Dupont's return heralds fizzing new era for what could be a spectacular Six Nations
Every now and again it is useful to be reminded of rugby union's place in the grand scheme of things. 'So, what's next for you?' a non‑sporty friend asked the other day. He must have spotted my raised eyebrow. 'Oh, yes, um, it's the Six Nations, isn't it?' Even on Planet Zog, inhabited by people who think a cauliflower ear is a tasty veggie option, they have heard of the annual rugby equivalent of Glastonbury.
And, traditionally, that has been the sport's saving grace. Millions with limited interest in club rugby gather to cheer on the lands of their fathers, grandmothers and wolfhounds. The technical intricacies matter less than pouring a Guinness 0.0 – seemingly the pint du jour – and announcing to no one in particular that England are coming in nicely under the radar.
In days gone by, for the most part, the skill levels on the field were secondary. Instead there was a certain thrill to be had from watching, say, Ireland kicking ahead – any head? – on a lashing wet day in Dublin. Or rampant Scottish forwards stampeding around Murrayfield like mad giraffes, to steal from the peerless Bill McLaren. And, of course, the forging of lifelong friendships in the bar afterwards.
Increasingly, though, the times are a-changing. It could even be that the 2025 men's championship, kicking off in Paris on Friday night, proves a watershed moment. Some significant conversations are under way in the background as the organisers seek to nail down the next TV broadcasting deal starting in 2026. Could the holy grail of free‑to‑air live coverage go the way of the dodo? Quite possibly, if the money men get their way.
Even if that seismic shift does not happen immediately, the pressure to stay relevant and marketable to younger audiences grows ever more intense. Next season, for example, the Six Nations window is set to shrink, with just one fallow weekend rather than the current two. There is still no official appetite for promotion or relegation – imagine the pre-game atmosphere if Spain ever hosted England or France in Barcelona – but broadening the tournament's appeal remains a priority.
Which brings us to the good news. Actually, make that the great (and extremely timely) news. The professional 'product', to use that soulless corporate term, has never been so compelling. It is even possible the 2025 Six Nations will turn the heads of those who normally identify as rugby agnostics. Not so long ago predictable box-kicking and suffocating defensive blankets were in danger of smothering the professional game alive. Now, weather permitting, a fizzing new era is upon us.
Take France. Anyone who has witnessed Toulouse or Bordeaux Beglès play in the Champions Cup this season will already have seen the vapour trails the best French players are leaving behind them. It is not so much the obvious brilliance of their backs as the fusion of rugby's fundamentals into one gloriously complete package. Pace, power, quick ball, support on either side of the ball carrier, an eye for space, yet more pace. Performed well, it can be almost impossible to defend against.
If Les Bleus can conjure something similar against Wales at the Stade de France, with the once‑in-a-generation talent of Antoine Dupont back after missing the 2024 tournament, it will set this year's campaign off like a rocket – and demonstrate that Test rugby, for all its extra intensity, power and claustrophobia, can still be a thing of beauty.
Because what sells rugby best of all, ultimately, are those mad days when the field appears to be filled by 30 supermen, all either impossibly big and frightening or ridiculously skilful and quick. Stick it all together and you have Asterix and Obelix side by side, fighting the good fight, sustained by whatever magic potion their nutritionists allow these days.
Remember the final round of Super Saturday fixtures in 2015 when England and France engaged in a crazy 12-try ding‑dong at Twickenham? It is not inconceivable, a decade on, that this year's entertainment will be similarly eye-catching.
The aforementioned French will surely take some stopping, particularly when the prolific and wonderfully elusive Damian Penaud returns. Even without the injured Gaël Fickou and Charles Ollivon, France have the set‑piece grunt and collective craft to withstand all comers. If not, well, their head coach Fabien Galthié will once again stand accused of not maximising the potential of their most talented crop of young players in decades.
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Ireland are arguably the opposite: a great side at risk of treading water. Without the injured Tadhg Furlong they are ever more reliant on a handful of influential game-breakers and it is asking a lot of Sam Prendergast to expect him to replicate Johnny Sexton's influence overnight. No men's championship side has won three successive outright titles and they will have to be on it from the start simply to see off England at the Aviva Stadium.
