Italians Ange Capuozzo on the attack at the Guinness Six Nations match against Ireland

Guinness Six Nations – Round 4 | Who’s playing, where to watch and latest predictions

Ireland Dominates Championship with Unbeaten Streak, Pressure Mounts on Wales and France

Ireland, the championship favorites, have won all their matches, securing 15 points and overwhelming every opponent. Scotland, England, and France are closely contending, each with a loss, but Scotland and England haven’t yet faced Ireland. Despite losing to Ireland, Italy aims for a mid-table position, increasing pressure on Wales to perform in their remaining games, particularly against France.

Scotland has shown significant improvement, adopting a strategic mix of aggressive and conservative play. Finn Russell’s strategic kicking has been pivotal, setting up Duhan van der Merwe for notable tries. Italy plans to counter Scotland’s strengths with a high pass-to-kick ratio and effective use of space, challenging Scotland’s defensive strategy.

England is focusing on expanding their attack with long passes and strategic kicking, aiming to challenge Ireland’s possession-centric strategy. Ireland prioritizes maintaining possession, with a high pass rate and precision execution, demonstrating their dominance so far. Wales, despite their efforts and passing achievements, struggle with consistency and face a critical match against France.

France’s unpredictable performance continues, showcasing exceptional talent but inconsistent execution. Their recent draw against Italy highlights their struggle to find the dynamism of past campaigns. As the championship progresses, France must find their rhythm to compete effectively in the middle of the table.

Italy face Scotland in the 4th round of the Guinness Six Nations

What Italy v Scotland

Where Stadio Olimpico (Rome)

When 14:15, Saturday 9th March

How to watch ITV1

Prediction: Scotland by 7

Scotland remains in the hunt for the championship after their victory over England two weeks ago. Now they face Italy, a critical hurdle they must clear to keep their aspirations alive.

In their previous encounter during the third round of the Calcutta Cup, Scotland capitalised on England’s errors and possesses the necessary talent to secure a win in Rome. Italy narrowly missed a momentous win in Paris and has demonstrated their capability to challenge every team in the competition.

However, they are still chasing a win, aiming to achieve it in their final home game of the tournament. While Scotland is the anticipated victor, the possibility of an upset should not be discounted. Despite the potential for a surprise, Scotland should walk with a slim victory, by a margin of 7 points.

Last 5 Fixtures

Teams

Italy

1 Danilo Fischetti, 2 Giacomo Nicotera, 3 Simone Ferrari, 4 Niccolo Cannone, 5 Federico Ruzza, 6 Sebastian Negri, 7 Michele Lamaro (Captain), 8 Ross Vintcent 9 Martin Page-Relo, 10 Paolo Garbisi, 11 Monty Ioane, 12 Tommaso Menoncello, 13 Juan Ignacio Brex, 14 Louis Lynagh, 15 Ange Capuozzo

Replacements 16 Gianmarco Lucchesi, 17 Mirco Spagnolo, 18 Giosue Zilocchi, 19 Andrea Zambonin, 20 Lorenzo Cannone, 21 Stephen Varney, 22 Leonardo Marin, 23 Federico Mori

Scotland

1 Pierre Schoeman, 2 George Turner, 3 Zander Fagerson, 4 Grant Gilchrist, 5 Scott Cummings, 6 Andy Christie, 7 Rory Darge (Co-Captain), 8 Jack Dempsey 9 George Horne, 10 Finn Russell (Co-Captain), 11 Duhan van der Merwe, 12 Cameron Redpath, 13 Huw Jones, 14 Kyle Steyn, 15 Blair Kinghorn

Replacements 16 Ewan Ashman, 17 Alec Hepburn, 18 Elliot Millar-Mills, 19 Sam Skinner, 20 Jamie Ritchie, 21 Matt Fagerson, 22 Ali Price, 23 Kyle Rowe

England hosts Ireland at Twickenham for the 4th round of the Guinness Six Nations

What England v Ireland

Where Twickenham Stadium (London)

When 16:45, Saturday 9th March

How to watch BBC1

Prediction: Ireland by 5

England kicked off their match against Scotland with vigor but subsequently faltered, committing simple mistakes that led to Scotland scoring multiple times.

