Six Nations acca tips: Wales first win, Ireland to edge past England, Scotland to face tough test at Italy
- Thomas Ridley
- 5 March 2024
The Six Nations enters crunch time this weekend as Ireland could secure the title with a four-try win at Twickenham, while winless Wales take on an out-of-form France and Scotland travel to Italy.
England's 100% record was demolished by Scotland, who were aided by the magnificent Duhan Van Der Merwe, last time out which has given Ireland a clear path to title success.
The equation is simple; a bonus point win and they claim a second consecutive title and are one win away from achieving an unprecedented second consecutive Grand Slam.
Meanwhile, the Irish's closest rivals Scotland travel to a spirited Italian side, who were denied a famous win at France in their last match by the post.
Wales will also be fancying their chances of a first win of this year's tournament as an indifferent French side travel to Cardiff.
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Six Nations acca
Italy vs Scotland (Sat 14:15 GMT)
Italy were extremely close to claiming a shock victory over 14-man France last time out, with Paulo Garbisi's late penalty hitting the post, meaning that the points had to be shared in Lille, a result neither sidde were happy with.
Scotland, meanwhile, won their fourth consecutive Calcutta Cup as Duhan Van Der Merwe scored a hat-trick in a 30-21 victory over England at Murrayfield.
The result springboarded Gregor Townsend's side into second and a bonus point win in Saturday's early kick-off would crank the pressure up a notch on the Irish, who would just be one point clear at the top of the table if that happens.
However, the Italians have shown improvement in this year's competition, coming so close against France and they also led England for a large chunk of their tournament opener.
The Scots should win here, but the Italians will put up a fight and Townsend's side have only beaten them by more than 12 points once in their last five meetings, so a handicap in favour of Italy is the way to go.
England vs Ireland (16:45 GMT)
The Six Nations so far has been an Irish procession, every team that's stood in their path has been brushed aside with ease.
The latest stop on their Grand Slam quest is Twickenham, where they face an England side who have been sat in third gear for most of the tournament and something isn't quite clicking for Steve Borthwick's side.
They made a brilliant start at Murrayfield with George Furbank's try helping them score 10 unanswered points early on.
However, there were more mistakes in England's play than train cancellations at Euston station, with the excellent Van Der Merwe making them pay.
Despite that defeat, the Irish have only won one out of their last four at Twickenham and England put in a decent performance at Dublin last year with a controversial Freddie Steward red card making headlines and hampering their chances of pooping Ireland's party.
Ireland will probably win this one, but England have home advantage and could run the Irish close, therefore the handicap in England's favour has good value, with only three of the last 12 Six Nations encounters between these two being decided by a gap of over 13 points.
Wales vs France (Sun 15:00 GMT)
Winless Wales have struggled in this year's championship, with some pundits even suggesting that they could be candidates for the wooden spoon given Italy's improvement.
However, in another universe France could well be sitting rock bottom, with lady luck looking over them in the games against Scotland and Italy.
The French have been far from convincing and indiscipline has cost them dearly so far, with two red cards in three matches, while the attacking flair that they've brought to the tournament in recent years has been stunted, partly due to the absence of star man Antoine Dupont.
France come into this match as favourites, as they have won on their last two visits to Cardiff, but Wales will certainly fancy their chances and several of their young stars including Tommy Reffell will see this as a chance to put their high impact stamp on the tournament.
We're going to go against the grain here and predict a Wales win, as firstly it offers good value and secondly, the French haven't clicked in this tournament and have been extremely lucky throughout.
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