Rugby up and down the country has been affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
Many games have been postponed and grassroots clubs are coming up a year since playing any action.
But the 21st Six Nations will be played behind closed doors starting this weekend with Italy taking on France at the Stadio Olympico on Saturday afternoon.
Holders England will then take on Scotland at Twickenham later that day before Wales host Ireland at the Principality Stadium on Sunday.
Ahead of the first set of games, the North Somerset Times spoke to Clevedon's first-team and club captains Brian Largenton and Will Trollope about the upcoming tournament and their excitement of being able to watch the annual competition.
Largenton shares his memories with North Somerset Times readers about watching the sport growing up in France.
Q.What do you think about the Six Nations and what are your favourite memories?
A.The Six Nations tournament is always something I get excited about. This is not only because of the quality of rugby displayed but also because of the rivalries between all the nations whether on the pitch, in the stands or in a rugby club, hopefully soon.
My favourite memories are mostly related with watching France-England with all my England supporting friends at Clevedon Rugby Club, always a welcoming place to go and watch it even for me, when allowed to be open obviously. It would be too difficult to only pick one but 2014, 2018 and 2020 when France has won have definitely been sweeter!
Q.Which matches are you most looking forward to watching?
A.Most years I would be most looking forward to “le crunch” as a French living in England it always makes it a little more exciting. However, this year with the recent passing of my Welsh mother-in-law Carol Bird I am looking forward to watching France-Wales and having a drink in her memory at the time.
Q.Who do you think will win this year and why?
A.Well, France obviously! I mean I have said this since 2010 when they last won it!
In all seriousness, though, with what they’ve shown last year I can see them as very strong contenders, the changes in the coaching team have obviously altered the way they play and mixed with the young talents from the U20s winning their World Cup in 2018 and 2019, they are very close to producing something astounding and it could very well be this year!
Q.Which players are you most looking forward to seeing in action?
A.In the French squad, there are a lot of players but Antoine Dupont, unsurprisingly, as the most exciting nine France has seen in at least the last decade.
I follow and support Toulouse in France and his club form has been exceptional and I hope he can keep it up and build on to what he did last year in the French team.
And also Matthieu Jalibert, with Romain Ntamack currently out recovering from an operation. This young 10 was thrown in last year at the end of the Autumn Nations Cup and most definitely did not look out of place. I hope he gets to carry on with this in the Six Nations.
As for other squads I always hope and enjoy seeing young players coming through and given a fair chance such as Jack Willis for England, Cameron Redpath for Scotland.
Q.How important is it for the competition to continue in the current climate?
A.Despite some of the European politics with COVID, trying to keep up with the competition is very important in my opinion especially with the current lockdown rules and the impossibility of playing rugby in the UK.
Watching this tournament is all we may have to look forward to for a while, except maybe watching Bristol Bears.
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