Ireland 14-13 England. 28 Feb. 2009

I watched this game in the Big Ben Pub (207 Av Charles de Gaulle), supping expensive Kilkenny beer at 6.80 Euros, equivalent to about six pound a pint. Since my last visit to the pub in 2007 nothing much had changed, though they weren't selling crisps anymore. An English themed pub without crisps, not quite right.
The game was a tense, close affair and only had a fraction of the excitement of the France v Wales game the day before. Ireland played quite safely and when BOD scored a drop kick in the second half Croke Park come alive. Shortly afterward BOD sealed a good performance by scoring a try, crashing over near the line after some intense phases of play. The game got a bit more exciting in the final ten minutes as England tried to come back. They managed to score a try that made the final result look closer than it really was.
The highlight of the game for me though was when the tv cameras showed Martin Johnson going mad in the stands. He was punching his chair in frustration, very amusing. Poor England.

My man of the match: BOD.

Ospreys 22-10 Connacht. 22 Feb. 2009

The Ospreys minus their International players made heavy weather of beating Ireland's weakest region. Fair play to Connacht they produced probably the best rugby of the game, playing a fast tempo style that troubled the home side on many occasions. Richard Hibbard left the field injured but it was the return of Jonathan Thomas that was the real talking point. After a few months out with injury he had a solid game with one notable break that nearly led to a try.
While Connacht looked to play attractive rugby, the Ospreys were lack lustre and quite boring to watch and missed out on the bonus point with only three tries.

My man of the match: Muldoon. Connacht back rower.

France 21-16 Wales. 27th Feb. 2009.

The first ever Friday night 6 nations game. I travelled out to watch the match, my third visit to Paris since 2005. The pre-match pilgrimage involved a visit to the Maryland pub in St Denis near the stadium. This was a pub we found in 2005 that served cheap beer and wine. For the 2007 game we arrived just before match kick-off and did not have enough time to visit this good pub. Alot of people come to the stadium via the Metro and then head towards the stadium complex. There are a few beer tents around the stadium but the prices are expensive and the beer quality is poor. To find the Maryland pub and a street with a few others, head towards the Centre Ville exit as you come out of the Metro. This will take you onto a few streets with pubs, takeaways etc.
After some drinks at the Maryland we headed to the match. It was another 9 pm kick-off. The French TV broadcasters do like these late starts. Getting into the stadium was a bit of shambles. The entry to our gate didn't open until 20 minutes before kick-off, we were in a queue for about 15 minutes. Once inside we found our way to the top tier. Excellent seats and a good view. The Stade de France is a superb stadium once inside.

The game started and after the first ten minutes it was clear to see the home side were really up for the fight. Their forwards were putting in some big hits at the rucks. Wales were living off scraps and their big ball carriers weren't gaining enough ground. Against the general run of play Wales did craft a good opening try for Lee Bryne as the fullback found a way through. This marked the high point of the game for Wales and at one stage they were 13-3 up. Mid-way through the first half Mike Phillips kick a high ball and managed to hit the over head camera. In the last ten minutes France found even more fluency and some heavy pressure saw Dusautoir score to bring the points to 13-13 at half. In fairness France were much the better team in the first half but it was a shame Wales couldn't have taken a lead going into the break.

The second half was miserable viewing for Welsh fans. At the part of the stadium I was in people above us started throwing paper aeroplanes. It also took until the second half for the first mexican wave of the night to occur. It lasted about 2 and half full circuits of the stadium.
France were in total control of the game and denied Wales any ball to play with for large parts of the second half. Their pack was especially fearsome on the night and debut centre Bastareaud was having a fine game. Heymans scored France's second try and because of some missed French kicks Wales found themselves 21-16 down with 10 minutes to go. They rallied well in the last minutes of the game and came very close to scoring the crucial try. It would have been a dramatic finish, albeit an undeserved victory if the the conversion was kicked. The final whistle went and France won. The home side were excellent throughout.

It was a good game to watch live, though the second half was very one-sided. The atmosphere on the night was not as good as the 2005 and 2007 games. Perhaps that was because it was a Friday game, there were less Welsh supporters, and for alot of the French fans it had been a workday. Grand Slam dreams dashed. Time for Wales to bounce back in the next game.

My man of the match: Bastareaud. An accomplished debut.

