Six Nations
Monday Maul - ESPN's diary of opening weekend at the Six Nations
ESPN Staff
February 8, 2016
Players of the weekend

With reporters in Paris, Edinburgh and Dublin for the opening weekend of the Six Nations, we look back on a weekend that was about much more than simply tackles and tries, not least in the French capital.

Security-laden Stade de France makes for sobering opener

© Richard Heathcote/Getty Images

PARIS -- If last year's Six Nations curtain-raiser between Wales and England was marked by flamethrowers and lasers under the Millennium Stadium roof, this year's was a far more sombre affair as France hosted Italy under a grey Parisian sky.

Les Bleus' victory over their continental rivals was the first major event at the Stade de France since the terrorist attacks of last November, which left 130 dead and saw bombs detonated outside the vast stadium on the outskirts of Paris while it hosted a football friendly between France and Germany.

Naturally, security was extraordinarily tight on the venue's return to service, but the bag searches and checkpoints brought an uneasy atmosphere to what usually is a celebration of rugby. Armed police officers are nothing new in France, and the sheer number of them around the stadium was reassuring yet unnerving. Fans did their best in the beer tents encircling the ground, but it is not easy to drum up a party atmosphere when every fencepost has a gendarme leaning against it with a rifle.

Fans were well advised to arrive two hours early in order to go through the extra safety checks. Where ticket-holders would normally enter the stadium 10 abreast, they were limited to one at a time, with pat downs and metal detectors for all.

Highlights: France 23-21 Italy
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That led to some almighty queues, with the line to the stadium's eastern gate H stretching over 180 yards when ESPN walked it. Fifteen minutes later, it had grown. By kick-off there was still thousands of empty seats as fans waited to get in. That, coupled with the fact the game was far from a sell-out, brought a subdued start to the Championship.

It would be nonsensical to say the extra security spoilt the occasion -- it was absolutely necessary given the circumstances. Indeed, the rugby served up by France did more to dampen spirits than any extra queuing ever could. But Saturday served as a reminder that these are edgy times across the Channel. The sooner the sunny skies return to French rugby, the better. - Tristan Barclay

Hartley's path to catharsis

EDINBURGH -- "I got through it, didn't I?" said England captain Dylan Hartley an hour or so after they had closed out their win over Scotland. "I survived! I live on for one more week! On to the next one..."

The week prior to England's trip to Murrayfield, Hartley did his best to deflect the attention off the individual and pointed towards the team as a whole. But when you are at the centre of as turbulent, bedevilled a career as Hartley has experienced, he was always going to be a subplot.

He did well in the Murrayfield cauldron; he kept his cool and though the referee told him to calm down towards the end of the first half, Hartley did exactly what England coach Eddie Jones wanted. He was England's rock in the set piece, the on-field general and led from the front.

 

Hartley will always have his doubters -- 54 weeks of suspensions does that -- but this was an encouraging performance from England's captain. It was momentary catharsis for him, and though he frequently said he was not over-thinking the occasion in the run-up, he did suggest a hint of emotion about the event when talking afterwards. "I've been injured before and I've not been in the front seat -- I've been on the bench -- and any sort of time out of the shirt makes you cherish it and appreciate it when you're in it.

"I didn't take anything for granted today. I closed my eyes at the anthems, I sucked it all up and it was a hell of an experience." - Tom Hamilton

Elements of Lancaster's credo remain

© David Rogers/Getty Images
Highlights: Scotland 9-15 England
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EDINBURGH -- After the Scotland-England match James Haskell was talking to the press and opened with a comment regarding the World Cup, saying "For some guys in the room, things were said about us after the World Cup, which were not true. We wanted to show what we can do." This was then followed up with: "It is all in the past. We are all about positives and moving forward."

The World Cup debacle will always hang over England, at least until the next tournament in Japan in 2019, but one sentiment from Haskell was straight from the credo Lancaster attempted to instil in this team. "I spoke about making sure we left the shirt in a better place than how we found it," Haskell said. "All that mattered was the 80 minutes in front of us because you never know what will happen tomorrow."

The Eddie effect on England's scrum

Billy Vunipola
Billy Vunipola© David Rogers/Getty Images

EDINBURGH -- Coach Eddie Jones has spent most of the past two weeks with the England backs, trying to instil his philosophy on their tactical approach to the game. But there are signs the ethos that became prevalent in his last post with Japan is influencing the pack.

In last year's Rugby World Cup, Japan's scrum was a thing of fluid, simplistic beauty. The ball went in, Shota Horie hooked it back and in the blink of an eye, the brilliant No.8 Amanaki Mafi was off and charging towards the opposition before their back-row had time to work out what was going on.

England's intention is to repeat that trick -- no point keeping it in the tight, instead they want to get Billy Vunipola going as quickly as possible.

Though quick-ball was at a premium at Murrayfield, Hartley's take on the scrums afterwards was revealing: "It was an effort and it didn't go our way in the first half. We got the ball to Billy's feet pretty quick but from there we made a mess of it." It remains a work in progress, but Vunipola's man of the match award already speaks volumes. - Tom Hamilton

Don't you know who I am?

Stander delivers for Ireland

Highlights: Ireland 16-16 Wales
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DUBLIN -- One of the most pleasing aspects of Ireland's stalemate with Wales for the hosts was the performance of debutant flanker, CJ Stander. Without Sean O'Brien and Peter O'Mahony there was a lot of pressure on the Munster player, but he delivered with a man of the match performance.

Stander made a game-high 23 carries against the Welsh and thought he had secured a debut first-half try, too, only to be denied by the TMO. But it seems the man himself was impressed more with his singing that his rugby on Sunday.

The South Africa-born forward has been aided by Ireland teammate Donnacha Ryan and a YouTube tutorial as he tried to learn the words to his adopted country's national anthem, Amhrán na bhFiann. And although he admitted he was not pitch perfect, Stander was delighted to be able to give it a go in front of Ireland president, Michael D. Higgins, and a packed Aviva Stadium.

"I was very emotional," he revealed when asked to score his rendition. "It was my first time getting out there in front of the president and all of the supporters... [So] I'd say 10. I was happy enough to be next to Tommy [O'Donnell], when I got lost here and there it was easy to jump in.

"Donnacha Ryan stepped up this week and taught me a few words, so I tried to make him proud."

On his man of the match award, Stander was a little more circumspect. "I think they just thought 'Oh, he's new just give it to him'," he said. "I just want to play my game and if I get an award, for me it's all about the team. I play good if the team plays good. It's good to get that individual recognition but it's all about the team." - Martyn Thomas

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