[2019 Six Nations] Wales vs England (23/02/2019)

[Jashay]

Everyone focussing on the 10s when barn door Parkes is at 12 opposite one of the hardest running 12s around. Id have Biggar in (as a Cardiff Blues fan) simply to try and nullify that threat. Parkes is the weak link in the Welsh team by a mile! Farrell isnt going to ghost past anyone so you can afford to look into the 12 channel

Anscome being out of position has cost Wales two tries for sure*, and a he was also out of position for a third but got back well. Given that those were the three tries he's been on the pitch for, I'd certainly say the 10 has a place in the barn door club.

(*Massively overshoots positionally for Picamoles and Padovani tries)

 

[spartan32]

There's been some chat here about one on one match ups but that can be quite redundant in rugby for the most part. I'd say the England pack, as a unit, now that we at last have a half decent back row, is the better and stronger pack.

We are stronger at 9 and 10 and the backs as a unit look much more attuned to one another then the Welsh who don't seem to have found their stride.

I agree that North is marginally preferable to Nowell, but Nowell is perfectly fitted for this England team so the whole makes more of the one. Plus North ain't gonna be skipping through Pirate Jack.

Also Daly may not have the defensive level of Wales options but he's a much more lethal counter attacker. A stray kick to him and your in trouble.

 

[Vieux Talonneur]

Also Daly may not have the defensive level of Wales options but he's a much more lethal counter attacker. A stray kick to him and your in trouble.

I'll raise you a SO'B try that Williams can counter attack pretty well.

 

[BPM]

I agree. I know it's not like for like positions, but if I had to pick a combined side, I'd be more inclined to pick Daly over North on the wing and have Williams at 15.

 

[Tayga]

If your team is about right then this should be pretty much the teams

Smith. Genge
Owens. George
Francis. Sinkler
Hill. Lawes
AWJ. Kruise
Navidi. Wilson
Tipuric. Curry
Moriarty. Billy

G.Davies. youngs
Anscombe. Faz
Adams. May
Parkes. Manu
JD2. Slade
North. Nowell
Williams. Daly

For me we win front row even without Mako.

Lawes has stepped up but AWJ is still a great player and hill and kruis are both good players so second row is a draw.

Back row wales have 3 great players. But wilson is solid, a workhorse and a pretty decent carrier, curry is stepping up at such a young age and playing really well and billy is billy we know what he can do. O think we edge the back row though by no means is the welsh back row weak.

9 though youngs has been playing better, id give this to Davies

At 10 faz no question

12 Manu no question

13 now Davies is a class player,very experienced and id prob say would edge out slade but on form slade is well ahead. Strong defence, a number of breaks and kivks to set up tries and a number of intercepts and thats just 2 games.

Wing May is hands down the best currently and id put the other 3 on par for different reasons,

Full back id say a draw, daly seems to be settling into the role though still not as strong under the high balls but both attscking FBs that play wing. And both playing very well.

I think england will have this one be it with kicks or ball in hand but it deffinatly wont be a walk over, expecting the hardest game the 6N for England. Prediction England by 8

I can't disagree with you on the player v player ratings but Welsh teams are often more than the sum of their parts.

But this England side is too - and good as Wales are I think that England will need to have an off day at the office for Wales to have s chance

 

[Tayga]

I'm just going to say it. Wales are on a winning streak because they've played a lot of soft games. It's how they've moved up to 4th. And then they have failed to perform against two week sides so far in the 6. They will be relying on home advantage and history to shake England enough that we get off our game. If that fails they simply don't have enough on the pitch to win this. Wales have never peaked to the level of England or Ireland, and we've just turned Ireland over at home when they were on a real winning streak against serious opposition.

This ones Englands.

Pin pulled. Grenade thrown.

Yes they have been on an impressive winning streak but a few have been soft games

2-0 against Argentina and the wins against South Africa and Australia were impressive but I think England is playing at a different level to these teams right now

 

[Scotty]

We had what 16 wins in a row and not once was i as happy as i was when we beat Ireland, not because we won but because we deserved the win, rather than scraping it and papering over the cracks of a poor performance by winning. A winning streak does not mean a team is a great team. But it does make them play with confidence and believe they can win.

Worried for wales because we got 16 wins then when we lost it was like our confidence dipped and then the cracks really started to show.

