Six Nations: Dilemmas facing each nation ahead of round three fixtures

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  • The Six Nations continues this weekend with the third round of fixtures.

    Defending champions England will be looking to continue their strong form when they face Scotland at Murrayfield.

    Elsewhere, Ireland take on Wales in Dublin while Italy travel to Marseille to face France.

    Here, we take a look at the dilemmas facing each nation ahead of this weekend’s matches.

    ENGLAND

    Although the Red Rose are sprinkled with class across all departments, they have a significant dilemma at No8 with Billy Vunipola and Sam Simmonds – after a bright start to his international career – ruled out with injuries. The return of Nathan Hughes will add gain line power and solid carrying ability but with little game time under his belt, it is uncertain the impact he will have from the base of the scrum. His indiscipline against Italy last year showed why he is not near international class.

    England v France - RBS Six Nations

    IRELAND

    Joe Schmidt’s biggest decision will be whether he starts Garry Ringrose – who has just returned from ankle surgery – or if he goes with an in-form Chris Farrell to partner Bundee Aki in the middle. Ringrose is Ireland’s best centre but Schmidt may be unwilling to parachute the Leinster man straight into the Test arena after a lengthy absence. Farrell is just ahead of Ringrose due to his match sharpness, but if Ireland are to cause problems for Wales then the footwork, pace and x-factor of the 23-year-old Dublin native is central to exploiting the midfield channel.

    WALES

    If Wales play like they did against Scotland, then Warren Gatland’s side will cause Ireland all sorts of problems. Although they won’t expect to get the same latitude, they will expect to have to contain an intelligent and effective kicking game from the hosts. Containing Conor Murray’s box kicks and Jonny Sexton’s up and unders will be one of key areas Gatland will be looking to nullify. But with Liam Williams and Leigh Halfpenny back in the fold, the Dragons have two influential figures capable of both containing and cancelling out the opposition’s key strengths.

    SCOTLAND

    The debate in Scotland centres around the enigmatic Finn Russell and if he is the right man to start at out-half against England after his below par displays against Wales and France – most of which were from the boot. The Glaswegian has been one of the most disappointing players in the competition, and has yet to show any prowess and control. And as the Scots chase their first win over England in a decade, they have the consistency of Greig Laidlaw at scrum half but need the right man to pull the strings outside him.

    FRANCE

    Jacques Brunel’s decision to drop eight players – including star man Teddy Thomas – following the defeat against Scotland two weeks ago may prove costly for the rest of the tournament. Les Bleus are on an eight-match winless streak so victory is not certain against a poor Italian side this weekend. Short a half-back and missing their top try scorer, France fans are right to be worried about Friday’s encounter in Marseille. Until they install a proper coach, they will never progress.

    ITALY

    12 defeats in 13 games does little to show the serious body of work Conor O’Shea is doing to develop Italian rugby, but signs of their gradual improvement are beginning to show after the Azzurri scored 34 points against England and Ireland. If Italy are ever going to win a game in France – their last victory against the hosts was in 1997 in Grenoble – then this is their best chance. A full strength squad and the confidence of scoring three second-half tries against Ireland will add a sense of optimism for their trip to the south of France.

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