Who’s hot and who’s not!

David Skippers

It’s time for our Monday wrap of who has their name in lights and who is making the headlines for all the wrong reasons after the weekend.

THEY’RE ON FIRE!

England and Anthony Watson: After suffering defeats against Scotland and Wales in the opening three rounds, Eddie Jones and his troops were under pressure ahead of their encounter with Fabien Galthie’s high-flying France side at Twickenham. The Red Rose delivered arguably their best performance since their 2019 Rugby World Cup semi-final triumph against New Zealand, however, and also went a long way towards silencing their critics in the process. Although Les Bleus gave a good account of themselves, England were deserved winners as they showed great character to fight back after their opponents took an early lead and they also clawed their way back to seal victory in the game’s dying moments, courtesy of a Maro Itoje try, after France were leading for most of the second half. Itoje, Tom Curry and captain Owen Farrell all impressed with outstanding individual performances but Watson deserves special praise after a fine all-round showing in his 50th international appearance. The Bath flyer was rewarded with a try and the official player-of-the-match award for his efforts.

Leicester Fainga’anuku’s epic finish: This was just ridiculous, as our tweet says. With the Chiefs having started the game like a house on fire, Fainga’anuku then brought the Crusaders right back into the contest with a finish right out of the top drawer. How he kept his leg in the air before grounding the ball is anyone’s guess as we struggle to tire watching the replays. New Zealand’s wing conveyer belt rumbles on while the Crusaders continue to set the standard in Super Rugby Aotearoa. Their big victory over the Chiefs was another statement of intent.

Wales setting the Six Nations pace: What a difference a few months makes. Wales are in such a better place than they were during the Autumn Nations Cup as four successive victories in the Six Nations leaves them eight points clear of Ireland and nine ahead of both France and England. Wayne Pivac must be beaming with pride right now as a first-half masterclass in Rome saw them breeze past Italy with plenty of time left remaining. With France having had a much sterner test against England just after Wales’ win at the Stadio Olimpico on Saturday, it could be said that Wales are in much better shape coming into this Saturday’s fixture in Paris. They’re injury free as a Grand Slam beckons.

Reds comeback: Brad Thorn’s troops deserve plenty of credit as they sealed a dramatic 40-38 victory over the Brumbies in Canberra after trailing their hosts for most of the match. The result was no mean feat as the Brumbies have proved difficult to defeat on their home turf in recent years, winning 18 of their previous 19 games in Canberra. Dan McKellar’s side were on course for another triumph after racing into a 17-0 lead midway through the first period but the Reds did not panic and did well to claw their way back into the match with the home side leading 24-16 at half-time. The second half was a similar story with the Brumbies holding onto their lead, but the Reds were kept in the fight largely through accurate goal-kicking from star James O’Connor, who finished with a 20-point haul courtesy of four penalties and as many conversions. The visitors left it late but sealed their win with a 79th minute converted try from Jordan Petaia, which gave them the lead for the first time in the match and they did well to keep the Brumbies at bay during the game’s closing stages to seal a deserving win. The result is sweet revenge for the Brisbane-based outfit after they lost to the Brumbies in 2020’s Super Rugby AU final. Revenge is sweet, as they say.

COLD AS ICE!

Italy: Another Six Nations Test which ended with the Azzurri coming off second best to their opponents and if truth be told, it did not take Wales much effort to win their fixture in Rome as Franco Smith’s side hardly tested their opponents throughout the meeting. Wayne Pivac’s charges were far superior in most facets of play and they were up 27-0 at half-time with their bonus-point already secured after 30 minutes. Italy’s attack asked few questions of the Welsh defence with unforced errors and ill discipline, once again, the main reasons for their downfall. The discipline – or lack thereof – is a particular concern as they were on the back foot from the seventh minute when captain Luca Bigi was yellow carded for a cynical defensive foul deep inside his half and they continued to concede penalties as the game progressed with Marco Riccioni also spending time in the sin bin for foul play in the game’s latter stages in Rome. This latest defeat means that the Azzurri have lost all four their matches in this season’s tournament by significant margins and it also extends their overall losing streak in the Six Nations to a whopping 31 Tests.

Chiefs: The men from Hamilton’s struggles in Super Rugby Aotearoa show no signs of abating as they were on the receiving end of a 39-17 loss against the Crusaders in Christchurch on Saturday. Despite racing into an early 10-0 lead, Clayton McMillan’s charges could not build on their impressive start and were trailing 11-10 at the turnaround as the defending champions soon took control of the contest. The Chiefs’ latest defeat means they are currently on an 11-match losing streak – after also losing their opener against the Highlanders, all eight their matches in 2020’s Super Rugby Aotearoa competition as well as their last match of last year’s truncated Super Rugby tournament. If they lose their next game, against the Hurricanes in Wellington on Saturday, they will become the first New Zealand side to lose 12 successive Super Rugby matches. Not good.

Worcester Warriors: Things continue to look bleak at Worcester Warriors as their latest loss, a 20-17 defeat to London Irish, means they have not won on the pitch in any competition since the opening day of the season when they saw off the Exiles 11-10 in the reverse fixture at Sixways, with their other two league victories both awarded due to Covid cancellations. They remain rooted to the bottom of the Premiership but, thanks to Leicester beating Gloucester, the Cherry and Whites are just three points ahead of them. This week Worcester head to Bath.

Benetton: The Italian outfit’s woeful season continued on Sunday when they suffered a 29-14 defeat to Cardiff Blues in their PRO14 Conference B fixture in Treviso. Although Kieran Crowley’s troops made the Welsh region work hard for their victory, the result means Benetton have now lost all 13 of their matches played in the tournament so far. Their latest defeat leaves them firmly rooted to the bottom of their six-team conference with a paltry six points amassed and 18 points adrift of fifth-placed Edinburgh. Benetton’s poor form is set to continue on Friday when they travel to Thomond Park to face Conference B table-toppers Munster, who have already qualified for this season’s final against arch rivals Leinster.