Six Nations: Aim is to harum, if not quite scarum

Published on Saturday 6 February 2010 20:11

IT IS exactly 100 years since France first played in the championship when the old Four Home Unions tournament expanded into the Five Nations Championship and Scotland will be out to kibosh any centenary celebrations today's visitors might have planned.

• Scottish wing Thom Evans tries to escape from French wing Julien Malzieu.

A more recent anniversary concerns Andy Robinson because it was four years ago that he last coached a team in the Six Nations when England finished off the season with a dismal run of three consecutive defeats including that 18-12 reversal at Murrayfield, a 31-6 spanking from the French in Paris and, his last match in charge, a narrow loss against Ireland at Twickenham.

Suffice it to say he was undergoing the sort of anguish usually reserved for those confined to the inner circles of Dante's Inferno. The television cameras betrayed their sadistic streak, panning in on the English coach who could barely contain his frustration and certainly couldn't prevent it being writ large across his ever expressive face.

According to one source there were tears running down that same face in the dressing room following Scotland's historic win over the Wallabies in the autumn. Robinson is an emotional man and a proud one too who has worked hard at resuscitating his reputation as one of the best coaches in world rugby. If he can bring regular success to his adopted country he will have earned that accolade because the men in blue have not won back-to-back Six Nations matches since 2001 and even those two games took place six months apart due to the foot-and-mouth epidemic.

It is Robinson's favourite statistic and he will be throwing it in a few faces over the next few weeks, challenging his players to put it right.

Another couple of myths that don't wash concern this afternoon's opponents. France are supposedly poor travellers but they have lost just once at Murrayfield in the last six visits. Nor are they the cavalier, free spirits with brio for blood that they are sometimes portrayed. In fact they are as calculating as Big Blue, as physical as a slap in the face and in Marc Lievremont they boast a coach who is more practical than a four-door family hatchback.

He has selected a muscular side to beat up Scotland this afternoon before beating them on the scoreboard. The French forward pack is two years older on average than the Scots and they are 14 caps more experienced. The French will be more than happy to win a war of attrition and look well equipped to do so.

If Lievremont has made a concession to skill over brute strength anywhere in his line up it is to be found in the back row where Fulgence Ouedraogo is a flyweight in a heavyweight pack and his colleague Imanol Harinordoquy boasts better handling skills than most of the backs.

But the proof of France's real intent is to be found in the No.13 shirt where the giant Mathieu Bastareaud can be found. It was he who caused a diplomatic incident last summer by claiming to have suffered a racially motivated attack in New Zealand before security cameras proved he had actually fallen and hit his head while drunk. The incident has not been forgotten but he has been forgiven and hurried back into the starting XV.

The fact that he weighs more than France's loosehead prop must say something about France's ambition even in this current era where it is difficult to differentiate between the game's piano players and movers.

Another rugby myth has it that Robinson is a conservative coach because the little Englishman is taking a huge gamble this afternoon in the way he wants to take the game to France. In the past Scotland have usually tried to play the percentages against Les Blues, kick to the corners, chase down everything that moves and pray for rain. Not so now. This afternoon Robinson wants his men to attack the French with the ball in hand whenever the opportunity arises.

It is a brave call especially since the only Scotland victory over France in the Six Nations came courtesy of very different tactics. In 2006 the Scots stuck the ball up their collective jumpers and marched France backwards; for over 20 metres in one try-scoring maul. Even if you lose, playing the percentages against France usually keeps the score respectable but Robinson is going with his gut this afternoon.

"We've got to be confident to play with the ball if we really want to beat the French," the coach said yesterday. "That's how we've set up ourselves up, if you look at the team, we've selected it to do just that."

So far, so positive but the problems arise if this expansive strategy goes awry because it opens up the game like Pandora's box. If the Scots play too fast and loose the French half of the scoreboard will be whizzing round like Ian Botham was at the crease. Whatever the result the Scotland coach will be forgiven almost anything if the Scottish attack can bare its teeth and actually score tries against one of the top teams in world rugby after the back line managed just one touchdown throughout three autumn internationals.

Why take the chance? Well, Robinson has been hugely influenced by one match last November that took place in Marseilles. What he saw was New Zealand not just beating France but humiliating them by five tries to nil and they did it playing with the ball in hand and constantly moving the point of attack. It was an awesome display of 15-man rugby and it put paid to another myth, that teams can't score tries under the present laws. It may not be a complete coincidence that Lievremont dubbed Scotland the "All Blacks of the Northern Hemisphere" early last week. Murrayfield's fans will hope it wasn't all empty flattery.