Such errors are particularly concerning when facing a formidable opponent like Ireland. Although Ireland’s victory over Wales appeared dominant as reflected by the 24-point margin, the performance wasn’t as flawless as the score might imply, with the Irish team showing signs of vulnerability.

Despite this, they managed to secure a win. While England has the potential to unsettle Ireland at Twickenham, their recent form doesn’t convincingly indicate they have what it takes to defeat the reigning champions. Predicting a close win for Ireland by 5 points.

Last 5 Fixtures

TEAMS

England

1 Ellis Genge, 2 Jamie George (Captain), 3 Dan Cole, 4 Maro Itoje, 5 George Martin, 6 Ollie Chessum, 7 Sam Underhill, 8 Ben Earl Backs 9 Alex Mitchell, 10 George Ford, 11 Tommy Freeman, 12 Ollie Lawrence, 13 Henry Slade, 14 Immanuel Feyi-Waboso, 15 George Furbank

Replacements 16 Theo Dan, 17 Joe Marler, 18 Will Stuart, 19 Chandler Cunningham-South, 20 Alex Dombrandt, 21 Danny Care, 22 Marcus Smith 23 Elliot Daly

Ireland

1 Andrew Porter, 2 Dan Sheehan, 3 Tadhg Furlong, 4 Joe McCarthy, 5 Tadhg Beirne, 6 Peter O’Mahony (Captain), 7 Josh van der Flier, 8 Caelan Doris 9 Jamison Gibson-Park, 10 Jack Crowley, 11 James Lowe, 12 Bundee Aki, 13 Robbie Henshaw, 14 Calvin Nash, 15 Hugo Keenan

Replacements 16 Ronan Kelleher, 17 Cian Healy, 18 Finlay Bealham, 19 Iain Henderson, 20 Ryan Baird, 21 Jack Conan, 22 Conor Murray 23 Ciaran Frawley

Wales welcomes France in the 4th round of the Guinness Six Nations

What Wales v France

Where Principality Stadium (Cardiff)

When 15:00, Sunday 10th March

How to watch ITV1

Prediction: France by 7

France has not been at their best without their captain Antoine Dupont, narrowly avoiding a humiliating loss in front of their home crowd last weekend.

Settling for a draw against Italy on home soil is scarcely more palatable, and the patience of the French fans is starting to wane. Despite Wales’ string of three losses, their performance has exceeded expectations, and it’s likely they’ll be optimistic about their upcoming match.

Should they manage to take an early lead and disrupt the French rhythm, the visiting team might just crumble under the pressure of an energized home audience.

Last 5 Fixtures

Teams

Wales

1 Gareth Thomas, 2 Ryan Elias, 3 Keiron Assiratti, 4 Will Rowlands, 5 Adam Beard, 6 Dafydd Jenkins (Captain), 7 Tommy Reffell, 8 Aaron Wainwright 9 Tomos Williams, 10 Sam Costelow, 11 Rio Dyer, 12 Owen Watkin, 13 Joe Roberts, 14 Josh Adams, 15 Cameron Winnett

Replacements 16 Elliot Dee, 17 Corey Domachowski, 18 Dillon Lewis, 19 Alex Mann, 20 Mackenzie Martin, 21 Gareth Davies, 22 Ioan Lloyd 23 Mason Grady

France

1 Cyril Baille, 2 Julien Marchand, 3 Uini Atoniov, 4 Thibaud Flament, 5 Emmanuel Meafou, 6 Francois Cros, 7 Charles Ollivon, 8 Gregory Alldritt (Captain), 9 Nolann Le Garrec, 10 Thomas Ramos, 11 Louis Bielle-Biarrey, 12 Nicolas Depoortere, 13 Gael Fickou, 14 Damian Penaud, 15 Leo Barre

Replacements 16 Peato Mauvaka, 17 Sebastien Taofifenua, 18 Georges-Henri Colombe, 19 Romain Taofifenua, 20 Alexandre Roumat, 21 Paul Boudehent, 22 Maxime Lucu, 23 Yoram Moefana

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Guinness Six Nations – Round 4 | Who’s playing, where to watch and latest predictions