How they match up: Simon Lewis looks at the key battles

England: The English front row put in a massive shift against France in Paris last Sunday, with tighthead Dan Cole often giving Jean-Baptiste Poux a torrid time and securing two crucial penalties. Loosehead Alex Corbisiero and Nicolas Mas should have been a mismatch in terms of experience but finished an honourable draw while hooker Dylan Hartley was his usual gnarly, snarly self. 4/5

Ireland: Messrs Healy, Best and Ross go to the well one last time this season and face another stiff examination, though they have come out on top, overall, in all of the previous four. The yardstick, though, is how both packs fared against the formidable French in Paris. Ireland had to endure 11 French scrums with only three put-ins and just about held their own but when England played there last Sunday there were just 11 between them and the French were given a hard time. The extra day off this time for Ireland could be invaluable. 4/5