IT was good to be able to watch Test rugby again during last weekend’s opening round of the Six Nations but all the excitement came from the south, in Sydney, in the World 7s Series.
France was very lucky to beat Italy 23-21 in Paris, thanks to a penalty that should have gone the other way for a high tackle on Italy captain Sergio Parisse, Ireland drew 16-16 with Wales in Dublin after an impressive 13-0 lead within 30 minutes and England again kept Scotland tryless at Murrayfield, with the English power coming the usual way through their forwards.
But you can’t recall one game-changing brilliance in the 240 minutes of rugby and while it was the first Test for all six countries in more than three months, one would expect them to do better.
There were many aspects from the three matches that typify the northern game and tell us why the best of the southern hemisphere teams should not feel unduly worried that their positions at the top end of the rankings are being threatened.
There wasn’t one play-making flyhalf on show nor a midfield back that could break the defence with a blistering, angled run. Nothing close to this.
Ireland led by 13-0 after 30 minutes and it all looked rather easy but Wales came back to lead 16-13 until a late penalty levelled the score.
The team is affected by injuries but for this weekend’s game in Paris should have fullback Rob Kearney and flanker Sean O’Brien available for selection.
The Welsh backs again ran strongly but as is often the case, their straight running wasn’t something that troubled the Irish defence.
France showed that they were prepared to run more under new coach Guy Noves but they are obviously a team being rebuilt and would need more time.
The Italians were nothing exceptional but played well enough to keep the score tight and worry the home supporters but you always thought that the visitors looked good because the new-look French side had their limitations.
Italy was unlucky to lose by two points, from a penalty awarded against Parisse for holding on in a tackle. But prior to that he was brought down by a high tackle, which wasn’t penalised.
England did not find the Scots too much of a problem although the winning scoreline was only 15-9 but if only the Scots were more composed it could have been a different story.
The defeat was Scotland’s eight in a row in the competition.
Also last weekend, rugby fans who decided to watch the inaugural Sydney Sevens live on Saturday and Sunday made a wise decision indeed.
Crowd support was good, with over 73,000 people at the stadium over two days and having the local boys in the final made it all the more special.
The All Blacks Sevens however were not to be denied their second title in a row in the current series, after having won their first a week earlier in Wellington.
Their squads in the first two legs were hampered by injuries which affected their games but the ones that played in Wellington and Sydney looked to be a much stronger selection.
Dual code international Sonny Bill Williams appeared to be wiser to the ways of the Sevens in only his second tournament while the Ioane brothers – Akira and Rieko – were outstanding, the latter and younger Ioane scoring the winning try in Sydney after the hooter.
The brothers also won special awards at the end of the tournament.
Australia’s young side was a handful but each time they scored, New Zealand came back.
The series goes to Las Vegas next on March 4.