Because England, as with Scotland and Italy, are about to burst into the arena intent on shaking up the status quo that has allowed the Irish and the French to occupy the top two placings in each of the past three years. A recast English side under new on-field leadership have made a conscious pledge to play without fear and see where it takes them. Not all the way to the top of the mountain, perhaps, but they are genuinely determined to up the tempo and, unlike last year, to keep on coming in the last quarter of games.
Scotland potentially have an even slicker backline but the loss of their captain, Sione Tuipulotu, has robbed Gregor Townsend's perfectly balanced midfield of its central strut. While the Scots still have Finn Russell's sorcery even Italy will now be approaching the game at Murrayfield on Saturday with renewed relish. Last year they drew with France and defeated Scotland and Wales and, 25 years on from their tournament admission, are a squad on the rise.
Which leaves Wales, wooden spoonists last year, at risk of retaining that unwanted kitchen implement. Their biggest hope, along with every other home union, is that the dangled carrot of a British & Irish Lions tour inspires Jac Morgan, Aaron Wainwright, Will Rowlands and Gloucester's classy Tomos Williams to confound the predictions of pessimistic outsiders.
Maybe that collective motivation is France's biggest threat. It is necessary to rewind to 1997 to find the last time one of England, Wales, Scotland or Ireland failed to win the championship immediately before a Lions tour. All too often there tends to be a fiendish twist absolutely no one saw coming. So bonne chance to your granny and your wolfhound, and do you think England might be dark horses this year?
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Belfast Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Belfast Telegraph
Former Ulster star on why ‘desperation' for trophy success will have major say as he plots to lead Bulls to URC Grand Final joy
And while the odds may seem somewhat weighted against the South Africans ahead of running out at Croke Park, all those involved will readily recall the Bulls having won in Dublin before when it's been sudden death. Indeed, the record isn't great as Leinster have bowed out to this opposition in the League's Semi-Final stages in 2022 (at home) and two years later in 2024 over in Pretoria. The visitors have something else going for them, too, through the presences of the hugely experienced Marcell Coetzee and Willie le Roux, who both missed out on the 2023/24 season's Final when Jake White's squad rather surprisingly lost in Pretoria to Glasgow Warriors. Coetzee, of course, was at Ulster for five years, starting in 2016, and though this was heavily punctuated by injury and didn't exactly end well with his earlier-than-anticipated departure back to Pretoria, he is a key part of what the Bulls will bring on Saturday. At 34, the still dynamic back-rower will probably not get too many more opportunities at claiming silverware and, as such, is ready to go all-out to derail Leinster, who come to this showdown with some extra baggage having already crashed out of the Champions Cup at the Semi-Final stages at home to Northampton Saints and are desperate to end their four-year trophy drought. 'It all builds up to desperation from both sides this weekend,' Coetzee admitted, with the Bulls also aiming to lift the URC title for the first time. 'So, you can expect a massive clash with a lot of energy and a lot of intensity.' He continued: 'Look, it's going to come down to moments and how we manage them and how calm, collected and controlled we are. 'And that comes with experience,' added the 31-times-capped Springbok. 'Take our captain, Ruan (Nortje). When I first arrived (at the Bulls) he was 22, now he's close to 27 and has played for the Boks. 'With guys like Willie le Roux and Johan Goosen, we have that good balance between experience and youth. 'And our leadership group has really grown by being involved in high-pressure games. 'I think you saw by our performances on the previous tour (when the Bulls beat Munster and Glasgow away in the URC) how we have matured.' Leinster have shown certain frailties in the 2024/25 season when the going has ramped up, and the Bulls are intending to bring their extra physicality to this contest as one means of getting an edge on the hosts. 'We've identified a lot of areas that we might exploit this weekend,' admitted Coetzee. 'But it's going to come down to work-rate, to being composed, and then to making the right decisions at the right time.' The Bulls also know that they must keep their heads as, though they finished runners-up to Leinster in the final table from the regular season, they are bottom of the pile in terms of discipline. Coetzee added: 'Playing against a quality side like Leinster, you can't afford to have one or two guys in the bin. You need everyone on the pitch to stop their onslaught. 'We've played each other a couple of times in the seasons prior to this and we know each other very well, and I think that's just going to make the contest more exciting this weekend.' Coetzee was on the losing side at this stage of the competition when the Stormers claimed the title in 2022 but is hungry to make amends this time around.
The Herald Scotland
4 hours ago
- The Herald Scotland
Does Dumbarton fate prove Scottish game needs independent regulator?
