Stuart Barnes believes Wales can use their Grand Slam success as a platform to build on.
Warren Gatland knows Wales can still improve, says Stuart
Wales cemented their position as the leading team in Europe by beating France and claiming a third Grand Slam in eight years. It was the occasion that Wales celebrated on Saturday night rather than the performance.
Analysis of performance itself through the course of the championship is paradoxically both a cause for concern and optimism. Warren Gatland's team never came near the level of excellence they achieved to win in Dublin. Through the next four games the team produced dazzling glimpses of what is possible but the focus switched on making sure they became hard to beat as opposed to impossible to stop.
Shaun Edwards' defence held sway over Robert Howley's attack. That is not to denigrate the extreme importance of defence; merely to state that against the best teams more balance is required, more sharpness on the ball and perhaps a little less of the flopping over the ball a la old Munster, before they are capable of beating the best on anything like a regular basis.
And here is the crux of the issue. Wales's team has youth on its side. A rebuilding of the front row will be required sooner or later and these outstanding props are not going to be easy to replace. If Wales manage this they have the foundations to be the first British and Irish challengers to the Tri Nations over any length of time.
The back row is an area of outstanding strength in depth and this unit can be in place for many years with Justin Tipuric keeping Sam Warburton under pressure and ready to step in when injuries hit. Rhys Priestland is another youngster with major potential. He was not at his best this Six Nations but the calm control and vast boot were catalysts for Saturday's nervous win.
Potential
The three-quarter line is an intoxicating thing of potential too. So much to which Wales can look forward but if they are to develop their capacity to win big games they might have to produce more constructive rugby in the forthcoming tour of Australia.
The tour is as important to Wales as the Grand Slam. Warren Gatland is desperate to become the best. The route to this is against the Southern hemisphere, in the summer tours and the Autumn internationals. The way the manager accepted that Wales were some way from their best is hugely encouraging. The fans can have their Grand Slam fun and the pleasure of a win at Twickenham but the management and team are clear and realistic in where they are - in world terms - and what they need to achieve.
The competition runners up, England, overachieved in terms of results. Accepting I was amongst the more sceptical wing of rugby critics, four wins is a stunning return but even the ever optimistic Candide's of this world cannot have expected four wins, including a rare victory, no hammering, of Ireland and a win in Paris.
Morale is high and collectively the team has a tight shape and superb defence. It has shown little in attack and lacks the individual firepower of Wales and France. Many people have come up with Lions teams if they were playing Australia now; few Englishmen have made the test fifteen. This sums up the collective effort made by Stuart Lancaster and his side.
He has to be the favourite for the full-time post. The problem is that this season's Six Nations was not a true test of a team's ability to beat the best, only the nearest and dearest. Lancaster's capacity to lift England on the global stage will not be revealed until England play their three Tests in South Africa. It is a risk appointing him but Nick Mallett's CV has not been overwhelmingly attractive for a few years.
His is the fashionable name but whether he is any more certain of restoring English fortunes is hard to gauge. If it is between the two of them and there are no other runners, Lancaster has probably done enough. If England are only interviewing two contenders the management, however, has not done the greatest job. It should be one of the most prestigious posts in the world and a full year before the World Cup Rob Andrew should have been making English interest known to men like Leinster's Joe Schmidt.
Back to the players; Saturday's scrum fest was superb for English spirits and quite a platform for Owen Farrell. He relished the front foot and delivered an immaculate second-half display to squeeze Ireland out of it. The variety and wit of his all-round kicking game is astonishing as is his maturity. He has enjoyed a quite magnificent first season of international rugby and runs away with the Barnes Rookie of the Year.
Chris Robshaw's captaincy also merits a mention. The bloke is a leader, end of story. It is fashionable to ask whether he is quite good enough as an individual but the constant improvement of his game and the intelligence and inspiration of his leadership marks him out as a long-term leader for England. He will be captain in South Africa where the personal tests will be greater yet.
