If anyone needed a stark reminder that Grand Slams are not easily won then Sunday afternoon at Twickenham was that moment.
England coughed and spluttered like an old banger.
Gone was the verve, dynamism and pace that has been the hallmark of the team since that famous autumn win over the All Blacks.
Credit must be given to Italy, they battled and scrapped and in all reality could have sneaked a draw at the end of proceedings, it was that close and England have played a big get of jail free card.
It all started so well for England, early pressure and territory were all in their favour and it looked like it would only be a matter of time before they crossed the try line.
They can’t say they didn’t have the chances, they did but they spurned them.
Lateral running from Alex Goode and sticky hands from Brad Barritt butchered two gilt-edged chances in the first half.
Had they scored at that point then Italian heads could have dropped, but they didn’t it had the opposite effect.
Italy took heart from their doggedness in defence and came out of the traps flying in the second half, while England shrank further and further into their shells.
England’s set piece also started to struggle in the second half, but neither side were helped at scrum time by an engagement call so slow by referee George Clancy that it seemed to take an age and caused no end of problems.
Why he was so slow I don’t know, but it is incredibly annoying that every referee seems to have a different tempo to their calls.
It doesn’t make it easy for the packs, particularly when they have all that weight and power right on the edge.
The performance and result against Italy however could be a blessing in disguise.
The hype that a comfortable try-fest would have produced this week would have heaped pressure on England as out and out favourites to win in Cardiff this weekend.
As it is, Wales go into the clash as favourites in many people’s books, and have a live opportunity to take the championship overall, which is a stunning thing to say after their opening weekend debacle against Ireland.
So how can England beat Wales? Well for me the critical area will be the breakdown, and England must target Sam Warburton and Justin Tipuric at the ruck.
Both players will start for Wales, and it might not be a bad call for them.
England have been most dangerous when they have won quick ruck ball and dominated that area. Wales by playing two players that are top class in that department is a huge statement.
Set-piece will be critical as usual, England have the edge at scrum time, but their stats at lineout are nothing to write home about, so overall it is fairly evenly balanced.
One thing that should not be overlooked in the build up to the game is that Wales have been far from convincing in any of their championship games so far. If England coughed and spluttered against Italy, then Wales have done so in pretty much all of theirs.
I am pleased for Wales coach Rob Howley that they have got themselves into this position.
He has taken some very unfair criticism in my view, and although he is far too much of gentleman to say so he will be delighted to ram that down the throats of the Welsh media.
But taking all these points into account, this is England versus Wales in Cardiff, and this time the championship is on the line and a possible Grand Slam for England.
You can pretty much throw the form book out of the window, and certainly forget England’s failings against Italy.
This will be played on a totally different level, England have never won a Grand Slam in Cardiff, so it would be creating history if they were to do so.
If I am being objective, it is impossibly tight to call.
My heart would dearly love this young and humble England team to take away the biggest prize in Northern Hemisphere rugby, but my head says Wales might just squeak it, but probably not by enough points to take the title.
Either way, fasten your seat belts this will be some game!
Brilliant O’Driscoll worthy of legendary status
Nobody has actually officially come out and said it yet, but the common belief is that Saturday was the last time we will see Brian O’Driscoll wearing an Irish jersey at Lansdowne Road.
He is being coy about his future in green, but it is expected that he will bow out of international rugby at the end of this summer’s Lions tour.
If Saturday was to be his last home game for his country, then it really wasn’t a fitting occasion to celebrate one of the game’s greatest ever players.
He would have loved a win, but despite playing against a poor French team Ireland were unable to put the game to bed in the second half which says a great deal about how far Ireland have fallen in the past year or so.
O’Driscoll would like to have been leaving the team that he has led superbly well on so many occasions in a better state than it currently is, but none of that is really his doing and I would prefer to reflect on some of his memorable moments in green.
Quite simply he is the finest centre of his generation and deserves his place in the pantheon of great players, not only from the Emerald Isle but in world rugby in general.
He has lost a yard or so of his electric pace in the past couple of years as injuries and age have started to creep up on him but even a 90 per cent fit O’Driscoll is still far better than most players can dream of.
I never had the pleasure of playing against him as our careers were on totally different trajectories, but would loved to have played outside him as a winger.
It would have made my job very easy!
I am sure O’Driscoll will still have plenty to thrill us with on the pitch before he finally calls time on his career, but before that time I feel it’s only right to celebrate the international career of a legend of the game.