Six Nations biggest shocks

As the Six Nations makes its return this weekend with plenty of drama in store, we take a look back at the biggest shocks in Six Nations history to whet your appetite.

There have been many upsets over the years, and we may need to add a few more to the list after this year’s competition.

Follow along below as we run you through our five greatest shocks in Six Nations history.

England v Ireland (13-19), 2004

As far as the bookies were concerned, an England win was inevitable as the reigning world champions and the Grand Slam winners the year prior. Furthermore, the game was held at Twickenham, which England had turned into an impenetrable fortress, having not lost a game there since facing New Zealand in 1999.

Ireland weren’t in the best form themselves, having lost their opening match to France, but they did go on to better Wales a week later. This matchup still seemed unwinnable to most, but Ireland’s Ronan O’Gara notched four successful penalties to put Ireland ahead 12-10 at half-time.

Early in the second half Girvan Dempsey scored a try to give Ireland an extended lead, and despite England’s best attempts to salvage the game, Ireland outplayed their odds and came away victorious at Twickenham for the first time since 1994.

Italy v France (22-21), 2011

At the time, France were a menacing force in world rugby, and had won the Six Nations the year before, by claiming the Grand Slam. The week prior to this matchup France had lost to England but still had title hopes in sight as they had already beaten Scotland and Ireland.

Enter Italy, since joining the Six Nations they had not secured a single victory over Les Bleus and had lost all three of their previous games in the tournament that year.

After half-time, the situation looked dire at the Stadio Flaminio, with France up 18-6 after French winger Vincent Clerc scored a brilliant try, with all hope seemingly lost for the Italians. But the squad didn’t give up, fighting back with a try and a penalty to reduce the deficit to just two points. France then shot one between the sticks, giving the team a five-point lead, before Italy scored their two famous penalty kicks to give them the one-point lead before the final whistle, earning the squad their first ever Giuseppe Garibaldi trophy.

Wales v England (30-3), 2013

To set the scene for this game, Wales and England had dominated the tournament so far and were set up to decide the Six Nations winner in this epic clash. England were undefeated and Wales hadn’t conceded a try since their opening game, making the matchup all the more interesting.

In order to win the tournament, Wales needed to win by over six points to come out on top on points difference. Leigh Halfpenny kicked for Wales and put his team up 9-3 at halftime to Owen Farrell’s one successful attempt.

Unfortunately for the English, the Welsh team came out with menace in the second half to steamroll the English and secure not only the Six Nations title, but their largest margin of victory over England ever. The main man from the Welsh team was Alex Cuthbert who notched two speedy tries, and it goes without saying the crowd in Cardiff were ecstatic.

England v Scotland (6-11), 2021

The Calcutta Cup is always one of the most anticipated games of the Six Nations, but if there was one common trend, it was England winning at Twickenham, with Scotland’s last win at the stadium not having occurred since 1983.

To add to the English advantage, they came in as the defending Six Nations champions. This wasn’t enough to stop Duhan van der Merwe however, who scored a try to put Scotland ahead 8-6 at halftime.

Despite the dreadful conditions, the Scottish pulled off a defensive masterclass in the second half with Finn Russell scoring a single penalty to claim the only points scored in that half. In the end, Scotland came away with not just the Calcutta Cup, but also their first victory over England at Twickenham since the tournament became the Six Nations.

Wales v Italy (21-22), 2022

This is arguably the greatest upset of them all, with Italy coming into this match after defeat in all four games prior – leaving them on a brutal 36-game drought in the Six Nations.

Wales were comfortable favourites with the bookies and absolutely nobody had this on their Six Nations bingo cards in what was the last game of the tournament. The Welsh stadium was all but ready to leave before last minute brilliance from the Italian backs.

Italy’s new hero, Ange Capuozzo, ran from behind his own 40-metre line, gliding past the entire Welsh defence in the 78th minute. He was supported by teammate Edoardo Padovani for a perfectly timed offload to give Italy the try and conversion in the 80th minute, in one of the most spectacular tries and upsets the Six Nations has ever witnessed. Listen to the commentary in Italian for the full experience – it’s well worth it.

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