This is a real test for both teams, England a team thats going well and on form, they should win, and Wales who have this winning streak and confidence carrying them forward.

 

[Bill]

Yes they have been on an impressive winning streak but a few have been soft games

2-0 against Argentina and the wins against South Africa and Australia were impressive but I think England is playing at a different level to these teams right now

I think that first test in argentina is up there with my favourite rugby internationals ever. Great game, and a tremendous achievement for England to go down there with such a weakened squad and win 2-0.

 

[Tooting Carmen]

I think that first test in argentina is up there with my favourite rugby internationals ever. Great game, and a tremendous achievement for England to go down there with such a weakened squad and win 2-0.

I think he is referring to Wales' winning streak, not England's. Last Summer, Wales also went to Argentina with a notably weakened squad and also won 2-0.

 

[Bruce_ma gooshvili]

I think that first test in argentina is up there with my favourite rugby internationals ever. Great game, and a tremendous achievement for England to go down there with such a weakened squad and win 2-0.

That game is still in my addled memory too as a great one. Ford at 10 and a young man called Slade playing if I remembered rightly. England looked on the cusp of an era of devastating expansive rugby... then 2018 happened! On the right track now though I think.

 

[TRF_Olyy]

Winning in Argentina isn't a feather in the cap, anymore.
Predicted an England whitewash before we went, and a Welsh white-wash before their trip. They're capable of pulling out a big result every now and then, but it's more akin to a trip to Scotland than to a Tri-nations side.

 

[Tayga]

I think he is referring to Wales' winning streak, not England's. Last Summer, Wales also went to Argentina with a notably weakened squad and also won 2-0.

And they played well !!

 

[Tayga]

And they played well !!

I meant Wales.

But England played very well on that 2-0 tour to Argentina . Both the games were incredibly dxciting
It saw Wilson's first cap and that Solomon's try was a joy to behold !!

I agree that going to Argentina is not the toughest test but both Wales and England fielded second string sides.
But the difference I think is that Wales were never really competitive before with a second string side. They have much greater strength in depth and can now mount a serious WC campaign knowing that s few injuries won't derail them as it used to do in the past

 

[MikeTheNative]

WOL reported Wales team. They may not be able to form coherent sentences but their predicted teams are usually pretty spot on.

Liam Williams; George North, Jonathan Davies, Hadleigh Parkes, Josh Adams; Gareth Anscombe, Tomos Williams; Rob Evans, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis, Cory Hill, Alun Wyn Jones (capt), Josh Navidi, Justin Tipuric, Ross Moriarty

Big game for Tomos WIlliams, who I think is the future Wales 9 but he really struggled in France to get hold of the game although not really helped by Anscombe who struggled for control

 

[Jashay]

WOL reported Wales team. They may not be able to form coherent sentences but their predicted teams are usually pretty spot on.

Liam Williams; George North, Jonathan Davies, Hadleigh Parkes, Josh Adams; Gareth Anscombe, Tomos Williams; Rob Evans, Ken Owens, Tomas Francis, Cory Hill, Alun Wyn Jones (capt), Josh Navidi, Justin Tipuric, Ross Moriarty

Big game for Tomos WIlliams, who I think is the future Wales 9 but he really struggled in France to get hold of the game although not really helped by Anscombe who struggled for control

Aggressive picks there; looks like they're going for 'score more points' over 'concede fewer'. They really need that 9-10 to start firing, though.

Do we reckon England would target Adams or North there?

 

[Thingimubob]

Saw this on twitter just now, have those line ups been confirmed or just a guess atm? Either way, really interesting to see the players' first clubs:

 

[ncurd]

England announce theirs in 20mins....so I probably doubt it even if it looks mostly correct.

 

[Mr Ruggleby]

 

[ncurd]

As you were nothing exciting about that announcement apart from usual grumble about Shields.

 

[Mr Ruggleby]

Good side. Only two potentially unexpected decisions:

Moon starting over Genge - I actually quite like this call, with the way Peyper referees the scrum it will be importance to get dominance early. Moon probably slightly nicks Genge here. I also think that having both Genge and Sinckler start could almost be too much aggression from the off. Moon seems like a cool head who will do the basics very well.

Shields over Hughes - Hughes has been pretty poor for a long time, Shields is better. On the off chance Billy does have to come off, Genge can offer some bulldozing carrying off the bench with fresh legs.