By Charlie Elliott
Following another brilliant weekend of Six Nations action, during which England managed to get a famous win over France, the complexion of how teams are viewed has changed massively.
From Ireland’s title credentials to the aftermath of England’s surprising win, here are the five key talking points from a memorable round.
1) Steve Borthwick spot on
Fans have expressed doubts whether Steve Borthwick is the right man for the England job, but even those who do not think he is good enough can admit that he did a great job against France
From selection to tactics, Borthwick got it right.
On paper, France is much better than England right now, so it takes something special to beat them.
Cynics might say that the win was caused by needless errors, but the fact that England went toe-toe-toe with one of the world’s best speaks volumes of the team’s performance.
His stock has risen following this win, but now it is a case of consistency and building on it, which hasn’t happened in the past.
2) Wales hit new low
Things go from bad to worse for Wales, who continue to break the unwanted record of straight defeats.
Italy provided the one real opportunity of a win during this Six Nations, but now that has gone there is not much of a chance for them.
It has been the culmination of years of decline, and something has to change now, with Warren Gatland’s departure looking to be imminent.
Gatland does deserve much of the blame, but the problem runs deeper and the WRU have a lot to answer for with regards to allowing the team to fall into such a poor state.
They never even got close to Italy and the score was flattering on the visitors, which is a sorry state of affairs
3) Fin Smith the future?
In his first-ever Test start, Fin Smith was unbelievable and looked like a seasoned veteran against one of the best teams in the world.
He looks to be a perfect Borthwick player, encapsulating the fast and direct approach that the head coach wants in his team.
Not only the speed of which he acted in, but the precision of which he played with was simply amazing to watch.
There is a real talent here and England needs to nurture him correctly.
4) Ireland’s Grand Slam potential
Of course, Ireland still has France to play in what will be their toughest test, but they are really showing the marks of a Grand Slam winning side.
Two victories in which they were not at their best but ground out a result are true championship credentials.
Everything seems effortless for them, and they still haven’t left second gear.
Results going their way elsewhere almost guarantees the Six Nations title, even if France beat them, but they will have huge hopes of making it a perfect five wins from five.
Andy Farrell leaving for Lions duty has clearly not affected the team too much, and Simon Easterby deserves credit for the job that he is doing.
5) Scotland still not quite there
Gregor Townsend has built Scotland up over the past few years and it seemed before the tournament as if they could make a push for the title, but they are a long way away from it.
The Ireland game proved that there is just an extra spark missing and they cannot compete with the best of the best for sustained periods of time.
While they are good enough to get close, they lack the cutting-edge required for champions.
Fans have turned a little bit on Townsend, but he deserves a bit more time to continue his project.
Needless mistakes killed them, and should they be ironed out, they will run France and England close.
READ MORE: Six Nations TOTW – Fin Smith unbelievable in first Test start
