Here it is again. It has been a long wait, but the Six Nations is almost here again. This coming weekend sees the opening three matches of what promises to be an interesting and exciting season in Rugby Union’s most historic tournament.

If England’s fine win over The All Blacks is anything to go by, they should be feared for this tournament. You can look at it like that, or that now England’s expectations have ballooned too high based on a single result. England open the tournament at 1/18 to beat Scotland. Restrictive, to say the least. What of their 8/1 visitors? Scotland could be facing an uphill struggle if their Autumn campaign results are anything to go by. Starting the tournament with a visit to Twickenham is probably not going to be a massive boost for Scottish confidence.

If Italy are going to make any waves at all, they will have to get off to a great start against the French. On the plus side, they are hosting Les Blues. Underdog backers probably aren’t getting terrific value in 11/2, which would probably be something more along the lines of 10/1 if Italy were travelling. The Italians will no doubt huff and puff, and yet still be found battling Scotland to stay out of the dreaded Six Nations cellar. Meanwhile their visitors, the French, will be looking to build on a superb Autumn campaign, which included a fantastic win over the Wallabies. France will most likely come through their Italian test with a 1-0 record to start their Six Nations, however it is hard to find appeal in their odds of 1/10 on the day.

The match of the weekend, and by that we mean possibly the most competitive match, sees Wales host Ireland, with the hosts slight favourites at 4/6.
The problem for Wales is that since they won the title last season, they have not won another game. In America they call that ‘the sophmore slump’, a phrase that hints at the difficulties of repeating a title in any sport. If Wales find a way to get off to a good start against the Irish, they could kick on. The alternative is an almost unbearable consideration for the team and their loyal, passionate fans

That brings us to Ireland, who travel to Wales as a 6/5 chance. Ireland are in transition, however the good news is, the Kids are alright, the young players they are integrating into the squad are pure quality. A crucial element in their chase to the title is that they host both England and France in Dublin. A positive result in either one of those matches could see Ireland kick on to a famous title. Much of it hinges on getting a result in Wales.

 Here is the BetDash Six Nations opening weekend coupon. Enjoy the games!