Round Two of the 2022 Six Nations has come to an end as England cantered to victory over Italy in Rome.
There were a few noteworthy things happening around Europe in this latest round of games.
Record Breaking Youngs
Ben Youngs is now level with Jason Leonard on caps for England at 114 as he came on as a substitute for Harry Randall in Rome.
The scrum-half has been a mainstay for England under Eddie Jones and has featured in three World Cups – 2011, 2015 and 2019.
He also played in 17 of the 18 record consecutive wins for England, starting 15 of them.
At just 32, the Leicester Tiger will be looking to set a record of his own.
Owen Farrell is the closest active player to Youngs with 94 appearances, it’s unlikely he’ll overtake Youngs though.
Another man who made a landmark appearance is Wales’ Dan Biggar who earned his 100th international cap against Scotland.
Mack-nificent In Paris
Mack Hansen scored his first try for Ireland in his second game for his adoptive nation against France.
Ireland may not have won the game losing 30-24 in Paris, but they put up one hell of a fight to try for a win.
Hansen’s seventh minute interception try marked his first for the men in green and it was a brilliant one.
Some defensive incompetence from Damien Penaud and Melvyn Jaminet enabled the Australian to bag his first.
1065 Days Too Long
Exeter Chiefs winger Jack Nowell was in the starting XV for England’s game against Italy after 1065 days out.
Injuries have kept the Cornishman out of the national side but he looked to have his return this weekend.
It wasn’t to be, however, as he left the field for a Head Injury Assessment (HIA) in the 15th minute.
It was confirmed he wouldn’t be returning in the 28th minute and Elliott Daly stayed on the field to score a try.
34 And Counting
Italy have now lost 34 straight games in the Six Nations games and it’s their 99th defeat overall in the tournament.
A very grim statistic for the ‘Azzurri’ who have seen calls to be relegated from the championship in place of Georgia.
Would this provide more of a challenge for the other sides or just have the same results.
Georgia aren’t exactly leagues ahead of Italy, picking up just one win in RWC 2019 against Uruguay.
If they were to be introduced into the Six Nations, would it be the same deal with one side much worse than the rest?
(pic under creative commons by Copyright: Fanny Schertzer)
