England
Grade: A-
Position: 1st
Wins 5
Draws: 0
Defeats: 0
Results
38 - 5 win vs Italy
67-12 win vs Wales
49-5 win vs Ireland
59-7 win vs Scotland
43-42 win vs France
The red roses were expected to win the Six Nations and complete the grand slam in doing so. On that front, it was a case of mission accomplished by Mitchell's men. However, the minus comes in due to three things: a dodgy second half against Italy, an uncomfortable first half against Ireland and some lacklustre defence against France. England are obviously the best team in the World but can't afford any slip-ups come autumn. There are still multiple questions over starting positions and exactly what the team will look like but the coach and squad are both so good that this side will undoubtedly figure things out even more than they already have.
France
Grade: B+
Position: 2nd
Wins: 4
Draws: 0
Defeats: 1
Results
27-15 win vs Ireland
38-15 win vs Scotland
42-12 win vs Wales
34-21 win vs Italy
43-42 loss to England
The French came into this year's Six Nations with the expectation being to maintain the gap between themselves and the four sides below in the World rankings and they did that with four wins out of four in those games. The big prize was a win over England at the Allianz Stadium. They came painfully close; after scoring in the 80th minute and converting quickly, France had the opportunity to grab a late win due to trailing by just one point. However, their comeback came to a rather abrupt, uninspiring end with a knock-on from a kickoff. The red roses beat them once again but the French did score a record points total and pushed the world-number-ones to the end. They will be feeling confident going into the World Cup.
Their other games were fairly routine but one did stand out. The game against Ireland was not a comfortable watch for anyone of a French persuasion. Ireland came dangerously close to victory and will feel that they should have done more given that France were down to 14 for a good part of the end of that game.
Ireland
Grade: C+
Position: 3rd
Wins: 2
Draws: 0
Defeats: 3
Results
27-15 loss vs France
54-12 win vs Italy
49-5 loss vs England
40-14 win vs Wales
26-19 loss vs Scotland
Ireland came into this competition needing to separate themselves from the pack and push upwards towards France and possibly England. As I just mentioned, they came very close to beating France and ended up giving them quite the scare. They also competed very well with England, trailing by just two points at the half-time break. Obviously things went downhill in the second half, leading to the 49-5 Scoreline, but there were plenty of positives. Their 54-12 win over Italy looks even more impressive now.
The major disappointment was their 26-19 loss to Scotland which ended up being a disappointing end to the tournament. Other than that, there were plenty of positives and lots of players to be excited about. Aoife Wafer was as good as always but there were others that also stepped up. Costigan is a true finisher on the wing and, if it were this summer and not in 2027, she would likely be starting on the Women's Lions Tour. O'Brien was also excellent and is particularly exciting given that she can play at that level despite being just 21-years-old.
Italy
Grade: A+
Position: 4th
Wins: 2
Draws: 0
Defeats: 3
Results
38-5 loss vs England
54-12 loss vs Ireland
25-17 win vs Scotland
34-21 loss vs France
44-12 win vs Wales
This was Italy's best Six Nations ever. It started off strongly with a second-half against England in which they stayed basically level with the World-Leaders. The loss to Ireland was disappointing but followed by a great win over Scotland. Staying within two tries of France is a good achievement and the win over Wales was a stunning statement about their place in European rugby. This was a magnificent tournament for Italy who look in great shape for the autumn.
Scotland
Grade: C
Position: 5th
WIns: 2
Draws: 0
Defeats: 3
Results
24-21 win vs Wales
38-15 loss vs France
25-17 loss vs Italy
59-7 loss vs England
26-19 win vs Ireland
This was a mixed bag for the Scots with an impressive win over Ireland being the big highlight. The round one win over Wales was expected and, in hindsight, is perhaps less praise-worthy given Wales' misfortune in the following weeks. Capping off the tournament with a win over Ireland was the perfect way to go. Key standouts included Gallagher and Orr who were key players for their side this year.
Wales
Grade: F
Position:6th
Wins: 0
Draws: 0
Defeats: 5
Results
24-21 loss vs Scotland
67-12 loss vs England
42-12 loss vs France
40-14 loss vs Ireland
44-12 loss vs Italy
Well, that was bad. 5 games resulted in 5 losses. To make things worse, they were only competitive in one game out of the five defeats. The Welsh squad still has plenty of talent and has a good coach but things need to improve quickly or they might wish the WRU had actually followed through on their insane threat to pull the team from the World Cup.
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