Guinness Six Nations

Guinness Six Nations

Image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

World Rugby is the governing board for rugby union and has decreed that elite players should wear mouth guard sensors in an effort to monitor possible concussion. The aim is for them to be an integral part of every rugby player's equipment during training and in matches across the world.

Sensor mouth guard

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They may already be in use in ice hockey, field hockey, volleyball and any other sport in which blows to the head through collision might occur. It is sensible to attempt to minimise head injuries. The days of getting up, shaking the head and carrying on in a haze are gone, thankfully. More is known about the effects of concussion, particularly the potential long-term effects, and the players are generally heavier than those of decades past.

The 2024 Guinness Six Nations Championship is entering its second weekend. Already, two players have been sent off for head injury assessments (HIA) because their mouth guard sensors have indicated trauma. Will it slow the game even more? Perhaps it will open the way for substitute players to be given a chance to win a ‘cap’.

Dates to remember in February 2024

 

Dates to remember in February 2024

All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

The first and most important date for me is my husband’s birthday on 3rd February, the day the Germans acknowledged that they had been defeated at Stalingrad.

The Six Nations Championship starts on 2^nd February and continues until 16^th March. The participating nations in this annual series of rugby union matches are England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. The venues will include Twickenham, Murrayfield, Cardiff, Villeneuve, Dublin and Rome. Ireland were the 2023 champions.

Help for Heroes rugby match

The Heroes Rugby Challenge  is taking place at Twickenham on Saturday 3rd December in aid of the charity 'Help for Heroes.' 


Tickets are being offered at two for one, a great deal and for a very good cause. The atmosphere will be electric as a Southern Hemisphere XV takes on a Northern Hemisphere XV. More information can be found here. 

Six Nations

So, the final Saturday has arrived and we wait with bated breath for the outcome of the 2009 Six Nations Rugby. As ever, when I hear the National anthems of countries other than my own I think how musical and attractive they are. The Italian anthem could have – may have – come from an opera though the players' rendition is less than lyrical. Scotland's anthem is haunting, Ireland's is rousing, France's defiant, the anthem of Wales is evocative – and then we hear the English anthem, a dirge if ever there was one and a tune shared with the USA. Nonetheless, when coupled with the Union flag and a loyal crowd singing their hearts out it has the power to move.

Italy and France are the first protagonists on this glorious March afternoon and I would love to see Italy win. From their first stumble into what had hitherto been the Five Nations the Italians have grown in strength and skill and by the time the next Six Nations is staged they will be an even greater threat to all their opponents.

From the colour of this font you can guess which side I think will be the ultimate winners of the 2009 Six Nations.