The Six Nations takes on a new format, probably for this year only. To help everyone fulfil all their needs in a truncated season, the brains in Dublin have come up with a strikingly innovative idea: two pools of three each, each nation to play one home and one away pool match; then a series of play-offs, the sides finishing first, second and third in each pool to play each other to decide the final order.
The Two Pools:
A England, Italy, Scotland
B France, Ireland, Wales
The Schedule:
Round 1
3-4 April
England v Scotland
France v Wales
Round 2
10-11 April
Italy v England
Wales v Ireland
Round 3
17-18 April
Scotland v Italy
Ireland v France
Finals
24-25 April
Winner A v Winner B
Second place A v Second place B
Third place A v Third place B
Much thinking and negotiating had to go into this plan. The 2021 calendar is threatening to become impossibly overcrowded, so the reduction to two pool games each was inevitable. A maximum of two trips away reduces problems of obeying local rules on isolation, but it’s possible that further discussions will be needed with national governments. Much can happen over two months.
The one adverse consequence is that the four nations that have little or no rugby since early last year, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales, will have fewer chances to get real game-time on their clocks. But the first three of them are more concerned about qualifying for the World Cup; news of those arrangements still in the air.
Rest weeks are unnecessary as each team sits out one of the weekends.
For the two nations indulging in club rugby, England and France, the Allianz Premier 15s and Elite 1 have to make way for more important fare. The Prem 15s have been rescheduled to last well into the summer. Elite 1 is back on track, but only five rounds have as yet been completed.
April was the only gap in the calendar seen as feasible, but it allows each squad a decent amount of time to prepare. Ben Morel, the 6N CEO, described this gap as a window. Given the obstacles placed in his path, it was no more than an inch-wide loophole.
It’s a strange irony that one of the major changes people wanted to see – separating the Women’s 6 Nations from the Men’s – has come about by force majeure, not by a decision of 6N Ltd.
We can only hope and assume that this new format is a one-off, but surely the new placement at the end of the traditional season can and should become a fixture.