And, as administrators for Dumbarton prepare to dissolve one of Scotland's oldest clubs and start again as a newco, years of mismanagement of the League Two club have reinforced the conviction of the local MSP that football clubs should be offered some form of protection from rapacious owners. Whether they want it or not. 'My experience with Dumbarton Football Club strengthens the case for an independent football regulator. 'In the past few years, Dumbarton has lost out to too many owners whose true interest lay beyond the club itself. 'I would like, at the very least, the SFA to be given greater responsibility and power to clamp down on speculative owners. However, inaction by the football authorities makes the case for an independent regulator stronger.' While independent regulation is common in other industries, the Scottish football authorities are member organisations run by clubs for clubs. And those same clubs don't care for the idea of an independent regulator telling them how to run their business. Owners and directors might be subjected to fit and proper checks more stringent than a self declaration form or the limited rules set down in Article 10.2 of the SFA handbook. Clubs might see a light being shone on their darkest alcoves. The game might be forced to confront sectarian singing or bottles, vapes and fireworks being lobbed around grounds by adopting strict liability, a justice system clubs virulently oppose. There might even be a review of the decision by Premiership sides to ban artificial pitches in the top flight by season 2026/27. Addressing Holyrood's health, social care and sport committee in December 2023 Scottish FA Chief Executive Ian Maxwell flagged up the significant differences between the game north and south of the border and described Scottish football governance as "robust" when it came to dealing with financial issues. A regulator, he argued, was unnecessary. Since then Dumbarton and Inverness Caledonian Thistle have endured insolvency events. Livingston have been embroiled in a lengthy court battle with their shareholders and Hamilton Academical have been docked 15 points and incurred the wrath of fan groups for announcing plans to leave their home town and move to Cumbernauld instead. The SFA and SPFL argue that the levers are already in place to to deal with rule breaches and misbehaviour. Hamilton's application to move 14 miles to Broadwood is under review while the league recently handed Celtic and Rangers suspended punishments for unruly supporter behaviour at the Premier Sports Cup semi-finals. The SFA have introduced measures to deal with misconduct at domestic cup games. Clubs which suffer an insolvency event as a result of financial mismanagement, meanwhile, can expect a 15 point deduction. Simon Barrow, co-founder of the SFSA and lead author of the 2023 report 'Rebuilding Scottish Football', which led to a parliamentary debate last year and the establishment of a Scottish Government-hosted roundtable on the development of the game, believes football is tinkering while Rome burns. 'With clubs like Dumbarton and Inverness Caledonian Thistle going into administration and the need to strengthen and invest in the game from the grassroots upwards increasing in urgency, effective transparency and accountability in financial and related matters is crucial,' argues Barrow. 'It is important to see through the cloud of dust that can easily be thrown up by the issue of whether, like England, Scotland should move towards having a statutorily backed regulator for football. 'That is clearly a backstop. But it does not have to be the starting point for discussion. We should first agree the principle that a public facing industry in receipt of the public's money in a variety of ways should be publicly accountable. 'Independent scrutiny is the way to achieve that. It is also essential for building confidence and trust in Scottish football, and for encouraging people to put money into its future. It's a win-win situation. Dumbarton Rock towers above Dumbarton Football Stadium (Image: Christian Cooksey) Read more: What future for Albion Rovers, a storied name of the past? Scottish football needs to say no to newco and get 'robust' governance 'What it means is qualified assessors having the power and information to examine who owns and runs the game, how public interest can be made central, and how Scottish football's finance, governance and conduct can be improved and strengthened. 'Practically, there are a variety of ways that independent scrutiny, short of a statutory regulator, can operate. That is what the conversation should be about.' Critics of an independent regulator argue that the scheme is an expensive and unnecessary layer of bureaucracy. Some of the issues which plague Scottish football – such as pyrotechnics and missiles - are matters governed - in theory at least - by the criminal justice system. Clubs pay Police Scotland good money and expect them to earn it. Speaking after a Hampden AGM where clubs signed up to tougher rules around crowd disorder for cup games governed by the SFA CEO Maxwell acknowledged that football had to do more to combat anti-social behaviour in the stands. The Scottish Government, meanwhile, are scheduled to host another Round Table to discuss some of the issues surrounding the game. The implied threat underpinning the talks is clear. If football fails to clean up its act then the politicians reserve the right to step in at some unspecified date in future. Even if the will to do so is weak. One senior figure – speaking on condition of anonymity - told Herald Sport that an independent regulator in Scotland had always been an idea promoted by former first minister Henry McLeish as a vehicle for Henry McLeish. 