For Wales, their Six Nations match against England has almost always been the big one, the match of the year. True, they always have championship aspirations and are quite accustomed to collect Triple Crowns and even Grand Slams. Nevertheless, whatever else happens, a season in which England are beaten can never be written off as a failure, certainly not a complete one.
England may think differently about the Welsh match, but they often get lured into giving it a special significance too. They can be caught up in the emotion, especially when the match is in Cardiff and played before a sea of red dotted with daffodils and the crowd breaks into whole-hearted singing. Today, of course, there will be no crowd and piped music is a poor substitute for a live choir. England will surely not be unhappy if some of the emotion is taken out of the occasion. On the other hand, if they get ahead, they will be deprived of the boost that a home crowd falling miserably silent can give the visiting team.
