BBC pundit Guscott is on hand to tackle your queries throughout the season

Former Bath, England and Lions centre Jeremy Guscott is back to answer your questions.

Among the topics Jerry discusses this week are:

- How the various teams will do in the forthcoming Six Nations tournament

- Warren Gatland's attempts to play mind games with England hooker Dylan Hartley

- What Mike Tindall brings to the England side

- Whether Chris Robshaw has a future at the top level with England

If you have any questions for Jerry, please use the postform on this page. He will answer as many as possible next week, but unfortunately not every question submitted can be used. This week's answers appear below.

Hi Jeremy, what do you realistically think of England's chances in the upcoming Six Nations?
Jamie Pritchard, United Kingdom

With the recent crop of injuries and suspensions, do you think England will revert to their old-style conservative game rather than continue to develop the more dynamic off-loading game that was starting to emerge last autumn?
Chris, England

Foden could be a real weapon if England generate decent ball

Hi Jamie and Chris, realistically England have a great opportunity to do well in this year's Six Nations despite the injuries and suspensions. I expect England to win their three home games, against Italy, France and Scotland, and be going for a shot at the title or Grand Slam in the last game against Ireland in Dublin. I have this expectation because of the performance against Australia last autumn and not the disaster we witnessed against South Africa.

I hope England don't revert to playing a predictable pattern of play by picking and driving but stick with a more fluent style of quick ball, getting it early into the hands of Ben Foden, Chris Ashton and Mark Cueto. England have improved in the counter-attacking department which has encouraged the rest of the team to be more ambitious. However, Foden needs to be careful and not run back ball which has been well supported by the opposition's kick chase.

Hi Jeremy, I just wanted to know who you think has the most positive outlook on the Six Nations this year. Players such as Ben Youngs have come through very strongly onto the national scene for England. There are a lot of injuries to many teams - do you think this is going to make for a more intriguing contest this time round?
Rob, Canada

Hi Rob, several teams - namely England, Wales and Ireland - have had their fair share of bad luck when it comes to players being unavailable because of injuries for the start of the Six Nations. It won't detract from the tournament having its usual mix of passion, emotion and intensity. I really don't think any of the sides, apart from maybe Scotland, have the edge when it comes to mental confidence.

Without doubt, England put in the performance of the autumn against Australia. Wales didn't win a game and haven't for a while. Ireland performed well below expectations and didn't really put a performance together against anyone in the autumn. Italy didn't do too badly considering their resources and France were unrecognisable in the autumn from the side that won the Grand Slam last season.

Young and inexperienced players normally have the most positive outlook because they have no personal history of games to carry around. They are totally excited about the matches ahead and just want to make a difference, keep their place and win.

Hi Jerry, how big an impact do you think the extensive injury lists will have on Six Nations results? I accept that injuries are part of the game and it's a squad game now, not just 15 players, but for Wales to lose both first choice props (the best in the world in my opinion) and Ireland to also suffer massive injuries, means I think it will completely change the shape of the tournament.
Richard, England

As I understand, Mike Tindall is well respected by all his England team-mates and that is the crucial aspect as they wouldn't believe in a player who couldn't cut it

Hi Richard, injuries affect the sides with the fewest players to pick from and so Italy, Scotland, Ireland and Wales suffer in that department. I seriously don't believe it will have an enormous impact on the results of games. From a spectator point of view, it is disappointing not to have the best players playing. Taking the injuries into account, maybe England start as slight favourites against Wales but only just because the loss of Lewis Moody, Courtney Lawes and Tom Croft balances out the loss of Wales props Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones.

Jeremy, with the current Scotland squad selection and a couple of fresh faces in the backs, do you believe that young players such as Joe Ansbro, Alex Grove and Jack Cuthbert will finally free up the Scotland backline for the first time in 20 years? Do you also think a more attacking fly-half is needed than Dan Parks?
Neil, United Kingdom

Jerry, not a huge amount has been mentioned about Scotland for the 2011 Six Nations. Do you think we have a chance and what would you view as a good championship? Great to see the Lamont brothers back!
Ross Mac, Scotland

Hi Neil and Ross, of all the teams Scotland should be mentally confident of doing well in this championship, given their good run of games since the victory against Ireland last season. Leaving Parks out of the team would be a big call given his contribution in last season's tournament.

