2010 Six Nations Championship

2010 Six Nations Championship
Date6 February – 20 March 2010
Countries England
 France
 Ireland
 Italy
 Scotland
 Wales
Tournament statistics
Champions France (17th title)
Grand Slam France (9th title)
Matches played15
Attendance1,055,268 (70,351 per match)
Top point scorer(s)Wales Stephen Jones (63)
Top try scorer(s)Ireland Keith Earls (3)
Ireland Tommy Bowe (3)
Wales James Hook (3)
Wales Shane Williams (3)
Player of the tournamentIreland Tommy Bowe
2009 (Previous) (Next) 2011

The 2010 Six Nations Championship, known as the 2010 RBS 6 Nations due to sponsorship by the Royal Bank of Scotland, was the 11th series of the Six Nations Championship and the 116th international championship, an annual rugby union competition between the six major European national teams. The tournament was held between 6 February and 20 March 2010.

The championship was contested by England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland and Wales. France won the tournament, achieving a final 12–10 victory over England to win the Grand Slam, their first since 2004 and ninth overall (including six in the Five Nations).[1][2] This was also their 17th outright victory, including 12 victories in the Five Nations, excluding eight titles shared with other countries. France also retained the Giuseppe Garibaldi Trophy by defeating Italy in the tournament, to whom they had (then) never lost within the Six Nations.

Ireland, 2009 Grand Slam winners, came second with three victories and two defeats. Despite defeating England and Wales, Ireland failed to win the Triple Crown after a 23–20 defeat to Scotland in their final match.[3] England and Wales came third and fourth respectively with two victories each, while Scotland and Italy finished in fifth and sixth positions for the third tournament in a row. Both teams achieved just one victory each, with Scotland also recording a draw in the Calcutta Cup match against England to place ahead of Italy.

  1. ^ Ackford, Paul (20 March 2010). "France 12 England 10: match report". The Telegraph. London. Archived from the original on 23 March 2010. Retrieved 20 March 2010.
  2. ^ Jones, Stephen (20 March 2010). "France 12 England 10". The Times. London. Retrieved 20 March 2010.[dead link]
  3. ^ O'Reilly, Peter (20 March 2010). "Ireland 20 Scotland 23". The Times. London. Retrieved 20 March 2010.[dead link]