The Six Nations: Who, What, Why and Where

For the next seven weeks, rugby will be taking over your weekend TV. This is because it’s Six Nations season and boy are we excited.

If you’re new to rugby but wanting to learn more, take a quick look at our handy rugby guide. If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about, look no further. We’ll take you backstage and give you the low down on the best European rugby event in the calendar.

What is the Six Nations?

The Six Nations is a rugby tournament held every year between – wait for it – six nations. They’re all European teams of varying abilities. Usually the ones that have been in the competition longest are better (excepting Scotland, sorry guys); taking part improves teams.

It began life in the UK in 1871, with England and Scotland playing the first international Rugby Union match. This became known as the Calcutta Cup, which is still awarded in the Six Nations to whomever wins that match.

Wales and Ireland wanted in and the competition grew to four. France knew a good thing when they saw it, and officially joined in 1910, creating the well-known Five Nations. The Five Nations had a long old stint: it wasn’t until 2000 that Italy saw the benefits. Since then, the Six Nations has been going strong.

Where is it played?

All over, is the short answer. The teams visit each others home grounds, with each match played in a different country. They make sure to switch it up each year so that no one gets home advantage for too long.

The Teams

You now know the participants but this isn’t set in stone. Recently, relatively inexperienced Georgia has been asking to join, but whether it will happen or not remains to be seen. It’s hard watching sports if you don’t know the teams. We Brits love to support the underdog, but its difficult if you don’t know who they are…

England:

England is the oldest team in the world, but it doesn’t guarantee them success. They’re still a damn sight better than our football team – they’ve actually won the World Cup this millennium. That’s nothing compared to our female team though, who dominate the Rugby World.

Teams tend to reach a pinnacle then falter when legendary players retire, making way for the less experienced ones. England have suffered this in recent years but we’re on our way back with a new coach and he’s making a big difference. We won all our internationals and the Grand Slam (won every Six Nations match) last year, so we’re defending champs. If they can keep morale up, they should win again – but don’t bet on it.

Scotland:

Scotland are surprisingly one of the two underdogs because they just can’t get it together. They’ve won the wooden spoon (coming last) far too many times, and we’re not really sure why.

Many say its the coaches, some bad financial handling, others the training given to younger players. The influx of foreign players into home teams means there’s fewer players left for the squad too.

However, the first match against Ireland threw us all for a loop. Scotland started out strong and held out to win against an excellent team. It’s a promising, unbelievable start.

Ireland:

Ireland play stunning rugby and are often the ones to beat. However, injury to key players have left them hobbling. Kickers are basically the most important man on the pitch: they score most points and often become the team talisman. Ireland’s kicker, Johnny Sexton, may be out for nearly all the 6 Nations and it’s a real blow.

The opening game against Scotland should have been an easy win but was a morale-crushing loss. Don’t discount them yet though; their players are seasoned, strong and their fans incredibly loyal for good reason.

Wales:

Wales are the team I love to win. When they play well, it’s what rugby is all about. A few years ago, the new team blew us out the water and would not stop winning. However, they slowed and now have a new manager to work with.

Wales have also had injuries, with kicker Leigh Halfpenny out for the previous season. No wonder they’ve underperformed. However, he’s back to playing perfectly as usual and we’re all watching and waiting for a return to glory.

France:

Ah, we love to hate them. It’s not just old (entirely stupid) rivalries, but its because they have so much potential they don’t use. Watching France can either be mesmerising or utterly frustrating. Sometimes it just seems like they can’t be bothered to win.

They too lost great players to retirement, but unlike England they have yet to rally. For now, France act like they’re out for the count.

Italy:

The true wooden spooners. Italy have only played in 17 Six Nations and it shows. They have the odd moment of mad brilliance, but mostly they look underplayed and overshadowed. Their captain, Sergio Parisse, is one of the best ever players of his position and regularly carries the whole team on his impossibly broad shoulders. Meanwhile, they’ve had no luck for years in getting good kickers on board, which makes a whopping difference to scores.

It’s Italy we all cheer on when the going gets tough, and it’s Italy who may welcome a newcomer like Georgia most. Frankly if Georgia means more rugby, then lets give the people what they want: Seven Nations here we come!

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