The fact that January is almost over means only one thing for rugby fans; the Six Nations is only just around the corner, and the 2024 edition of the tournament could be one of the most enthralling yet as every team embarks on a new era, with five being led by new captains whilst the other (Italy) will be under new management.
The fact that this is the start of the new four-year cycle ahead of the 2027 Rugby World Cup also means that there are plenty of new or emerging players to get to know, and it could well be that some of them use this tournament to establish themselves in the first team reckoning at this level.
With that in mind, this short tactical analysis will pick out six players who have either been called up for the first time or who have not picked up many caps for their country, showing why they have been included and what they can bring to their sides’ tactics as the tournament goes on.
Tom Pearson (England)
For England, it really is a new era as stalwarts of the past like Courtney Lawes, Jonny May, Mako Vunipola and Ben Youngs all hung up their international boots in the last few months whilst captain Owen Farrell is unavailable and will be ineligible from the summer, now that his move to Racing 92 has been confirmed.
As a result, head coach Steve Borthwick has been able to introduce some newer names in his squad as he looks at the next generation of talent, and one of those who will be hoping to make his mark is Tom Pearson. Whilst the Northampton Saints flanker is not a new name in the international setup, having gained his first cap during a World Cup warm-up match against Wales last year, he is still someone that will be relatively unknown to fans who don’t follow the domestic game, and he will hope to use this year’s Six Nations to show them his true qualities.
Put simply, he is a gamechanger whenever he is on the field, and any analysis of a Northampton match is seldom written without his name being mentioned, such is his impact both with and without the ball. In tight games where winning phases is key, he could make a big difference to England’s chances of getting over the gain line, and he is definitely one to keep an eye on as the tournament goes on.
Nolann Le Garrec (France)
With captain and star scrum-half Antoine Dupont ruling himself out of contention for the time being, due to his desire to focus on the sevens game with an aim of playing for his country at their home Olympics this summer, a key focus of France’s tournament build-up will be finding another player who can step into the Toulouse player’s role and who will offer the same quality and control from the centre of the field.
Given that he has been Dupont’s deputy for much of the last year, it does seem likely that Bordeaux’s Maxime Lucu will be given the starting role, but another player who may well take advantage of the captain’s absence to gain some minutes is Nolann Le Garrec. The Racing player is yet to pick up a cap for his country but has been included in several squads by head coach Fabien Galthié in the last couple of years, which suggests that he is seen as having a place at this level of the game.
Whenever watching Le Garrec play, the thing that always stands out is his ability to make intelligent passes and to open up spaces for his team and to kick with a good accuracy too, meaning that he is equally as adept at building phases as he is at being direct. He can also kick at goal from the tee if needed, which could prove to be useful in the long run, and it would be a surprise if he didn’t make his international debut at some stage in the coming weeks.
Calvin Nash (Ireland)
With key attacking threats Mack Hansen and the versatile Jimmy O’Brien missing this year’s Six Nations with injury, Ireland head coach Andy Farrell (who will miss next year’s tournament as he focuses on the British and Irish Lions) has needed to add a few alternative names to his squad in the wing positions, and one of those who has been given the nod is Calvin Nash.
Munster may have been struggling to replicate their strong form from last season as a team, when they finished as United Rugby Championship champions, but that does not mean that individuals in their squad have struggled to stand out. Nash has been one of those that has really caught the eye, with his pace and clinical edge whenever the ball is in his grasp making him a constant threat and a thorn in the side of so many opponents.
Like Pearson, he is not an entirely new name in the international game, with him featuring for his country during a World Cup warm-up match last year against Italy, but the absences of a few who would have been ahead of him in the pecking order means that he could be in for plenty of gametime and can be backed to take full advantage of that.
Alessandro Garbisi (Italy)
As mentioned at the start of the scout report, Italy are perhaps the only team with any continuity when it comes to their squad, with the vast majority of players featuring previously for the team, whilst they are the only side of the six to still have the same captain in Benetton flanker Michele Lamaro.
However, they have still taken advantage of the fact that it is a new cycle to introduce some new talent and to hand chances to a few players who have made a handful of appearances, and one of those who will be hoping to really establish himself under new head coach Gonzalo Quesada is Lamaro’s Benetton teammate Alessandro Garbisi. He has already made five appearances for the team but has largely been forced to play second fiddle at scrum-half to Gloucester’s Stephen Varney, meaning that his opportunities to really demonstrate his quality have not come all that often.
There is no doubt though that the younger brother of star fly-half Paolo is just as talented a player as Varney and that he is just as capable of making things happen around the field, and it will be interesting to see which of them former Stade Français coach Quesada favours and whether the change of leadership could turn things in Garbisi’s favour.
Stafford McDowall (Scotland)
For many years, Scotland’s key problem area on matchdays has been the makeup of their midfield, with so many different partnerships tested out at centre and none of them really providing the attacking and defensive balance that the team have been looking for.
Last year though, that changed as the combination of Glasgow Warriors duo Sione Tuipolotu and Huw Jones proved to be essential to Gregor Townsend’s side’s strong showing, and it is widely expected that they will continue to partner each other when this year’s Six Nations gets underway in a week’s time.
However, that is not a certainty as the form of another Glasgow player in Stafford McDowall could well throw a spanner in the works, and Townsend may opt to rotate the three around a little as the matches go on in much the same way as the Warriors have tended to, handing chances to McDowall and allowing him to become a key first-team player and not someone who is constantly out on the fringes.
During his domestic matches this season, McDowall has shown a strong propensity to carry through lines and to break open gaps in opposing lines, both of which are key qualities that Townsend likes in his centres, and it would be harsh on him if his positive domestic form was not rewarded with more caps to add to the solitary one that he earnt against Italy last year.
Teddy Williams (Wales)
Wales are perhaps the team with the greatest turnover of players out of the six, with head coach Warren Gatland looking to really freshen things up as he continues to both enhance their green shoots of recovery and to build for the future.
His hand when it comes to adding new players has been forced by the retirements of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, Dan Biggar and Leigh Halfpenny in the last year, injuries to Tomas Francis, Dewi Lake, Jac Morgan, Christ Tshiunza and Taulupe Faletau and the fact that Louis Rees-Zammit has switched to the NFL and Liam Williams, Joe Hawkins and Gareth Anscombe are all ineligible, but that does not take away from the fact that the New Zealander has shown bravery in exploring the far reaches of the Welsh talent pool to bring some new faces into the camp.
One of those who will hope to take advantage of this is Teddy Williams, who has been a key player in the second row for Cardiff this season and who has established himself as someone that they have come to depend on both at set pieces and in open play. As previous analysis has highlighted, what he particularly thrives at is reading the game and reacting quickly to different circumstances, and that adaptability and desire to constantly get on the front foot is what will have really caught Gatland’s eye.
Like others in this analysis, it is not his first time in the senior international environment, but the fact that he is still getting use to things means that it is not guaranteed that he will play. However, he can be backed to make an impact if his moment does arrive.