindful that young players coming in have to keep learning fast as the Six Nations is no place to make mistakes.
And that’s just the opener of what should prove a remarkably day of rugby, as the Ireland match is promptly followed by the clash of Six Nations heavyweights England and France at Twickenham.
There is also complete alignment between the coaching team and the players.
“He’s played the majority of the Tests in the last 12 months”.
“We are realistic. We know which teams are ranked ahead of us, we know what the rugby hierarchy is at the moment”. Training has gone well and the boys have gelled as a group. The Stormers centre made a huge impact on his first global start in November, scoring two first half tries in the 23-22 defeat by Australia. “He has been involved in the previous Tests so it’s not like he hasn’t had good experience”.
Hogging possession was a springboard for Ireland’s 35-25 win on the concluding Saturday at the Aviva last season, although as Schmidt noted, Ireland enjoyed around 80 per cent of both possession and territory in the first half, at the end of which they only led 21-13.
“A lot of those involved this week are new to the global stage, but they have the quality to compete and we have no doubt they will rise to the occasion”.
Cotter has been very strong on culture which is massive in his native New Zealand where they talk about developing great players but, more importantly, great men.
Lièvremont explained: “We want to be up to standard and competitive”. In fact, the best players who, ordinarily, might have an ego are some of the most grounded and unassuming guys you will ever meet.
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“A lot of what I’m doing at the minute is looking towards the Rugby World Cup, its legacy, and what we can do to capture a new generation of interest in women’s rugby”, says Stapleton, who also works for the Irish Rugby Football Union to develop the women’s game.