'The regulator down south was a tool to stop the Super League, something which was never relevant in Scotland. To stop heritage assets being removed like changes to colours and crests, which has already been achieved through the SFA and to get 20% of income through to the lower leagues, which is roughly where we are in Scotland anyway. 'Clubs like Dumbarton, Inverness and so on are where they are because of their own individual circumstances. It has nothing to do with anything that a regulator could change. All a regulator brings is bureaucracy, costs and administration paid for by the industry. 'All we will see down south is a rising number of legal fights between clubs being regulated and the regulator.' Legal disputes in football are now commonplace. 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A critic of the SFA and SPFL Goodwin senses no real movement towards an independent regulator in Scotland, but believes there should be. 'Part of the challenge football faces is the history of being anything but open and anything but transparent. There are conflicts of interest everywhere. 'I am not saying that an independent regulator will go in and say, 'you can't get your league structures right, I am going to fix it.' 'But what an independent regulator might do is look at the financial distribution model and say, 'why is Scotland the only country in Europe where solidarity money coming from UEFA is not filtering down to the lower levels of the game? 'The problem here is that the SFA, like the SPFL, is run by the clubs for the clubs. It's self interest that dictates everything. 'The SFA should be overseeing the governance of our game but they come under so much influence from clubs in the SPFL. And, let's be honest here, turkeys do not vote for Christmas.'
Glasgow Times
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The moves comes after St Johnstone chairman Adam Webb branded the current legislation 'discriminatory' and 'offensive.' St Johnstone are one of a number of clubs pursuing applications to establish pre-match fan zones next season. And the Scottish football authorities hope the widespread implementation of controlled zones selling alcohol to fans in supervised conditions will persuade Holyrood to relax a ban introduced as a response to disorder between Rangers and Celtic fans at the 1980 Scottish Cup final. Read more: First Minister John Swinney recently warned that the government were 'not sympathetic' to the idea of reviewing the legislation. Privately, however, senior figures inside Hampden believe that stance could change after next year's Scottish parliamentary elections. Successful fan zones up and down the country, they believe, can hope to accelerate the process. St Johnstone chairman Webb told Herald Sport: 'We intend to have a fan zone operating before our games and if you do that for a season and there are no reports to the police of any problems then it should be able to be expanded. 'We need to take gradual steps and adopt a logical, rational approach instead of the current one size fits all. 'The situation is unique to Scottish football and the 'one size fits all' attitude is so unfair. It makes no sense. 'We understand that there has been violence at certain games and certain clubs and that the police probably ought to have a role in whether or how alcohol can be sold at certain games. I get that. 'But when Saints are playing clubs where there is no real history of animosity in the Championship and we still can't have an open situation where people who want to drink can have a beer then that makes no sense. 'Where there is a game where violence might be anticipated, then conditions will be placed upon alcohol sales. We understand that, but I think it's time to take it forward and review this. 'You look at other sports in Scotland enjoy carte blanche to sell alcohol, like rugby. 'That would anger me as a Scottish football fan and I would be lobbying my political parties and if they heard that from enough fans, loudly enough, then maybe the law would change and we wouldn't have to be sneaking around the edges on this. 'The ban is discriminatory, it's offensive and it makes all football fans out to be hooligans. And that's just not true. 'There are clubs and games where there would be no problem at all and this law has to go. 'I'm okay with gradual change, but we can't just take no for an answer forever.' Mindful of the divisive nature of the debate, Webb believes fan zones are a logical starting point. 'Let's make sure everyone feels comfortable about it. In the Premiership there is obviously more sensitivity and concern, but you could still have some test policies, some test program, that could be tried out over a season. New things could be tried.' While the SPFL and SFA have continued to quietly lobby the Scottish Government on the issue, their cause was undermined by various instances of crowd disorder towards the end of the season. Scenes in Glasgow city centre were followed by a bottle being thrown on the pitch during the Rangers-Celtic game at Ibrox, while Aberdeen defender Jack McKenzie was struck on the face by the back of a seat thrown from the stand during a game against Dundee United. In a statement yesterday the SPFL revealed that notices of complaints have now been raised against Aberdeen, Celtic and Partick Thistle over incidents which occurred at the end of the season.'
