The hopes of an England and Wales Six Nations championships are alive with one week to play after a crazy weekend. Ireland were the table leaders but after losing to Wales 23-16 and England beating Scotland 25-13 England are in control on point differential over Ireland and Wales. It will all come down to next weekend as Ireland face Scotland, England face France, and Wales face Italy. No one expected Scotland to hold their own at Twickenham but that is exactly what they did in a hard fought match that was also unattractive to watch at times. Jonathan Joseph put England up early but a response from Mark Bennett drew the match level. It wasn't until the second half when George Ford scored early and Jack Nowell scored late that England sealed the win.
At Millennium Stadium, Leigh Halfpenny and Jonathan Sexton did most of the scoring early by trading penalties. Dan Biggar did add a drop goal for Wales as they went into the half up 15-9. It wasn't until the 61st minute when Scott Williams scored the match's only try that Wales were able to separate themselves. In Rome, France beat Italy in another unattractive match. Yoann Maestri and Mathieu Bastareaud had tried for France.
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Super Rugby
It's an understatement to say that the Blues are struggling this season. They dropped to 0-5 and are at the bottom of the entire league standings after losing the Hurricanes 30-23. For their part the Hurricanes are level with the Chiefs for the lead in the New Zealand conference with a game in hand. The Chiefs beat the Stormers 28-19. The Highlanders and the Crusaders made it a winning weekend for New Zealand teams as the Highlanders beat the Waratahs 26-19 and the Crusaders stomped the Lions 34-6.
In all-Australian battles the Brumbies blanked the Reds 29-0 and the Rebels beat the Force 21-17. The Brumbies now have a full 10 point lead in the conference although the Waratahs and the Rebels have a game in hand. The Reds are surprisingly at the bottom of the table. In South Africa, the Sharks beat the Cheetahs for their second win of the season. The Stormers still lead the conference.
Top 14
Toulon and Clermont have earned themselves some breathing room at the top of the Top 14 table. Toulon remain first on point differential thanks to their 22-14 win over Lyon. Clermont beat Bordeaux 32-23. The biggest team to drop over the weekend was Stade Francais as they fell to Grenoble 30-21. Stade are now six points back, which is still in a playoff position but it's more than a game's worth of points out of first. Racing Metro are four points behind Stade in fourth place. Racing lost to Brive 36-12. Toulouse, Grenoble, Oyonnax, Bordeaux, and Montpellier are all within distance. Toulouse beat Montpellier 18-13 and Oyonnax lost to La Rochelle 35-20. Lastly, Bayonne beat Castres 21-19.
LV= Cup
Exeter and Saracens will square off for the LV= Cup title after winning their respective semi-finals. Saracens were the first to book their spot after they beat Northampton 24-20. David Strettle and Mike Ellery had tries for Saracens while Sam Olver and Lee Dickson did the same for the Saints. The difference was the combined kicking of Ben Spencer and Nils Mordt. Both teams ran out plenty of subs as starters. Exeter sealed their place with a surprise 30-22 win over Leicester. Elvis Taione, Fetu'u Vainikolo, and Greg Bateman had tries.
British & Irish Cup
Worcester and Doncaster are in the final after weekend wins. Worcester edged Leinster A 15-13 and Doncaster beat Bristol 27-22.
Pro D2
Not much has changed in the Pro D2 with Pau still leading a bunch of teams together in the standings with a chance at the playoffs. Pau beat Beziers 45-5. Tarbes boosted their slim chances with a win over Biarritz 26-21 while Perpignan beat Massy 29-20 to remain in second place. Mont-de-Marsan lost to Dax 18-15 and Agen lost to Narbonne 23-15. Both sit near the top of the table. In other scores, Albi beat Colomiers 29-26, Carcassonne beat Bourgoin 25-23, and Montauban topped Aurillac 23-13.
Eccellenza
Calvisano, Rovigo, and Mogliano are all tied at the top of the table with no other team that close. Rovigo beat Calvisano 44-13 while Mogliano beat Petrarca 21-15. San Dona, which is the next closest team in the standings, beat winless Cavalieri 35-20, Fiamme Oro Roma beat Lazio 32-21, and Viadana beat L'Aquila 38-15.
All-Ireland League
The All-Ireland League had the weekend off.
Vodacom Cup
Only the Northern Group is currently playing in the Vodacom Cup. The Pumas, Lions, and Blue Bulls are all tied with two wins and 10 total points. The Blue Bulls beat the Leopards 46-25, the Lions beat Limpopo 31-21, and the Pumas beat Namibia 61-7. The Griquas and the Griffons was postponed.