Donal Lenihan: Twickenham will be tough but are Scotland the biggest threat to an Ireland grand slam?

Ireland’s multi-phase attack is proving a nightmare to defend against, as evidenced by the eleven tries they have scored to date. Wales are closest to that with six while England, Scotland and France have all scored just four each.

TOO STRONG: Ireland's Dan Sheehan is tackled by Italy's Stephen Varney just short of the try line last Sunday in the Aviva Stadium. Pic: Ben Brady, Inpho

There was a time, in the not too distant past, when those entrusted with running the game in England indicated that their national side was so superior to everyone else in the Six Nations that they should enter a separate tournament with the big three southern hemisphere giants New Zealand, South Africa and Australia.

Even the French were experiencing a barren period back then while, in the early days of professionalism and all that meant, we in Ireland were struggling to cope. In a campaign short on quality in the six games contested to date, Ireland sit pretty at the top of the leaderboard, playing a brand and quality of rugby that sets them apart.