Three things we learned in the Six Nations

Double-defending champions Ireland maintained their Grand Slam bid by defeating a resurgent Wales, England stayed in title contention by edging Scotland, and France returned to form with a rout of Italy.

Below AFP Sport looks at three things we learned from the third round of the Six Nations:

DUPONT BACK TO HIS BEST

'Form is temporary, class is permanent' runs the old saying and France captain Antoine Dupont proved its worth with a majestic display in a 73-24 thrashing of Italy.

Last year, when Dupont was missing as he concentrated on Sevens rugby ahead of winning a gold medal at the Paris Olympics, France were held to a 13-13 draw by Italy.

But the star scrum-half, after a rare off-day in defeat by England, ran in two of France's 11 tries – a record for one team in a Six Nations match – in Rome as he orchestrated an attacking masterclass that set up Les Bleus for next month's likely title showdown with Ireland in Dublin.

"Take your kids to see Dupont," said former Leinster and Scotland coach Matt Williams, now a pundit with Ireland's Virgin Media television. "He's like nothing I've ever seen.

"You've seen great passers, great kickers, great runners, guys (who run) good support lines, but who (among scrum-halves) punches it up through the middle? Who offloads against front-rowers, four times in one try?"

FIN SMITH A SHINING LIGHT FOR LIMITED ENGLAND

England No 10 Fin Smith's second test start as a fly-half ended much the same way as the first, with a one-point win.

But while he set up the clinching try and kicked the last-minute conversion that secured a 26-25 defeat of France, Smith could only watch as Scotland fly-half Finn Russell was off target from the tee following Duhan van der Merwe's 79th-minute try – a miss that enabled England to regain the Calcutta Cup with a 16-15 success at Twickenham.

England were outscored three tries to one by Scotland but Smith, the son of Scottish parents, did what he could with meagre possession and, significantly in a close contest, also landed a long-range penalty.

SHERRATT SHOWS WORTH OF A NEW COACH

Several things can be true at once. Warren Gatland may not have had the quality of players available to him in his second spell as Wales coach that he had in his first, but did the New Zealander make the most of the resources at his disposal?

Gatland's justification for picking players out of position, before he stood down after presiding over a Wales record losing streak of 14 straight test defeats, was that he was building towards the 2027 Rugby World Cup.

But interim Wales coach Matt Sherratt, with the clarity that comes from knowing he's in charge only for the last three rounds of the Six Nations, recalled Gloucester fly-half Gareth Anscombe, overlooked by Gatland, in one of several changes to the starting team against Ireland.

Wales still lost, going down 27-18 in Cardiff, but the difference from their recent defeats was stark, with captain Jac Morgan and Tom Rogers scoring well-worked tries and Anscombe kicking eight points.

"I've been coaching long enough (to know) there's always going to be a bounce like this," said Cardiff boss Sherratt, with the Englishman adding: "The challenge is trying to build on that bounce over the next couple of games."

No team wants to be known for 'heroic defeats' but Wales' first match under Sherratt means they they can travel to Edinburgh for their fourth-round clash against Scotland with hope of a first international win since defeating Georgia in a pool match at the 2023 World Cup.