David Ferguson: Hat-trick of back-to-back away wins earns victorious team a place in history books

THE sound of history books being excitedly flicked through marked the end of Scotland's 2009-10 season in Argentina, with the most historic record matched by Andy Robinson's squad one that had stood unrivalled for more than 118 years.

It was in 1891-92 that Scotland last recorded three Test victories away from home on the trot, then at Belfast, Richmond and Swansea. That "record" may be a touch invidious as the international schedule has rarely allowed for three Tests back-to-back on forign soil, although Ian McGeechan still rues the one that got away in 2002, when a Six Nations win in Cardiff should have been followed by triumphs against Canada and the USA.

Famously, the Canucks denied that hat-trick in Vancouver, a defeat made all the more galling as Scotland went on to beat the USA, Romania, South Africa and Fiji that year. Scotland had only twice before enjoyed a run of six consecutive wins, home or away, in 1925-26 and 1989-90.
It is 26 years since the nation completed three away wins in a row at all, the 1984 Grand Slam team the last to experience the feeling as they won at Twickenham, Cardiff Arms Park and Lansdowne Road, with Murrayfield triumphs over England and France, and a draw with the All Blacks included in that run.

However, as Robinson, his skipper Alastair Kellock and their troops savour becoming the first in Scottish rugby history to claim a Test series win anywhere, 50 years after the country embarked on its first full Test tour below the equator, they also awake this morning to the news that they have returned to a world ranking of seventh, the highest since the official IRB rankings began in 2003.

Had Australia beaten England, and convincingly, it would have been sixth, but returning inside the world's top eight is a good measure of improvement with which to conclude Robinson's first year as Scotland's head coach.

There is also a different feel about Scotland's rise to seventh this time, because it has been earned. In June 2006 Scotland found themselves rising despite losing. While Frank Hadden's side were losing in South Africa in the summer, Argentina were beating Wales on successive Test weekends. The gulf between Scotland and the Springboks was such (eighth to second) that their Tests had no impact on Scottish ranking points, but the Pumas had been ranked well behind Wales and so the Welsh tumbled below Scotland.


Bizarrely, Scotland won their next game, against Romania in November, 2006, but fell down the rankings, again due to Argentina. Robinson will remember better than anyone why that was as his England side slumped to a 25-18 defeat to the Pumas at Twickenham, a result that hoisted Argentina from ninth place to sixth, and dropped England, Scotland and Wales back a place. It also sounded the end for Robinson's tenure as England coach.

That was when Argentina were moving into third gear in the world game, beating Italy and Ireland and losing by a solitary point to France en route to the World Cup, and an eventual third place in the tournament and third in the world rankings.

Why that is relevant now is that the IRB used the rankings from the following year to determine the seeds for the 2011 Rugby World Cup. It was an attempt to ensure teams were more accurately seeded, but was in fact nonsense. Scotland are among those who could reap the most benefit though.

The Pumas were plucked from the top seeds of 1-4 world rankings, England from the second group. England now sit precariously above the Scots in sixth with the Pumas below in eighth.

Martin Johnson's side have improved down under, but still have much work in the next year to create a team with serious World Cup aspirations while Argentina face a tough 14 months to halt a steady decline since the last tournament before heading for New Zealand in 2011.

Scotland are far from a world-class outfit, but they are improving and there were signs in the past fortnight that the sum of this squad could be greater than the products of the last few seasons. Still a relatively young squad, it is beginning to understand the demands of a new, more experienced coaching team (Robinson and Graham Steadman are further ahead in their careers than were Hadden, Alan Tait and George Graham); one that is developing a steely backbone and knowledge of how to grind out victories.

They require a more potent finish, but again signs of greater creativity and unpredictability are emerging.Buy online Six Nations Hospitality Packages with the best prices available! We are covering in Six Nations 2011 Hospitality and Tickets.

Ben Youngs and Chris Ashton lead new England to victory in Australia

It has taken far too long but the lost souls of English rugby are back on the radar. Genuine anticipation will now greet next month's 32-man Elite Player Squad announcement and knockout-stage supporter packages for the 2011 World Cup in New Zealand might even be worth the investment. If England's management absorb the lessons of a remarkable night in Sydney, a brave new world could yet open up for them.

No one, least of all Martin Johnson, is claiming England are all-conquering legends again after this victory at the scene of their greatest triumph, the 2003 World Cup final. As with the Six Nations, the Cook Cup trophy was gone by the time Johnson's team began to stir. But therein, surely, lies the key. When England abandon their blinkered obsession with pragmatism and play the game without fear, they are capable of troubling anyone.

