Round two of the 2023 Guinness Six Nations is nearly upon us and with it comes answers to a number of questions brought to the fore in round one. 

Highlighting this weekend’s action is a clash that is likely to decide this season’s Championship winner as Ireland and France collide in Dublin. 

Here are five storylines to follow in this weekend’s all-important round of fixtures. 

Potential Grand Slam Decider In Dublin

The presumed top two sides in the Championship, albeit Scottish fans may disagree will meet in Dublin on Saturday afternoon. 

Both sides come into the clash absent of several key front-line players as they did a week ago. Fortunately, however, neither side recorded any serious injuries in round one, making this clash a true insight into where both sides are heading into a likely World Cup meeting later this year. 

For Ireland, missing three key starters in Tadhg Furlong, Jamison Gibson-Park, and Robbie Henshaw to go along with a host of other injuries will be an acid test of this squad’s depth.

The visitors arrive with a similar injury rate as they are still short star centre Jonathan Danty, utility forward Cameron Woki and hooker Peato Mauvaka. 

Injuries aside the two teams remain hot favourites to occupy the top two spots on the table when it is all said and done. 

Neither side has lost since Ireland’s defeat in the first test in New Zealand in July last year having both completed tough Autumn Nations Series clean sweeps. 

Perhaps the most interesting of subplots to follow will be the battle between the two sides’ respective halfback pairings. 

Irish duo of Conor Murray and Jonathan Sexton are once again reunited with Jamison Gibson-Park absent due to injury. Having been much maligned over the past few seasons, Murray put on a masterful performance in Cardiff. 

Not since the heights of 2017/18 has Murray looked so assured in the green jersey in what was a hugely positive development for Andy Farrell and his coaching team heading into the World Cup. 

Sexton as always remains the commander-in-chief and remarkably looks to still be the best flyhalf in the world at the ripe old age of thirty-seven. 

Facing them are the dynamic Toulouse duo of Antoine Dupont and Romain Ntamack who like their Irish counterparts have developed a telepathic understanding of one another.

Captain Dupont is simply mesmerising to watch and remains the premier scrumhalf in the game in perhaps French rugby’s biggest year to date. 

Ntamack on the other hand has been up and down of late. Putting in a rather inconsistent showing in round one, Ntamack’s place in the starting line-up is very much under threat given ack-up Mathieu Jalibert’s form. 

With the stakes so high, expect to see fireworks on show in Dublin as the two heavyweights slug it out. 

For a full in-depth match preview click here.

English Playing Axis Debate 

Getting the Steve Borthwick era off on a rather flat note, England will look to rebound this week against a resurgent Italy at Twickenham. 

Headlining the questions coming into the clash is whether Borthwick will persist with the playmaking axis of Marcus Smith at flyhalf and Owen Farrell in the centre.

In simple terms, the experiment has yet to yield any positive returns. Given the opportunity, with the ball in hand, neither player has looked assured since lining up together. 

Starting with Smith, the mercurial Harlequins star has yet to translate his club form to the international stage. The exception of course being ten chaotic minutes against the All Blacks in November. 

The key to this would appear to be the absence of a willing and physical ball carrier in the 12-channel. Where Andrea Esterhuizen at Quins will happily hit a hard line to give Smith a safety blanket and set up the go-forward ball. Farrell is more of a distributor and play controller who is unlikely to truly challenge a defensive line. 

For Farrell, the primary issue with being the in 12-channel is that he is now receiving the ball with defenders in his face. This, therefore, negates his impeccable kicking and distributing game which have been the bedrock of his success across his 100-test career.

This imbalance has therefore yielded a clunky-looking attack where neither player looks in total command. 

As the head coach, Borthwick now faces the tough decision of which player should start. At face value, there should be little debate given Farrell is the captain and the more experienced of the two. 

In addition to Farrell’s credentials is the fact that Smith is a better bench player than the captain. 

Given his explosive attacking ability, Smith could wreak havoc against tiring defensive lines when launched from the bench later in a contest. Of course, this would likely see England closing out fixtures without their captain. 

From a psychological standpoint, despite listing a number of statistics that point to England failing under Eddie Jones’s tutelage. Borthwick has yet to fully move on from his predecessor, the first step in this would-be showing decisiveness in selecting his leading playmaker.    

Unlikely Game Of The Week 

The hoopla surrounding the clash between the game’s top two sides in Dublin continues to grab the headlines. An unlikely game of the week in southwest London is certainly in the making. 

Italy arrive in the English capital buoyed by a mightily impressive performance in Rome in round one. Despite coming up agonisingly close against France, Italian fans cannot help but feel a long-overdue sense of positivity about their team. 

Whilst Borthwick mulls over his selections, the opportunity to attack a side in Italy who are likely to make mistakes should present the perfect platform to trial new combinations. 

Both sides will be willing to have a go which in turn should lead to some great moments with plenty of points scored. 

For a full in-depth match preview click here. 

Can Scotland Go Back-To-Back?  

Simply mesmerising at times in round one, Scotland head into round two buoyed in the knowledge that they now well and truly have England’s number. 

Whilst a win over the old enemy is great, Gregor Townsend’s side has been here before. Big victories have come but backing them up has continually evaded this team. 

Next up is a team whom they have struggled with more than any other in the tournament as Wales come to town.

Round one could not have gone any worse for Warren Gatland in his return to the top job having been thumped by Ireland 34 – 10 in Cardiff.

Therein lies both the opportunity and potential slip-up for Scotland as they face a side they should beat comfortably. 

Fail to do so and next week’s headlines will be littered with cries of the same old Scotland.   

For a full in-depth match preview click here. 

Do Personnel Changes Bring Better Welsh Fortunes? 

Welsh coach Warren Gatland has made several changes to the side that misfired against Ireland in round one. 

Headlining the changes is the absence of veteran Alun Wyn-Jones who is working his way back from the concussion protocol.

In his place comes 20-year-old Dafydd Jenkins who showed glimpses of his immense challenge in the Ireland game. 

Joining Jenkins are the backrow duo of Tommy Reffell and Christ Tshiunza who replace Justin Tipuric and Taulupe Faletau. 

Whilst making wholesale changes is all well and good the question will be can this inexperienced group offer a much need step up in performance? 

At the very least Welsh fans should expect a lift in intensity given the struggles of the tired-looking side that took the Principality Stadium last week. 

Working in Gatland’s favour is that he has lost just once to the Scots in thirteen outings between 2008 – 2019.   

Thus, the stage is set for what should be a true gauge of just how long of a rebuild this Welsh side face. A win in Edinburgh would certainly go a long way towards accelerating a changing of the guard and could see Wales enter the World Cup as the great unknown.

Written by Philip Bendon