There was some excellent rugby played yesterday evening that would restore your faith in the sport. There was offloading, ambition, a high skill level and plenty of pace in the game.
Unfortunately none of that came in the Six Nations. Wales v France was borderline unwatchable for the majority of the game. There were two tries - one that came after George North butchered an easy opportunity before Jules Plisson somehow messed up even more and another from the back of a maul.
It was the archetypal Six Nations encounter, which is to say that the norm has become 80 minutes that are short on skill and shorter on tries. There was plenty of atmosphere and passion - the Cardiff crowd were typically rambunctious - but the product was terrible.
There have been seven games played so far in this year's Six Nations and 22 tries scored, which is an average of over three per game. That is somewhat misleading as five tries came in England's walloping of Italy. When you remove the typical Italian collapse the average is about two tries per game, which will be more familiar for Six Nations watchers.
Let's contrast the dross of last night with what took place a few hours before in South Africa. The Cheetahs hosted the Jaguares, in what was the Argentine team's Super Rugby debut.
They won 31-30 playing a brand of rugby that was glorious to watch and had me off my seat on a number of occasions. Take a look at the try that ultimately sealed their win. Play like this is very rare in the Six Nations, that's for sure.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmRJ86iXX0A
That scintillating score was a culmination, not only of how the team played on the day, but of how Argentina have played over the last few years. They have fostered a culture of attack-first rugby, something that seemed unthinkable in the days where they boasted a heavyweight pack and a few standout backs.
The Jaguares have the majority of the Argentine backline in their side, with the likes of Santiago Cordero, Nicolas Sanchez, Martin Landajo, Joaquin Tuculet and Matias Moroni helping shape the team's ethos with their high skill level.
You will remember most of those players for the devastating manner with which they exposed Ireland's limitations at the World Cup. They appeared to have kicked on from last autumn's tournament but what of the northern hemisphere?
From what we have seen so far it has been a case of all the Six Nations sides playing EXACTLY the same way. All that has done is ensure a dull tournament that lacks excitement.
Hopefully by Joe Schmidt infusing today's Ireland team with fresh blood, we are treated to a game that will actually resemble something we would watch if Ireland weren't involved.
The tournament badly needs it.
