With the pinnacle event of Northern Hemisphere rugby just around the corner, we dust off the magic eight ball to see what the future might have in store.
With fresh faces and returning names to this year’s coaching cast, there are heightened expectations for a good showing in this year’s Six Nations, as the 2023 Rugby World Cup appears on the horizon.
Here are five bold predictions for the 2023 Guinness Six Nations.
1. France Win Back to Back Six Nations Championships, with Ireland in Pursuit
It is incredibly close at the top of the predicted tree for this year’s Six Nations Championships. The formidable French will be riding a wave of momentum, after their flawless Grand Slam success of 2022. Les Blues are considered by many to be the front-runners once again, as Fabien Galthie’s men continue to build their strength, culminating in an expected World Cup ‘Triomphe’ on home soil.
If the star attractions in Dupont, Jalibert, Ntamack and co, can avoid any unexpected injuries, and play with the same ‘jouer’ flair which brought them the title last year, then stopping them will be a tall order. However, Ireland’s recent Autumn series success over the All Blacks, saw them overtake France at the top of the World Rugby rankings. Andy Farrell has built a unit together which in any other year, would be expected favourites to take the Six Nations title, if the French weren’t playing such standard-bearing rugby.
The latest summer tour of Japan saw France return as expected victors, but continued to impress throughout the Autumn. A memorable Marseille victory over the titans of South Africa established expectations that France are the best International rugby side today. The opening match of Round 2 sees this potential title decider happen in the early stages of the competition. February 11th is the date to remember, in what may be the closest contest of the competition.