If this boldness can be extended to selection, so much the better. Ben Youngs is only 20 but he has been the best scrum-half in the country for much of the season. Johnson should have blooded him sooner, not to mention Courtney Lawes, who marked his first Test start with a forceful effort in the second row. The management have wasted a year because of their conservatism and, hopefully, will be big enough to acknowledge it. If Johnson can find room in the elite squad for Alex Goode and Andy Saull, the outstanding young Saracens who helped England Saxons to win the Churchill Cup in New Jersey, it will be proof that a corner has been turned.

Should the coaches start to waver they need only watch again the tape of England's first Test win in the southern hemisphere for seven years. The tourists' positive attitude made the difference, their willingness to play in wider channels complemented by greater intensity around the fringes. Tom Croft, at last, was invited to play as he has done for Leicester and the Lions, and Youngs's slick pass and calm authority, and his jack-rabbit try, made an equal impression. Australia, perhaps lulled into slight complacency by their win in the first Test in Perth, were made to look ordinary, the dangerous Quade Cooper reduced to bit-part status.

The 1-1 series result will, naturally, galvanise the Wallabies. By the time England next bump into them, at Twickenham this autumn, their first-choice front-rowers will be back and Will Genia, sluggish here, will be fizzing again. There is little prospect of Matt Giteau missing another 20‑metre kick from bang in front of the posts. Giteau missed four shots in total, spoiling a performance in which he scored two fine tries and all his side's 20 points.

Ireland, the Wallabies' opponents this weekend, may cop the backlash and the Tri Nations will be fascinating. But as England dispersed yesterday – 28 players flew across the Tasman for the game against the New Zealand Maori in Napier on Wednesday, the rest limped away to their sun-loungers – it was impossible to ignore their renewed optimism.

"There was just a completely different feel," said the wing Chris Ashton, dedicating his sharp first-half try to his father, who passed away last month. "We just said we were going to run it if we could. You do get sick of hearing the same old things when you're losing but we knew it would click at some point."

The World Cup-winning hooker Steve Thompson, who is about to embark on an Easy Rider-style motorbike odyssey across the US, believes that a lasting revival has been started. "It's massive for us," he said. "We've had so many near misses and you can only go on for so long saying: 'We should have won that.' Certain people had totally written us off but we went out and showed we're not totally one-paced. When your back's against the wall you either come out fighting or you bend over. We came out fighting."

Quiet satisfaction was also written across Jonny Wilkinson's face, his 45‑metre penalty after 53 minutes having secured England their slender lead. Suddenly the 2003 final no longer seemed a lifetime ago, even to Ashton – "I think I flicked it over, I was still watching league then" – and his fellow young guns. While Wilkinson will never be Australia's favourite Pom, the boos when he appeared as a replacement betrayed a grudging respect. The fly-half is still hazy about the geography of the ANZ Stadium – "You take away memories of the game, not so much the metal and concrete" – but his place in Anglo-Australian sporting history is guaranteed.

So is Johnson's. There was no Webb Ellis Cup to lift but his satisfaction was clear. "There's a lot of stuff spoken about flair and imagination and all those romantic things you guys like to talk about but it's about pressure," he said.

Yes and no. If England stay positive, mix youth with experience and dare to continue expressing themselves, there could be more thunderous days down under in the not-too-distant future.
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O'Driscoll 'not done yet' as Irish century looms – Ireland V Wales Hospitality

Ireland captain Brian O'Driscoll insisted he was "not done yet" although he admitted the "end line was in sight" as he approached winning his 100th cap for his country.

The talented 31-year-old centre is set to complete his century of Ireland Test appearances against Wales in Saturday's Six Nations international at Croke Park.

That match will also see O'Driscoll, who made his Ireland debut back in 1999, leading out his country for the 63rd occasion.

The pivotal member of Ireland's 'golden generation', it had seemed O'Driscoll's career might not get its due reward in terms of team success.

But last year he led Ireland, unbeaten in 2010, to their first Grand Slam since 1948 while the season also saw him star for Leinster in the Irish province's first European Cup-winning campaign.

O'Driscoll, whose defensive solidity has been as much a feature of his recent play as his attacking prowess, said last year's successes, which saw him inspire Ireland almost as much by sheer will as skill, had helped reinvigorate his career.

"I'm really enjoying my rugby," said O'Driscoll here on Tuesday after Ireland coach Declan Kidney named an unchanged starting side to play Wales following a 20-16 win over England where prop John Hayes became the first player to win 100 Ireland caps.

"Last year was fantastic - it makes things a lot easier when you win something that you've been trying to win for many years.

"I do know there is an end line in sight so now it's about trying to attain as much as possible in that time.

"When you win your first cap it's such a huge honour, especially at such a young age. At the start you want as many as possible.

"For the last few years, every match I've played in a green jersey, I've approached it as though it was my last.

O'Driscoll, who scored a try in last season's Six Nations clean-sweep clinching 17-15 win away to Wales, said: "I won't forget the second half of the game in Cardiff last year, when we won the Grand Slam, in a hurry."

