Rugby betting: Six Nations - France vs England

France's Six Nations clash with England in the Stade de France will divide the rugby fraternity. Is it better to win ugly, or lose trying to plan for the future? England coach Brain Ashton has gone for the 'winning at all costs' mentality and the 61-year-old has plumped for experience and brute force ahead of this World Cup semi-final replay in Paris. Click here for a free $600 welcome bonus when you join Paddy Power Poker Ashton has named a tight-five that could monster any pack in the world. In Andrew Sheridan he has the most destructive scrummager on the planet, and in the engine room, second-rowers Simon Shaw and Steve Borthwick harbour some serious power. Anyone who watched Scotland's miserable Six Nations effort against the French in Edinburgh on the first weekend of the championship, will have been amazed how easily the home side shunted the French off the ball. Magnify that, and it is easy to see the French eight will have a difficult time at the coal face in the Stade de France, especially with Sheridan bristling on his return to the side. Couple that forward inferiority with a half-back partnership who haven't even played in the Heineken Cup, and on paper, France look right up against it. Francois Trinh-Duc put in a solid display against Scotland purely because he got an easy time of it, having played in between the experienced pair of Jean-Baptise Elissalde and Damien Traille. Forming an axis with 19-year-old Morgan Parra and 22-year-old No 8 Louis Picamoles is a different matter entirely, especially in one of the most intense fixtures that rugby can produce. Marc Liveremont's flash French side put a sorry Scotland side to the sword, but a week later they stuttered horribly over the line in Paris against an Ireland squad that is still suffering from a traumatic World Cup. Although it is too much to fancy that France simply buckled - they clearly took their foot off the gas after going into half-time 19-6 to the good - the 26-21 final scoreline shows the inexperience with which Les Bleus approached the game. Which must bring us to the inexplicable failings of England in both Six Nations second-halves this year. Ashton's side were magnificent against Wales in the first 40 minutes of their Six Nations opener, but crumbled in the second half against a side that is ruthless at exploiting weakness. Their Six Nations match against Italy showed a similar failing, and it seems that the first half of the third Six Nations match this weekend is going to be crucial. If England are buried at half-time, it could get seriously ugly, especially as Ashton admitted this week that he rarely says more than a few words in his half-time talk. But if they go into the interval with a sniff of victory, expect them to dog it out and stay in touch, although France will prove too strong at home, inexperienced or not. Verdict: 2pts France by 1-10 points @ 2/1 (Paddy Power) Click here for a free $600 welcome bonus when you join Paddy Power Poker