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Wales defied all the odds to win the Grand Slam in the 2008 Six Nations. The Shaun Edwards - Warren Gatland combination has brought pride back to the Welsh game months after the diabolical World Cup showing. The tournament may not have showcased the world's best rugby but it was full of drama that kept the fans captivated until the end.

Wales' campaign started with a magnificent fight back to beat England at Twickenham for the first time in 20 years. Trailing 16-6 at the interval, they capitalised on slack English defending to record an impressive 26-19 victory. They followed this with a 30-15 victory against Scotland which included two tries for Shane Williams; the first and second in a tournament haul of six tries which saw him become Wales' record scoring try scorer. They again left it late with 13 unanswered points in the last 20 minutes. Wales looked dominant in a crushing 47-8 win against Italy in Cardiff which saw them start well for the first time in the tournament. They secured the Triple Crown with a tense 16-12 win against Ireland in Dublin with Shane Williams' solo try the difference. This left Wales with a Championship decider against France in Cardiff. A superb defensive performance wore the French down and late tries from Shane Williams and the superb Martin Williams clinched the Grand Slam for the Welsh for the second time in four years.

England followed up their runners-up spot at the World Cup with a runners-up finish in the Six Nations. Superb victories against France and Ireland were overshadowed by poor defeats to Scotland and Wales whilst an unconvincing win against Italy did little for Head Coach Brian Ashton's reputation. The tournament will be remembered for the emergence of Danny Cipriani who replaced an off colour Jonny Wilkinson in the win over Ireland.

France started the tournament with plenty of "Gaelic flair". Vincent Clerc ran in five tries in two games in wins against Scotland and Ireland. However, the French came unstuck against a gutsy performance from England's forwards in Paris. A victory over Italy gave the French hope but they froze on the big occasion against Wales. However, with the exciting Rugby provided by their young players, France can be confident of growing success over the next few years.

Ireland looked to get over their World Cup disappointment but looked poor in their narrow victory against Wales. A late rally against France showed encouragement, but the damage had been done in a poor first half display. A five-try display against Scotland briefly brought pride back to Crowe Park and gave them a chance of another Triple Crown but Wales put paid to that. Ireland finished with a poor performance against England that leaves the IRFU with plenty of problems to solve before the autumn.

Scotland avoided the Wooden Spoon despite a defeat against Italy in the last game. Scotland suffered a miserable campaign but the terrific win against England to regain the Calcutta Cup will ease some of the pain. Chris Paterson kept up his 100% kicking record throughout the tournament but a lack of tries from the Scottish team was a concern.

Italy may have finished bottom of the pile, but the last gasp victory over Scotland, coupled with brave performances against England and Ireland showed they are still improving and are no longer a joke in the tournament. They also matched France for large parts of their encounter but class told in the end as France completed a 25-13 victory.

With local bragging rights won by Wales, the teams must now all prepare for the summer and autumn tests against the big boys from the Southern Hemisphere.

Glen Robertson

9:40pm Wednesday 19th March 2008

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