Daley-Mclean won 116 Tests for England (2007-2020), winning eight Six Nations titles, plus a Rugby World Cup triumph in 2014; she discusses what shape England are in heading into the 2022 Six Nations, casts an eye on each other nation, looks at the Red Roses' fly-half conundrum and more
Saturday 26 March 2022 14:17, UK
Katy Daley-Mclean, retired England fly-half and holder of 116 caps, speaks exclusively to Sky Sports ahead of the start of the 2022 Women's Six Nations...
"England have got to go in as favourites really. They didn't play France in the autumn, which I think will be interesting when we get to the end of the tournament for that Round 5 Test in Bayonne, especially considering the way World Cup groups are [both in Pool C], and obviously their history.
"But for me, England look sharp. The strength and depth they have in that squad, there is some really bright talent and it will be great to see them on the international stage.
"France at home are a very different beast to France away, so it will be a fascinating end to the tournament, especially from an English fan's perspective just to see how those teams really go, when it will be their last proper outing before those World Cup warm-up games.
"I think the improvement of everyone else below England and France is going to be huge - Wales, Ireland, Scotland - and everyone writes off Italy, but actually they're a good, hard team when you come up against them. They know their stuff.
"France and England will be the dominant sides, and it will come down to a Grand Slam decider right at the end. Which is what you want isn't it?
"As a fan, you don't want that game in the middle, you want everything building to it, because it adds a lot of pressure to teams.
"Everyone says: 'We're taking each game at a time', but they're all looking to that last game thinking: that's the game I want to be involved in, that's going to be the main game."
"Everyone's had very different prep. Ireland didn't qualify for the World Cup, Scotland have then played a lot more rugby in terms of going to Dubai recently for their World Cup play-off, Wales have got full-time contracts, Italy are just starting in terms of their structure.
"So I think for the first time nobody has really had a similar, traditional build-up.
"There will be a bit of pressure on all the teams. Ireland come in probably having the least amount of pressure on them. New head coach, they've gone through a big, public shake-up which we've all been able to read about.
"As a result, they probably come in as a bit of an unknown force. There's been different faces in the squad, they've lost a lot of experience, and with there being no World Cup on the horizon for them, this is a really good opportunity for them to start afresh.
"Scotland will probably be the most up to speed, they played Colombia in late February, have had the most amount of game-time coming into it, and for them, they're a massive confidence-based squad.
"If you look at Scotland on paper, they've got some phenomenal rugby players, but it's never seemed to translate into their performances in the Six Nations.
"And I just wonder now having been boosted by how they went in the qualifiers [beating Ireland], going to Dubai and getting that win vs Colombia, whether it's just what that group needed to have a bit more belief, and it will be fascinating to see how they go at home against England.
"With Wales, will we get any translation yet from contracts? For England, it took a good couple of years to really see the value of those contracts in performances.
"But I wonder whether we'll see a better drilled, more polished Wales side. Especially with the time they've had together, which is more than they've ever had."
"England's fly-half options are really strong. You have out-and-out frontrunners in Zoe (Harrison) and Hel (Rowland), and what's interesting is both have played 12, with the other at 10.
"That has its strengths, but you can almost overplay that. They're two very different positions.
"I'd really like to see Simon Middleton decide on who that No 1 is, to let them hone their craft.
"At the moment, they've both had it for a little bit. Zoe went very well in the autumn, and you've got to argue she's unlucky not to start again this weekend.
"I like both of them. Helena is such a dangerous counter-attacker, so having her in the back-field from kick-return is so valuable for England. You never really know what's going to come next.
"Her running game is her biggest strength, and the more she plays in that 10 shirt, the better she will get.
"In terms of game control - and she's only back in 15s maybe 18 months - she's probably a bit behind Zoe.
"But from Zoe's perspective, you look at her kicking game against New Zealand, it was probably one of the major factors that really helped England dominate: she found the space, found the corners, kept England playing high in the NZ half.
"That for me is the sign of a really experienced fly-half. It's something I didn't learn until much later in my career, so to see her doing that now at 23 is brilliant and shows how bright the future is.
"Meg [Jones] is playing Sevens at the moment, but as we all know has been tearing it up in Premier 15s, so I'm sure she'll be on the radar and will look at returning just in time for the World Cup.
"It is a surprise Zoe is not involved this weekend vs Scotland. Whether there's been a niggle in training or not, because it's a very big omission to have.
"It'll be interesting to see what comes of that. She had such a good autumn that it's hard to read any more into that selection other than Simon just trying to figure out his best combos.
"Because, for me, she was the out-and-out No 1 fly-half post those November Tests.
"If you're Simon Middleton, you must be rubbing your hands together. England at the moment are blessed with a lot of very talented running backs."
"I think it's huge [Women's Six Nations window]. The game was ready for it.
"People have talked about whether they should have done it sooner, but for me, being associated with the men's window helped to grow the profile of the women's game, but now we've got to a point where actually it is able to stand alone.
"Having TikTok as a title sponsor (first time ever), the game itself is ready for it. And also, it's a far nicer time of the year to play in, from a rugby viewing perspective.
"It allows the games to be much more attacking, with far more spark rather than the beginning of February, with it lashing down, freezing cold, and when it doesn't present the type of rugby you want to sell.
"This window is absolutely perfect for that and running rugby."
"Both of them [Emily Scarratt, Sarah Hunter] are not just phenomenal rugby players but phenomenal people.
"Scaz has played 20 minutes at club level, but obviously they are comfortable with where she is in her return from a leg break to start this weekend.
"She's such a wise head in that group, and actually it's probably something they need and maybe missed in the autumn. That cool, composed outside-centre, and with the rugby ability she has as well.
"She's marching closer to that 100th cap, which if all goes to plan would be in Leicester against Ireland in Round 4, which would be awesome for her: A Leicester girl, all her family still living around there, you couldn't think of a more perfect venue for her to achieve that.
"On Sarah Hunter, 130 caps is absolutely amazing isn't it? She is just a testament to if you work hard, and you're diligent towards prehab and rehab, that's where you can get to.
"Sarah is the ultimate professional, but she has been for the majority of her career, regardless of whether she was working or being paid to play.
"And if you're a young girl looking for and trying to pick a role model, you couldn't get a better role model than her.
"I've known her since we were 15/16, and she's always been the same. Now she's getting her reward for that.
"Bit of a difficult autumn with different captains, that wouldn't have sat well with her, she's very proud of being captain, so it's great she's leading the side out on Saturday."
"I'd just like to see a different type of rugby. My biggest worry for England is that we keep doing the same thing, and footage of everybody is now so readily available.
"And actually, we don't have a Plan B or Plan C.
"I'd really like to see us play a different way. Not be so reliant on our set-piece - lineout and scrum - and see if we can just be a bit braver with some of the decisions we make.
"That would be huge because if we don't, there's a risk we get to New Zealand and our set-piece doesn't function as well as it could do, and then we'd look a little bit lost for answers.
"Maybe to introduce a couple of slight variations to style of play. Do we have to kick as much or as long? Can we change that?
"If we do that, with the players we have and the girls on form at the moment, we'd be very, very difficult to beat."