Italy 9-38 Ireland. 15 Feb. 2009

Italy battled away in the first half to deny Ireland any pattern to the game. The tone was set with a dangerous high tackle on Kearny early in the game. Tommy Bowe got Ireland's first try as he latched onto loose passing by the Italian backs. He showed enough pace to sprint in under the posts. At the end of the first half Ireland put together a long passage of play that saw Luke Fitzgerald score under the posts. At that stage it looked like Ireland would run away with the game in the second half. The game got a bit boring in the second half with the result never in doubt. Credit to Italy for holding out for long periods and it was only in the last ten minutes when Ireland scored two more tries.

My man of the match: Luke Fitzgerald

Wales 23-15 England. 14 Feb. 2009

Apart from the result this match will be remembered for one thing; Joe Worsley's man marking of Jamie Roberts. The England head coach had watched Jamie's awesome performance against Scotland and decided that drastic measures were needed. Joe Worsley spent the whole match shadowing and tackling Jame Roberts. There were times in the second half when Wales had an attacking scrum and the England fly half packed down at blind side with Joe playing at ten. It was a negative ploy but it worked very well and Jamie Roberts had a tough day. It was disappointing that Wales did not vary their game enough. They kept trying to barge through the middle with Roberts and Powell but Worsley and the back row were equal to the task.
England's performance was a huge step up from the previous game and they actually managed to out score Wales by two tries to one. Leigh Halfpenny scored Wales' try in the second half after indiscipline saw England reduced to 14 men. The tight five of Wales had a massive game and secured good ball throughout the game and were all over the play in defence. Wales' composure saw them control large parts of the game and with about 10 minutes to go the home side stretched their lead to 8 points to ensure the win.
A hard fought victory.

My man of the match: Joe Worlsey. Did everything the coach asked of him.

Scotland 13-26 Wales. 8 Feb 2009

Three things to remember about this game. One, Scotland players making big hits on Welsh players and coming off worse. Two, Leigh Halfpenny's first 6 Nations try. Three, solid Welsh defence in the last 15 minutes.
I was impressed with how sharply Wales started. They played some slick rugby in the first ten minutes. The first big moment of the game came when Scotland winger Simon Webster put a big tackle on Martyn Williams. The Welsh open side was stopped in his tracks and his head was whipped back nastily. Thankfully Martyn was okay and it was Webster who was feeling more groggy from the tackle. Not long after Scotland prop Geoff Cross chased an up and under and took out Lee Byrne in the air as he was catching the ball. The replay showed that Cross caught a knee in the face accidentally. He was stretchered off and given a yellow for the dangerous tackle. Wales piled on the pressure and managed to score two tries when Scotland were down to 14 men. Shanklin and Wyn-Jones crossed after good team play.
The best try of the game came early in the second half. Jamie Roberts made a good break up the middle and the ball went through the backline to Shane Williams who off loaded brilliantly to set up Halfpenny for a fall over the line. More good play saw Shane add to his Wales try count before Gatland brought on new players for the last twenty minutes. Scotland came back into the game with a try but the final result was never in doubt.
A solid start for Wales. A decent away win.

My man of the match: Jamie Roberts

Ireland 30-21 France. 7 Feb. 2009

One of the best 6 Nations games in recent years. This was an excellent game and a thrilling contest throughout. It's not often that two equally matched teams play to their potential and produce a real International Test match. At least not in Northern Hemisphere rugby. I went into this game having given up watching the England v Italy game after 60 minutes. That game in Twickenham was real bad. No structure at all to England's play and they kicked away much to much ball.
The two teams at Croke Park were playing rugby of a different standard. Their intent was to ran the ball and play an expansive game. France scored the first of the game's five tries after some cohesive play between the forwards and backs led to Harinordoquy touching down in the corner. Not to be outdone Ireland soon hit back with a great team try of their own. Line-out ball was secured in their own half and Kearny and Bowe were involved in some good back play that tore through the France defence. The ball found it's way to Jamie Heaslip and he headed towards the line and managed a sidestep to glide past the covering player for a classy try.
Early in the second half BOD announced his return to top form with a classic centre break that saw him score under the posts. France came back in determined fashioned and Medard latched onto a cross field kick to score a good wingers try. The game was in the balance at 20-18 with twenty minutes to go. The home side played a blinder in the last quarter as they controlled the game superbly. The turning point of the game was D'Arcy's third try that gave Ireland a clear lead. I was hoping for a dramatic late come back from France but Ireland held firm.
High quality rugby throughout and a very enjoybale game to watch.

My man of the match: Heaslip.