The secret of the All Blacks' success was the breakdown. As the game progressed the black-clad forwards ensured a ready supply of quick ball at the breakdown and Dan Carter, Mils Muliaina, Conrad Smith and Sitiveni Sivivatu, whose opening try started inside New Zealand's own 22, did the rest.

"I was influenced by both the All Black game and the South Africa match," Robinson confirmed at yesterday's pre-match conference. "France won when the Springboks played a kicking game in comparison to the All Blacks who really went for speed of ball and didn't allow the French defence to settle.

"The breakdown is crucial and the speed of ball that we produce. That's not just how quickly Cus (Chris Cusiter] gets there but how quickly anyone can get the ball away from the breakdown and then it's down to the quality of our execution."

Robinson knows his players lack the cutting edge and accuracy of the men in black, and he goes into today's game without Scotland's best finisher in Simon Danielli, but there is no point in aiming at mediocrity. He wants his players to produce precise, high-tempo rugby that stops just short of full Barbarian-style sevens, harum but not quite scarum. And it's not because he's a hopeless romantic but simply because the coach believes it represents Scotland's best chance of victory.

Robinson wants his players to attack with the ball in hand, he's picked the team to do it and all that's left between now and kick-off is a palpable air of excitement and anticipation that infects players, fans and especially Scotland's English coach upon his return to Europe's elite arena.

"There has been a lot of talk from our side and a lot of talk from their side," said Robinson, "now it's down to who performs over the 80 minutes." At least that simple statement of fact is no myth.

WHERE THE GAME WILL BE WON AND LOST

FRONT FIVE

The two teams match up well here with France bigger in the second row but Scotland fielding a little more muscle in the front line. Alasdair Dickinson will have his hands full with Nicolas Mas, but at least he will have the reassuring bulk of Ross Ford beside him. Pascal Pape and Lionel Nallet are both big brusiers but Al Kellock should make a nuisance of himself at the sidelines. Come scrum time it should be a good battle between two young props in Murray Low and Thomas Domingo.

Verdict: Absolutely vital but too close to call.

BACK ROW

Flanker Fulgence Ouedraogo is a danger with the ball in hand but John Barclay should have his measure at the breakdown.

Imanol Harinordoquy has the best hands of any No.8 currently playing the game and he is France's go-to guy at the lineout. Johnnie Beattie needs to back up his excellent work against the Wallabies with another impressive performance by getting the Scottish forwards on the front foot.

Only at blindside do France steal a march on the Scots where the hugely impressive French skipper Thierry Dusautoir boasts an insatiable appetite for hard graft.

Verdict: France by a whisker.

HALF-BACKS

Morgan Parra is a classy scrum-half who is dangerous probing and sniping behind a big pack on the rampage.

However, like most scrummies, he can struggle behind an eight that gets bogged down in hand to hand combat. If the Scots can disrupt the French forwards at the scrum and breakdown Chris Cusiter will fancy his chances of physically dominating his opposite number. Neither fly-half is the most consistent but you would back Francois Trinh-Duc to outshine Phil Godman if everything else is equal. Much will depend on the quality of their possession.

Verdict: A one-all draw

CENTRES

It's not often that the Scotland coach is praying for dry weather when the French visit Murrayfield but Andy Robinson is. Graeme Morrison has excellent footwork but still he will test Trinh-Duc's defence. One wider the beast that is Mathieu Bastareaud (how long before the TV commentators come out with, "he's one big Bastareaud"?) goes up against the minnow Max Evans. Anyone who believes that rugby is a game for skills and speed rather than muscle and power will hope that the elder Evans comes out on top.

Verdict: Dry conditions should favour the home team…should.

BACK THREE

There was a moment last week when a journalist asked Andy Robinson about Chris Paterson's "reliability" but the coach heard "liability" and bristled at the suggestion.

In truth Paterson is both because France will attempt to isolate him under the high ball and hope for a turnover or a penalty. Exactly when the fullback decides to counter will be crucial. France field the pacy Benjamin Fall and a couple of old heads in Aurelien Rougerie and Clement Poitrenaud in their back three although the latter is still prone to the occasional rush of blood to the brain.

Verdict: France edge it.