But it was his hat-trick of tries against France in 2000, during a 27-25 victory that saw Ireland win in Paris for the first time in 28 years, that first propelled O'Driscoll to international prominence.

Ireland have not triumphed in the French capital since and O'Driscoll said: "That match against France in Paris 10 years ago also stands out because it's only in subsequent years that I've realised how big a triumph it was.

"Along the way I've been involved in some great occasions and experienced some great changing room atmospheres.

He added: "On the downside, in the early years we had a couple of bad defeats at Twickenham and I don't have great memories from the 2007 World Cup.

"I've had my low days but over the course of my career, the highs have outweighed the lows," said O'Driscoll, three-times a series loser with the British and Irish Lions, notably in New Zealand in 2005 when, as captain, his tour was ended minutes into the first Test by a controversial tackle involving All Black skipper Tana Umaga.

O'Driscoll, who regards Australia great Tim Horan as his most dangerous opponent, first captained Ireland in November 2002 when they defeated the Wallabies 18-9 at Lansdowne Road.

In the process, O'Driscoll led Ireland to their first victory over Australia since 1979.

"It was a shock to get the captaincy - I was 23 years old and didn't see it coming," he recalled. "You don't now overlook an honour like that."

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Andy Powell accepts Wales Six Nations squad expulsion

RUGBY star Andy Powell says he accepts the decision to drop him from the Wales squad following his golf buggy drink-drive charge.

Powell was sent home from the squad after a meeting with the team management yesterday.

The Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) described his actions as “behaviour contrary to the squad’s code of conduct” when it announced he was to be thrown out of the 35-man squad.

In a statement after the decision, Powell’s agent Mike Burton said: “Andy Powell has accepted the disciplinary decision handed down by the WRU today.

“Andy remains a committed professional and will now work towards re-establishing himself in the Welsh squad at a time when the WRU team management think fit.”

He is due to appear before Cardiff Magistrates on March 2 to face a charge of driving a mechanically propelled vehicle whilst unfit through drink.

Powell was arrested with a friend at a service station off Junction 33 of the M4 on Sunday morning, close to the spa hotel in the Vale of Glamorgan where the Wales team were staying.

Robert Norster, chief executive of Powell’s club Cardiff Blues, said: “Following on from the surreal finish to the weekend’s encounter with Scotland, the news of what appears to be a bizarre but serious lack of judgement by one of our players whilst on national duty is of real concern.

“Consequently, we fully accept and respect the WRU’s understandable and prompt action to address the issue. Naturally, as this is an ongoing police matter, we will also not be commenting further at this time.”

In a statement, Wales team manager Alan Phillips said: “Andy knows he has misbehaved and is apologetic, but he also knows that he must take responsibility for his own actions and accept the repercussions.

“This kind of behaviour cannot be tolerated in a professional, elite sporting environment and we have acted quickly and incisively in order to leave no ambiguity over the dim view we take of this situation.”

The WRU’s decision was also backed by road safety campaigners who said it sends out a clear message.

Ellen Booth, campaigns officer for road safety charity Brake, said: “Brake applauds the Wales management team for removing Powell from the team and sending a clear message to supporters of Welsh rugby, many of whom will have seen Powell as a role model.”

Mike Burton had earlier said the player was “very sorry and embarrassed about what happened”.

He confirmed that Powell failed the breath test, adding: “He does not excuse or condone drink-driving in any form and it was a misjudgement. He is sorry and he will face up to it.”

The second man who was arrested has been released by police and will not face any further charges.

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Scotland wing Thom Evans opts to have second operation on injured neck

The Scotland wing Thom Evans will this week have a second operation on his neck before returning home from Cardiff. The 24-year-old Evans, injured in a collision during Scotland's Six Nations defeat against Wales, has opted for the second procedure which the team's doctor, James Robson, said would speed up the recovery process. Evans will not play again this season.

"Thom has been heartened by the many messages of support he has received from around the world," said Robson. "He and his mother have spoken to the surgeons and Thom has opted to undergo a ­further procedure later this week, which will enhance the surgery that has already taken place and provide further stabilisation to his neck.

"This procedure is optional and Thom could have decided to have it done at a later point, or not at all. He's decided to go ahead now and that should help with the whole recovery process. The same surgeons who performed the initial operation will undertake this procedure. Once he has settled from this procedure the expectation is that he will be allowed to return home."

Robson will travel to Cardiff tomorrow to see Evans and the Scotland full-back Chris Paterson, who is due to be released from hospital after suffering bruising to his kidney.

Evans's coach at Glasgow, Sean Lineen, said Robson's quick diagnosis when he treated the wing was crucial. "The surgeons in Cardiff did a great job but I would like to pay special tribute to Lisa Casey [the Scotland physiotherapist] and James Robson who attended to him on the pitch. They say the minutes immediately after such an accident are crucial and the work they did cannot be under-estimated and probably gave the surgeons a good chance to perform a successful operation on Thom, who is in good spirits. It could have been a lot more serious than it actually was."

