England V Ireland
48,778 fans stormed Twickenham on the weekend to see England face Ireland in round four of the Guinness Women’s Six Nations. English fans walked away happy, but for the Irish fans, it was a tough watch. It was always going to be a tall ask to play one of the best teams in the world at home.
I thought head coach Scott Bemand made a good point post-match, honing in on this Irish side being young in age, the absence of Sam Monaghan was obvious on the pitch at times.
England have built something strong, that is evident in the way they are playing. I am enjoying the different style of play which has come from the John Mitchell era, we are seeing the backs with more ball in hand and it’s entertaining rugby.
Bit of a side note, but I am really enjoying the social content coming out of these matches with the new pitch-side camera.
Perfect day 🥹🌹
A fresh look at some mind-blowing rugby action from @Twickenhamstad 🏟️ #ENGvIRE | #GuinnessW6N pic.twitter.com/cX0RiAIVdU— Red Roses (@RedRosesRugby) April 21, 2024
Italy V Scotland
Scotland certainly bounced back from last weekend’s loss to secure a win over Italy for the first time in 25 years. To add some context to this, Italy and Scotland were on top of each other in the World Rugby Rankings, occupying 6th and 7th place.
Scotland’s Chloe Rollie will attend an independent disciplinary hearing this week after being awarded a red card during the match.
A year ago today @Scotlandteam won their first Test match in 14 months by beating Italy in the W6Ns...
From that game, they have now won eight of their last 10 Tests including lifting the @WXVRugby 2 trophy + a record seven victories on the spin - it's been some 12 months📈 pic.twitter.com/40PeGU04Fv— Gary Heatly (@G_HMedia) April 22, 2024
France V Wales
Wales came crashing back down to earth in this match against France, now sitting bottom of the Guinness Women’s Six Nations table. Head Coach Ioan Cunningham did attempt to put things into perspective - drawing attention to the fact that Wales still have “L plates on”.
France go into next weekend unbeaten in this tournament and will face England at home to determine the Grand Slam winner of the Guinness Women's Six Nations.
Final thoughts
One sided games which are pre-determined are never a good look for a tournament, if this has highlighted anything it is that more resources and investment are required to get this tournament into a truly competitive place.
To be crystal clear, investment is much more than paying players a wage. It’s about developing talent from the pathways, putting effort into developing domestic competitions and attracting the best high-performance staff that you can. In actual fact, paying players is only the first step in this system.
England have carved out a path for other unions to follow, it’s now up to them to step up to the mark.
What do you want England to do? Go backwards? Stop winning?
England have proven what good investment and infrastructure can do - the path has been created for others to follow.
Wake up call for other unions to start investing seriously if they want to be taken seriously IMO. https://t.co/xNpylHwMyv— Stella Mills (@stellamills__) April 22, 2024
TOP PICKS FOR FANTASY:
Ellie Kildunne | England
If it ain't broke, don’t fix it. Ellie Kildunne walked away with her third POTM award this tournament, which in itself is huge. I said it on Twitter this weekend, but I honestly think she is one of the best players in the world at the moment. I would have her pinned for a World Player of the year award.
Alyssa D'Incà | Italy
Her ability to read the game is brilliant. She is becoming a frequent flier among many fantasy teams - once you give her the smallest bit of space she exploits it.
Annaelle Deshaye | France
Everyone loves it when a prop makes a break and scores a try, and this was just brilliant to see.
I can’t quite believe we are heading into the final week of this tournament already, join me next week as I round up your winners.
Stella Mills.
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