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Ireland have most to prove in the Six Nations, says Lawrence Dallaglio

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Former England captain and World Cup winner Lawrence Dallaglio talks about teams in transition and the necessary ingredients to win the Six Nations

Post-World Cup Six Nations tournaments are interesting. They create a different set of dynamics. All the talk is of building towards the next World Cup which is over the top, you have to set out to win the next game, but without a doubt World Cups do act as watersheds which inevitably results in a long list of changes in terms of both players and coaches. There is a combination of high profile retirements and then the complete change in the coaching teams of Wales, France and Italy.

The changes in the coaching set up are really important. As are the changes that have not been made - in many ways England and Ireland's management teams have been given another opportunity which creates a lot of pressure.

Of the six sides Scotland look to have the most settled squad on and off the field, and that counts for plenty. You have to be something special as a coach to take the Six Nations title at the first time of asking. There is definitely a bedding-down period and that will apply equally to Wales, France and Italy.

This makes it an especially difficult start for my old club coach, Warren Gatland. Momentum is vital and he travels to what has been a horrible venue for a few too many years from a Welsh perspective - Twickenham. If Wales has the same nightmare they have had there in recent years a sense of anti-climax can set in. Lose badly and coach and players are on the back foot. That's why it counts so much in favour to have a first game at home. I can tell you, England will grateful.

There have been and will be a lot of column inches regarding Warren and Shaun Edwards, there will be masses of expectation across the Severn but at international level it all takes longer. I have no doubt that Warren and Shaun will work their magic but it might not be immediately.
The England coaching team is going to be as important as any single player this campaign. Brian Ashton has a reputation as a radical free thinker and in the World Cup we played in a most un-Brian like way.

In John Wells England has a fine forwards coach, someone who likes nothing better than to drill his forwards but in his ideal world his team would never move the ball far from the forwards. Brian's ideas are different - he wants far more width. If England can bring their idea together they will do well but that is not necessarily easy.

It looks like they are going for an established side. There are still a lot of hard gnarled players and with Wales first up that could be a good way to start for them. As for Ireland, they and Eddie O' Sullivan have the biggest point to prove of any team. Their World Cup was a shambles, especially when you consider the players they had at their disposal.

They could still be dangerous considering the talent they have but their test is to perform up front which they failed to do in the World Cup. The key Irish name might be the one missing, Paul O' Connell. In his absence someone in the front five is going to have to step up to the plate if they are to recreate the hard edge their forwards possessed two years ago.