Is it time for change in the Women's Six Nations?
Saturday at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham saw a thrilling 43-42 spectacle between England and France for the Women's Six Nations title.John Mitchell's side managed to hold on for victory to secure their fourth consecutive Grand Slam and seventh title in a row.The competition had the finale it needed, but it also remained predictable.It was the fourth time in a row that both France and England played in the final round with the Grand Slam on the line.The decider may live up to the hype, with three out of those four games finishing within a score, but the gap to the rest of the teams remains vast.Not since Ireland's triumph a decade ago has there been a tournament winner other than the Red Roses or Les Bleues.Would a change to the format improve the competitiveness of the tournament?
Success with previous change
In 2022, the tournament fixture list changed so England and France were guaranteed to play each other in the final round.This differs to the men's Six Nations, won by France in March, which has a different fixture schedule every year.The idea was to keep Grand Slam interest alive by holding back the likely title decider.Success has come, with final fixtures between Ireland, Scotland, Italy and Wales also adding interest as they battle for places and to avoid the Wooden Spoon.But the competitiveness of their games against the top two is a growing concern.France, the last team to beat England in the Six Nations in 2018, have been less dominant, but have still recorded a full house of wins against the other teams in each of the past four championships.England used 34 players this campaign and despite regularly rotating scored 33 tries and conceded only five before the Grand Slam decider.A reason for the gulf in quality comes from the fact England awarded 28 full-time professional contracts in 2019 and that level of investment left the other nations behind.Wales began handing out deals at the start of 2022, followed by Ireland in August 2022, while Scotland announced their professional plans at the end of that year.Before the 2023 Six Nations, Italy announced 22 professional contracts had been given out to their players.Scotland defeated Ireland on Saturday to end their campaign on a high, with Ireland's highlight coming in a hammering of Italy. Italy ran France close and finished with a thumping win over Wales to show signs of improvement.Under new head coach Sean Lynn, Wales lost every game to pick up the Wooden Spoon, but will be hopeful of improvement after the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) this month confirmed a revamp of its top women's teams to develop the pathway and depth of talent.When asked on the BBC's Rugby Union Weekly how long it would take for a different winner of the Six Nations, Scotland head coach Bryan Easson replied: "It will take time but I genuinely believe someone else will eventually win it."His side suffered heavy defeats by both England and France, who have much wider player pools because of investment into their domestic leagues, with the Premiership Women's Rugby league going from strength to strength."The gap will get closer," added Easson. "But it will be a little bit longer than everybody expects in terms of professionalism."We've only been professional now for 18 months. Wales, Ireland, Italy, and ourselves are all pretty much in the same boat."
Two-tier system & triple-header finals day
To avoid too many one-sided scorelines, BBC Sport's Sara Orchard, speaking on Rugby Union Weekly, suggested a two-tier system where teams are ranked before the championship.The idea was backed by former England fly-half Katy Daley-McLean, who lost titles to France and Ireland during her playing days, with the 2014 World Cup-winner saying the tournament must be "brave" in trying something new., externalThe Rugby Football Union's director of women's game Alex Teasdale told BBC that the RFU would "listen to any proposals"."I think Six Nations as a tournament across men's and women's is steeped in that kind of background in history and its format is quite special," she said."It would probably take quite a lot to change that. But look, it's the women's game and we want to stay agile and do what's in the best interests of the game."The proposed idea would follow a similar format to the 2021 Six Nations, which was spilt into two pools because of Covid restrictions.Orchard's idea would see the number one ranked team play home and away fixtures against those ranked second and third, with the second pool - ranked three to six - following the same structure.Play-offs then follow to determine the final standings, with the top team in pool one facing the second team in their group for the Six Nations title.The side who finished third in pool one would play against first team in pool two for a place in the following year's top group, while fifth and sixth see who picks up the Wooden Spoon.All those games would take place on a triple-header finals day in the same venue that is rotated around a different nation every year."Being the women's version of the Six Nations means you don't have to do it the same as the men," former Wales captain Philippa Tuttiett told BBC Radio 5 Live."I have to agree that the changes make a lot of sense but I don't like it."I like the aspiration, build-up and feeling of just maybe this year."
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