Warren Gatland won’t be coaching Wales this weekend – some England players will be happy (Image: Getty)
Who would’ve thought , on the back of a dismal Autumn International campaign, would’ve gone into the final weekend with a shot at winning the Championship? With one match left to play, that’s exactly where side find themselves.
Sunday’s victory over Italy was England’s third Six Nations win in a row, with the Red Rose leaping up to second, just one point behind France. For them to have a chance of taking home the title, they’ll need a Scottish side that very nearly beat England two weeks ago to get a result in Paris when the two square off next weekend.
England still have a job to do in their final match, with Borthwick and co. gearing up for their first away match since the opening weekend of Six Nations action. They travel to Cardiff to face a Wales side, who, despite back-to-back defeats against Ireland and Scotland, have looked a little more put together following Warren Gatland’s departure.
Gatland left his post as Wales coach after two matches of this year’s Championship, with interim Matt Sherratt stepping in as his replacement. For some of the older heads in England’s squad, his departure would’ve no doubt been a welcome one, given the run-ins they’ve had with Gatland in the past.
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Joe Marler spoke out on the squad’s chat about Warren Gatland (Image: Getty)
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So much so, it was claimed by recently-retired England prop Joe Marler that a meeting was held with the players to discuss Gatland’s mind games. Writing last year, he said in his Daily Mail column: “I’m buzzing for this weekend’s game against Wales. It’s my favourite match of the lot. Sometimes, I need to go for a little lie down because I get so excited. The rivalry, the history, the venom. It’s top notch….
“A lot of players in our team are experiencing this fixture for the first time. We had a meeting about it on Monday night to try to best prepare them for it. Jamie George approached some of us older guys and asked if we would share a few of our experiences. We talked about the incidents with Kyle, Samson, Alun Wyn and told the guys to prepare for whatever bombs Warren Gatland throws out in the week.”
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It’s five years since England lifted the Six Nations trophy and a win against Wales on Saturday could give them a fighting chance. By contrast, Wales are on course for their second consecutive wooden spoon, having only finished bottom once this millennium before last season.