As ever, rugby’s Six Nations started with a bang, delivering its usual mix of thrills, spills, big hits and recriminations.
This year we will be producing a series of posts focusing on the fans to finally settle the argument as to whose are the most:
- Emotionally unstable
- Likely to disappear in the face of adversity
- Deluded
We’ll also be asking:
- Which brands appeared most organically within fan chat and why?
- Can we pinpoint a sweet spot in terms of exposure and expenditure?
- Which players are most socially valuable?
For those of you unfamiliar with rugby, it is:
“A team game played with an oval ball that may be kicked, carried, and passed from hand to hand. Points are scored by grounding the ball behind the opponents’ goal line (thereby scoring a try) or by kicking it between the two posts and over the crossbar of the opponents’ goal.” (Oxford English Dictionary)
Hollywood legend and fanatical Wales fan Richard Burton described it more romantically to Liz Taylor as:
“…the absolute combination of opera, ballet and murder.”
Every year, England, Ireland, Scotland, France, Italy and Wales compete for the trophy.
While the memories and data are fresh, we thought we’d give a snapshot of response to the first round.
Results:
Wales 34 – 7 Scotland
France 13 – 15 Ireland
Italy 15 – 46 England
Which fans went through the most emotional turmoil? The data below charts emotions expressed in Tweets over the whole course of the game, showing us who went through the greatest pain.
So, Wales fans were the most joyful overall, a result of quite an emphatic and unexpected victory against the sad and angry Scots.
Ireland fans went through the full gamut, losing until a last-minute intervention from hero Johnny Sexton. They were also a little peeved over some questionable use of the laws governing concussion by French authorities. The French too went through the mixer, but were blasé, without real recriminations – they’d had a jolly good evening after all.
England fans really expected to win but were miffed with a couple of defensive lapses that might cost them against better sides. On the other hand, Italy anticipated the worst and were mostly sad when it came.
The biggest memes of the week?
- Whither the Scotland of the Autumn?
- Should Wales or The Scarlets be taking the credit for victory?
- Do all doctors know the difference between a head and a knee?
- From what material are Johnny Sexton’s testicles constructed?
Join us next week for to find out how long the smile lasted on Welsh faces, how entitled the English really feel and whether Scotland see another new dawn.
Oliver has 15+ years experience as a research professional, including roles as Head of Social Insight leading agencies and tool providers. He has worked closely with clients in a range of industries to develop bespoke solutions for their research needs and is constantly looking for new ways of doing things that leverage data and technology most efficiently.
