Sky Bet 6N Q&A

Sky Bet's Nigel Askham puts the questions to the online bookmaker's rugby product manager Chris Smart.

Q: There are only days to go Chris and the excitement is building. Just how big is the Six Nations in the betting calendar? A: The Six Nations is normally by far the highlight of the year in terms of punters interest. Obviously we've just had the World Cup, which was huge, but the Six Nations won't be far behind. There look to be some fairly competitive games this time around and the kick-off times are a lot more sociable. Q: Wales faired best at the World Cup, have you seen money for them to take out the title this year? A: They were the only team we saw money for during the World Cup, they would have been a horrendous result for us. We laid them at bigger prices for the Six Nations all through the World Cup, and they are certainly our worst result. A Triple Crown or Grand Slam for them would be a disaster. Q: How about England? Do you expect them to make an impression under Stuart Lancaster's leadership? A: I'm not convinced they have enough quality within the team. Manu Tuilagi will be a big loss for the early games. He gives them real go forward and direct threat in a backline that lacks penetration in the most part. Owen Farrell is a wonderful talent and would improve almost any team he played for. Brad Barritt is a very average player in my mind, and I would personally rate their chances more if they selected Jordan-Turner Hall alongside Farrell and Charlie Hodgson. Q: Ireland are traditionally a tough nut to crack, what about their chances? A: Ireland looks to some extent to have decided that they want to win at all costs again. They have some younger players around the squad, but they will very likely select Gordon D'Arcy and would have picked Brian O'Driscoll, if he was fit. They remain good (or great in O'Driscoll's case) players, but they need to give their very talented youngsters like Eoin O'Malley, Fergus McFadden and Nevin Spence a chance at senior level sooner rather than later. Johnny Sexton just seems to get better and better and their back row of O'Brien, Heaslip and Ferris is very probably the world's best. They look the best value at 9/2 in the outright market. Q: What about Grand Slam and Triple Crown chances for any of the home nations? A: Wales are the most talented of the Home Nations without doubt, but appear to be picking up key injuries at the wrong time. Gethin Jenkins is a huge miss and the injury doubts over Jamie Roberts, Dan Lydiate and for me most importantly; Rhys Priestland makes it a stern opener for them in Ireland. On the flip side if Ireland see off Wales they have a decent chance of the Triple Crown, but have always struggled in France. England's chance could very well be gone after their opening trip to Murrayfield, while for their part the Scots will not be good enough to beat Wales in Cardiff. Q: Are France the team to beat? A: Given Wales injury problems and England's redevelopment by a temporary coach I would say France and Ireland are the two to beat. France's home game against Ireland is probably they key. They have a wealth of talent in almost all positions and are the least affected of all teams by injuries. I'm delighted to see Francois Trinh-Duc has been restored to the no.10 jersey by new coach Philippe Saint-Andre, he is a wonderful player who is a joy to watch. Q: Do you expect Scotland and Italy to struggle to make a mark again? A: They are both closer to England than almost ever before and Italy especially are very strong and hard to beat at home. I get the feeling Scotland are on the verge of delivering on the promise they have shown in recent years. They have a high quality forward pack and some extremely talented backs, but lack a top class centre and fly-half. It's a shame for them too that they have had to wait until after the Six Nations to unleash Dutch try machine Tim Visser on to the international scene. Q: Who do you expect to be providing the excitement for the fans this time around in terms of try scoring? A: Julien Malzieu finally looks as if he will get a prolonged run for France under Saint Andre and he could run riot in a strong French side outside the likes of his Clermont colleagues Wesley Fofana and Aurelien Rougerie. George North has an incredible record for Wales, albeit from a small sample size. Rob Kearney has been in great try scoring form for Leinster of late and, as a solid first choice for a strong team, he could be worth an interest each-way in the top try scorer market. Q: Looking at the opening games this weekend. Are you seeing any trends already in terms of punter interest? A: I think it's fairly obvious that we will see the usual mix of punters wanting to oppose England at any price in Scotland and, paradoxically, those who cannot believe an international powerhouse like them are only being asked to give up a 2/3 point handicap north of the border. Ireland will be backed against Wales and that handicap could be as much as 6 or 7 come kick-off if Wales are without all the players that they currently have injury doubts over.