Warburton expects tense tussle

Wales captain Sam Warburton is expecting a close encounter when his side begin their Six Nations title defence against Ireland at the Millennium Stadium on Saturday.

The hosts won the Grand Slam in 2012, winning 23-21 in Dublin to get their season underway, but a dismal Autumn set of results and a catalogue of injuries have dampened the mood in the Wales camp, with the Welsh 9/2 with bet365 to win the 2013 Six Nations outright. However, Warburton is happy to be in the position of defending champions and is preparing for another fiery showdown with Ireland in Cardiff. He said: "When I think of the Ireland matches, the last three games we've had against them have been really entertaining games, quite controversial. "The last three games that I've been involved in have been very exciting encounters, I'm sure this won't be any different." In 2011 Wales won 19-13 over the Irish in Cardiff thanks to a controversial Mike Phillips try and in 2010 Ireland ran out 27-12 winners at Croke Park.

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