The second tier teams were France and Ireland. Both endured poor campaigns. 50/50 records are not good enough. Of the two Ireland, despite losing on Saturday, would be my pick as the third best team.
Hampered
They were hampered by the early loss of Mike Ross and played in foundations made of quicksand. They went under. But they drew in Paris and were far more convincing against Scotland, Italy and Wales than France.
Had the Six Nations been a handicap race, France would probably have finished behind even Scotland. So much quality but so little ambition; Phillipe Saint-Andre suffered a sorry first season.
In comparison, fellow Frenchman Jacques Brunel will wallow in the success of one win that gave Italy a fifth place finish. They were extremely competitive against England and durable in Cardiff. The win against Scotland puts them in credit.
Scotland actually played plenty of decent rugby without ever looking as if they had a clue how to win. Andy Robinson failed to take them beyond the pool stages of the World Cup for the country's first ever time and they have won two of 15 Six Nations games under his sway.
He is a good coach; that is evident in the manner in which he has developed a fine back row but being the head man and coming up with strategy and being the coach who turns another's vision into something tangible is not the same thing. His record for England and Scotland as head man is terrible. That is not a headline seeking opinion, alas, it is fact.
Well done to Leicester for winning the LV Cup. They deserved it for the three scrums against the head near their line. I don't think Northampton have lost three all season, let alone three in five minutes. We saw another intriguing display from George Ford...well done to Rotherham for a gutsy win against Leeds to claim Championship bragging rights in Yorkshire.
Finally, back to where we started, very well done to Wales; it wasn't perfect, it wasn't poetry but it was a Grand Slam from which they can and should grow, possibly into something special, a global force. Will this be the team to end the 59 year losing record against New Zealand? Maybe greatness and legend awaits them.
Stuart answers your emails...
Got a question for Stuart? Email him at skysportsclub@bskyb.com or use the feedback form below...
Do Ireland need a fresh approach?
Stuart, both Ireland and Scotland have had very disappointing campaigns. I think that Scotland should stick with Andy Robinson but feel that it is time Ireland look for a new coach with some fresh ideas. they have some great talent but their performance against England in the second half was appalling.Andy Eislen
STUART REPLIES: Andy, Scotland should stick with Andy Robinson and Ireland ditch Declan Kidney? You obviously have no interest in small matters like long term results. It is a trend I tend to examine when thinking about a manger's record.
Is Gatland the best man for the Lions?
Hi Stuart, do you think that Warren Gatland is the best man to lead the Lions to Australia? Would warburton be your captain if the squad was picked tomorrow?Mick Denny
STUART REPLIES: Mick, Yes and yes, without doubt.
Six Nations best player
What do you think of the list of players nominated for 6nations player of the tournament? I was astounded to see Sam Warburton amongst them, as at the time of nomination he has only played 1 full game and 1 half game. Having played in less than 50% of his teams games, is that really good enough to secure nomination? Has everybody else been that bad? Or is this just yet another example of the rugby community/media hyping up proper sevens because of the lack of them?
I don't think Malzieu has had more than a single good game either. Parisse has been his usual self, but he's not yet lifted Italy to a win. Sexton's been okay, but hardly set the world a light.
I'd rather have seen Richie Grey in for Warburton. Fofana for Malzieu. Rob Kearney for Parisse and Owen Farrell for Sexton. Thoughts?Rich
STUART REPLIES: Rich, I would rather have you coming up with the list than those given the task. Grey, Fofana, Kearney, Farrell (best newcomer) and Jonathon Davies were my picks.
What about a Lancaster-Mallet combo?
Hi Stuart, it seems that everyone including Nick Mallet is saying that the RFU will give Lancaster the England job. I personally don't think that would be the worst decision they have ever made but feel that he needs support from some experienced hands like Mallet himself. Do you think a mallet-Lancaster team could work?Jake Rush
STUART REPLIES: Jake, I do not because both are set upon being head man. To give Lancaster a job as Mallett's two would be a fudge. It's a tough choice that I have addressed in my column. Good luck to Ian Richie and English rugby; it is an important choice and a difficult one.
