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Welsh press focus on Sexton, but one former player's furious with Neil Francis

The Welsh can feel the Irish wolfhound's breathe on their necks and conversely, we can see the st...



Welsh press focus on Sexton, b...
Rugby

Welsh press focus on Sexton, but one former player's furious with Neil Francis

The Welsh can feel the Irish wolfhound's breathe on their necks and conversely, we can see the steam filtering out the nostrils of their dragon.

Only a day to go and two sets of supporters quiver in anticipation for a potentially championship-defining Six Nations clash in Cardiff.

But how are the Welsh press foreseeing events? I've been doing a bit of snooping around the dragon's lair and the first port of call is Wales Online.

You don't have to hunt around long before seeing an article titled 'Why Wales v Ireland's Six Nations clash could hinge on Jonathan Sexton's hamstring holding up' which does exactly what it says on the tin.

The writer, Simon Thomas, certainly noticed that "Ireland lost their grip on proceedings and were left clinging on at times in the final quarter" when Sexton was forced off in the second half against England.

What follows is a forensic look at the extent of hamstring injuries.

But something else that is glittering in the corner which reads 'Tony Copsey hits out at Neil Francis 20 years after famously flooring him'.

Neil Francis, of course, is a former Ireland international. Copsey punched him during a Six Nations game in 1992. The reason why the latter is throwing out tweeted blows towards Francis is because he was unhappy with a recent article the Dubliner wrote, which was very critical of Wales' head coach Warren Gatland. Or to put it more precisely, Francis claimed Gatland had the "intellectual properties of a tub of Flora", which makes Welsh anger understandable.

Wales Online reported on Copsey's riposte on Twitter: 

Meanwhile, the South Wales Evening Post describes Jamie Heaslip's recovery from a back injury as "impressive", but also look at four key head-to-heads from tomorrow's match.

They highlight Robbie Henshaw's skills "honed on the Gaelic football field", but also pick out the missed tackles he made against England.

But of Sean O'Brien, they admit that "at full fitness, the Tullow Tank has a carrying game few can match".

So let's hope they can't match Ireland in any facet tomorrow.

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