Conor O’Shea is a coaching ambassador for QBE. For more insights go to www.qberugby.com
Conor O’Shea on...
…his 2013 6 Nations predictions
There are four teams that, if they get on a roll, could win the 6 Nations. But do I see a Grand Slam for a team this year? No, because it’s so incredibly competitive between those teams.
France and England are right up there at the moment as favourites, with Ireland and Wales both very capable and following closely behind.
Wales are the reigning Grand Slam Champions. They’ve lost seven games in a row, which is unthinkable, but that includes three away games in Australia, and further tests against New Zealand and Australia again. They’ve got a horrendous amount of injuries but if they can get those players back on the pitch, they’ll be competitive.
France look so powerful and they always do. For Ireland, England have to travel to Dublin, which is never a particularly easy game.
The one thing for sure is, though Scotland or Italy may spring a surprise, they won’t win the 6 Nations.
…Le Crunch Match
England v France is always a bit of a humdinger, always a great game to watch. But Ireland v England in Dublin won’t be a bad game either. Going into the tournament, you’d say [England v France] is the clash of the favourites, based on England’s last two games of the QBE Internationals, against South Africa, when England played a lot better than they were given credit for, and against New Zealand.
The front row clash is mouth-watering. It will be a very exciting fixture. If you were to put a gun to my head you’d have to go with France to top the lot, on the formed they showed during the autumn. They looked absolutely irresistible at times but games aren’t won on paper.
…whether Ireland are a threat
Yes. Though they lost fairly convincingly in the third test in New Zealand over the summer, they came within two minutes of winning the second test. They had a good lead going into the second half against South Africa in the autumn but were overpowered. Munster 2nd row Donnacha Ryan is stepping forward as a potential Lions lock and you have players who are coming into the team. Craig Gilroy scored a couple of tries against Argentina and looks electric. He then scored a hat-trick against Fiji.
People are talking about life after the three ‘Os’ – O’Driscoll, O’Gara, O’Connell. There’s still some life in those old dogs yet but it’s coming to the end in the next year or two and people have to replace them. People like Jamie Heaslip, Rob Kearney – who’s been out injured. So Ireland, when they get these guys back training, if you add the likes of a fit again Rob Kearney and Luke Fitzgerald into the mix of the team that played against Argentina, you’ve got a competitive team.
What I love about the 6 Nations, is you can talk about form and favourites, but it goes out the window when you get to the tournament.