The Ireland hooker Jerry Flannery will appear before a disciplinary panel in Dublin tomorrow after being cited for allegedly kicking the France wing Alexis Palisson during the Six Nations defeat in Paris. He faces a ban of between four and 12 weeks if found guilty.

The Stade Français prop David Attoub will have his appeal against a 70‑week suspension imposed last month for eye-gouging the Ulster flanker Stephen Ferris heard in London on 2 March.

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England slip to eighth in world rankings

When the International Rugby Board started its world rankings England were the best team in the world. Six years on, they stand in eighth position, their lowest ever, proof of their inexorable decline since their now team manager, Martin Johnson, lifted the Webb Ellis Trophy in 2003.

Successive away defeats to Wales and Ireland have dragged England down from sixth at the start of the Six Nations to eighth in the latest rankings table, which was released today. Johnson has come under fire, with England winning only two of his seven matches in charge, against the Pacific Islanders and Italy, but the decay set in long before his arrival.

It could get worse. England will drop to ninth if they fail to win their last two Six Nations matches, against France and Scotland at Twickenham, but they are also only a couple of big victories away from fourth-placed Argentina. While the top three teams – New Zealand, South Africa and Australia – are comfortably ahead of the chasing pack, little separates the Pumas from the English.

 Wales have slipped from fourth to fifth after losing to France last Friday night while Les Bleus have leapfrogged England. Ireland remain in fifth, but a first grand slam since 1948 would take them above Wales.

 England have won only 50% of their Six Nations matches since winning the World Cup six years ago. Only three of their last 12 away matches in the championship have ended in victory, two of them in Rome, while their record against the major southern hemisphere nations since 2003 is dire.

 England have won none of their seven Tests against the All Blacks in the past six years, two out of eight against South Africa and two in seven against Australia, a total of four wins in 22 Tests with only one coming since the beginning of 2007.

 In contrast, England won 12 consecutive matches against the three southern hemisphere heavyweights between 2000 and 2003, culminating in the victory over Australia in the World Cup final in Sydney, a success that followed a Six Nations grand slam. In a period of nine months that year, they defeated every one of the other nations in the top 10 of the world rankings, but their fall since then leaves them unsure of when their next victory will be.

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Struggling Italy need help to add back-line grace to front-five grunt

Before Italy joined the Six Nations they had a formidable team that would have held their end up in the championship throughout the 1990s. Italian rugby was rudely professional before it dawned on, say, the Celtic nations that the game was about to go open.

David Campese would spend the Australian off-season in Milan and earn himself a decent crust in a competitive Italian championship. Italy in the 90s, just as Romania had been in the 1980s, were ready for inclusion long before the Five Nations was ready for expansion.

Romania never received an invitation, and the sport that prospered under the regime of Nicolae Ceausescu fell apart after the revolution of 1989. Italy were favoured with inclusion, but it was their bad luck that when the moment came their golden generation was over the hill. They beat Scotland on the day that they entered the Six Nations in 2000, but it has largely been a struggle ever since.

Countries outside the top annual tournaments of Europe tend to choose a rugby education of brute strength up front and illiteracy behind. Georgia are superb purveyors of props, Romania of soaring second rows, but there has not been a centre three-quarter between them.

Italy, too, are muscular up front and pretty ordinary behind. They are better than muscular in truth, for Mauro Bergamasco will run and tackle all day and all night, his massive heart pounding away. They will devotedly push and heave at the scrum, and pick and drive at the breakdown. But when the ball goes down the line, their bravery gives way to indecision and imprecision. International rugby is no place to pass in hope.

There are solid players in the back line, from Andrea Masi on the wing to Gonzalo Canale in the centre, and a little bit of a dash in the brother of Mauro, Mirco Bergamasco, on the wing.

But skills and angles and variations in pace need to be tested in fierce internal competitions, and the Italian club championship is less professional than it used to be in the amateur days, if you see what I mean. The Heineken Cup tends to leave the Italian clubs flattened, although Treviso did cause one of the upsets of the season with their defeat of the French champions Perpignan.

It was a performance based on bravery and breakaway, however. Of accepting a gift or two and hanging on. Just like Italy did in another defeat of Scotland, this time at Murrayfield, or their win over Wales in Rome.

Can Italy develop a back-line strategy? Nobody is bending over to help them, with the entry of two regional teams into the Magners League blocked by Celtic demands for a cash down payment. Italy need to be encouraged, not fined.

So, until they are allowed to rehearse routines in testing conditions it seems Italy's role will be to knock everybody about and lose. They have a place in the Six Nations but only as suppliers of a fantastic weekend in Rome and lots of bruises.

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