Six Nations: Wales 10 England 20

I suspect that when someone begins his tale with a line that – the day before – he had spent the day having a pub lunch and then watching the Six Nations clash between Wales and England on television together with a former England rugby player who made his international debut in Cardiff over fifty years ago, one might be forgiven for thinking that the reporter had either enjoyed a heavy night “on the sauce” and/or was making it up.

However, that is exactly what I did yesterday and it was a fascinating experience, reminding me that – in most great sports, over time – some aspects never change whilst others evolve exponentially and (arguably) not always for the best.

To be frank, this was not a game that is going to occupy a place in anyone’s pantheon of “all-time great Six Nations matches”.

Granted, it was a hard-fought and frenetic encounter but it was also a bitty, error-strewn and ultimately frustrating contest between two teams neither of which – on this evidence – are going to be in contention for the title on the final weekend of the tournament.

For Wales, returning veteran head coach Warren Gatland had made nine team sheet changes, including bringing back 34 year-old Leigh Halfpenny at full back whose own international debut took place as long ago as 2008.

The truth is that – after the off-field squabbling over the past fortnight between the squad and the Welsh rugby authorities over the uncertainties surrounding player contracts culminating in the very real threat that the team might go on strike – the home team were always going to be struggling to be in the right frame of mind despite the time-honoured twin advantages of their national anthem being belted out as lustily as I can remember it and the fact that England were the opponents.

From our viewpoint on the sofa, England did enough to dog-out a deserved victory but hardly set the world alight, whilst Wales – largely living off scraps – had one or two moments that gave their supporters cause for hope but were generally second best in all departments.

The one thing our Brains Trust agreed upon was that, for good or ill, Owen Farrell’s time as the go-to England fly half is up – or jolly well ought to be.  He had a poor game and the most reliable aspect of his skill-set – kicking from the tee – had gone AWOL: he missed four pots at goal which, for any player but Farrell, would mean at least being dropped to the bench for the next game yet – in the current England set-up – may not do so.

Quite what Mr Borthwick’s thinking was behind his decision to being on no fewer than three replacements  – (one of them Marcus Smith) with the clock showing less than 40 seconds of the match remaining, one shall never know.