Nations Champions, Northern Leg, 2026, Week One
The Nations Championship is kicking off it's northern leg this week. The teams that didn't play each other in the southern leg will play in three rounds, then there's a finals weekend to be played at Twickenham, where the team ranked 1 from the SH plays the team ranked 1 from the NH, 2 from the SH plays 2 from the NH and so on. Ireland v Argentina This was a tough match to watch. If you just look at the score, 42-12, you'd think it was a comfortable win for Ireland. And, in terms of the Championship table, 5 points wrapped up, job done. But this match is, absolutely, part of the build up to the RWC next year. These two teams are likely to face each other in a quarter-final after all. And, in fact this weekend, next year, will be the semi-finals. Both these sides will want to be playing, and on this performance, neither will be there. Of course, the situation will be different. Argentina, as they are at the start of every test window, looked like a team of individuals....