The tournament has delivered for the casual armchair fan and the new television contract risks eroding the shared magic
It is hard to overstate the importance of the Six Nations when it comes to selling rugby to the floating voter. This year’s tournament is only two weekends old and yet already it is catapulting the game into the collective consciousness faster than you can say the words Louis Rees-Zammit.
Wales’ 25-24 triumph at Murrayfield and France’s victory in
Dublin not only maintained the early trend of away success – for the second time in three years there have been four away wins in the opening two rounds – but the games were scattered with enough drama to satisfy even the most casual armchair fan. If England’s dismissal of
Italy was routine, Jonny May’s spectacular airborne score was another snapshot of how the Six Nations can elevate the game’s media profile to new heights.