England great: ‘Predictable’ Rugby Championship isn’t better than Six Nations’ ‘pedigree’
Ugo Monye says he would not swap the Six Nations for the Rugby Championship despite hailing one Springbok as the “best” in the business.
The southern hemisphere tournament is enjoying one of its greatest editions after Cheslin Kolbe inspired South Africa to hand New Zealand their biggest ever defeat and blow the title race wide open.
With two rounds to go unfancied Australia lead the way but only two points separate four teams who each have two wins and two defeats to their name.
It has not always been this way. New Zealand have won nine of the 12 previous competitions, 20 out of 29 if the Tri-Nations tournaments are included.
This time they have been beaten in Argentina for the first time and walloped 43-10, last weekend in Wellington, by South Africa.
Only one upset so far
That astonishing performance, coming on the same day Argentina beat the Wallabies in Sydney, followed Australia’s jaw-dropping victory at Ellis Park in week one.
“Mesmerising”, is one word used by former England fly-half Stuart Barnes to describe the 2025 competition in The Times. “Epic”, another.
With all four sides so well matched nobody is predicting with any confidence who will come out on top, leading some to acclaim this as the greatest Rugby Championship ever.
“I’ve heard this,” says Monye, ex-England and Lions wing turned TNT Sports pundit. “But do I think it’s now a better competition than the Six Nations? I don’t think it is.
“I think we’ve only seen one upset in this tournament and that was Australia beating South Africa in Johannesburg. Yes, Argentina beat New Zealand but they have done that before. It’s not completely out of the ordinary.
“To my mind we’ve only seen one unpredictable result. Everything else has kind of gone to script.”
Whether South Africa’s historic hammering of New Zealand in the Kiwi capital was in anyone’s script is an open question. Certainly, few were backing Australia in Townsville when they trailed 21-7 and then rolled the dice rather than take a draw after the hooter.
The nub of Monye’s argument is this. “The Rugby Championship is really competitive,” he asserts. “But it is easier to be competitive with four nations. Imagine if the Six Nations had just four teams: say, England, France, Ireland and Scotland?”
Six Nations’ pedigree
He has a point, in recent times certainly. Wales have not won a Six Nations game since March 2023 and Italy have lost all but 18 of their 130 matches since joining the tournament. That has diluted the overall quality of the offering, though the Azzurri’s improvement in 2024 hinted at more competitive days ahead.
“I love the Six Nations for it’s pedigree, not just for the quality on the pitch, but it represents and shows so much more about why our game is so great,” Monye adds.
“For me, it’s a tournament which forever throws up massive stories. It’s also just as much about the fans. It’s the migration of tens of thousands of supporters every single weekend. It’s a destination tournament.”
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For all that he prefers the northern hemisphere annual showpiece ask Monye to name the best player in the game in his position and his gaze is drawn south of the equator.
“Cheslin Kolbe is the best wing in the world,” he says, without hesitation. “Hands down the best wing in the world because he always has a massive impact on the game in which he is playing.
“You think of his intercept try last week, he gets that wrong and New Zealand are 14-0 up. That was a decisive moment, and that’s what great wingers do.
“His finishing ability is absolutely world class. You put him into space, or create space for him, and you know he finishes.
“He has an unbelievable all-round game. His aerial skills are fantastic. He punches way above his weight in defence. And then there’s the defensive side of his game: his reading of the contest, whether it’s tackling, getting over the ball or making intercepts, he has so many game-breaking, game-changing moments.”
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Asked whether he would like to see the Six Nations copy the Rugby Championship in awarding a bonus point to a team scoring three tries more than its opponent, Monye responded that he thought the existing four-try bonus works just fine.
“I know that’s also been adopted by the Top 14 in France but I don’t think we need to tinker with our bonus points system at the moment,” he says.
“I’m happy with the Six Nations as it is. Everyone is really happy with the World Cup as a format, aren’t they? I love it. I think it works really well.
“The Six Nations is another of those properties where you look and you think ‘I’m just really proud of that’. There’s not too much tinkering I would do.”
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