The negative side of Parks is that he looks for drop-goals rather than releasing the backline and that is why Scotland haven't scored many tries in recent times. Of the players you mention, I think Ansbro has the best opportunity of breaking into the Scottish team and he would add some pace to their attack. I think a realistic target for Scotland would be to win the games against Wales, Ireland and Italy.

Hi Jeremy, as an Irishman it pains me to think of the unconvincing or downright poor displays of last autumn - and now Declan Kidney's list of injured players grows each day, with Tommy "cut through England like butter" Bowe under observation. How do you see the Irish doing this side of April?

Will the same old war horses be battered around for two months or would you like to think Kidney will experiment in preparation for the World Cup? PS - Don't you think Kidney always looks like someone is whispering jokes in his ear while giving interviews?
Andy, Ireland

Hi Andy, Ireland come into this tournament under the radar with a long injury list, poor performances in the autumn and low expectations from the general rugby public. It might not be seen that way by the Irish supporters but it's a good position to be in because internally the team know they have the talent to beat everyone in the competition. They should begin with a win against Italy in Rome that will set them up nicely for the visit of France. If the Irish front row can hold their own, then I would expect Ireland to be very competitive despite all the injuries.

Every year the experts give Italy no chance - maybe this year, after Italy have their world-class captain back, you might at least give us a chance.
Dr Antonias Fuccilio, UK

Is Gori the man to fill Italy's problem scrum-half position?

Hi Jerry, as an avid Italy fan I must say I'm not too hopeful for this Six Nations. I had thought that joining the Magners League would be good for the national team but it still seems we are lagging behind the rest of the world. Do you think that Italy will win a single game this time around? Where are we going to find a useful scrum-half or fly-half to actually give us a chance of winning?
Alex, USA

Hi Antonias and Alex, for the foreseeable future Italy will be the underdogs until we see signs of improvement, although last season they beat Scotland and were unlucky not to beat England in Rome. They have a pack of forwards that can compete with most teams and now we need to see them improve in the backs as much as we have seen the forwards go from strength to strength.

Their half-backs have been a problem but this year coach Nick Mallet looks as though he is going to give Edoardo Gori a run at nine. He's young and inexperienced but I think that helps because he has no baggage of disappointment. He's playing for Treviso, who are having a reasonable season in the Magners League. He's a leader, having captained Italy Under-20s, and I'm looking forward to watching him. I think they have a chance against Wales, especially if the Welsh arrive having lost to England and Scotland.

Wales coach Warren Gatland's comments about Dylan Hartleyare an obvious attempt to wind him up and get him overly fired up to the point where he gives away large amounts of penalties - but his accusations are not unfounded. Hartley did fall apart against the Tigers, in a game where the Saints needed everybody to step up and play their best. The line-out was shocking and his play in the loose was way below par. Couple this with South Africa's demolition of England up front and he makes a few good points.

Given that there is at least some truth in what Gatland is saying, do comments like this get to players? I could see that articles like this, that are almost entirely made up or based heavily on one person's biased opinion, would not bother a pro. But this seems to have a bit of truth about it and surely that gets through even the thickest of skins?
Carl, England

Hi Carl, Gatland's remarks about Hartley will have substance if Hartley is selected and loses the plot, fails to hit any of his jumpers and gets sin-binned. By making those kinds of comments, Gatland is playing mind games with Martin Johnson and Hartley. It's a dangerous ploy because he will either look like he knows what he's talking about or look a complete wally.

Hi Jeremy, I just want your thoughts on Mike Tindall. All due respect to the guy, he is steady and reliable on defence, but I just don't rate him at all on attack and fail to see why he is consistently in the England frame and even touted as a possible captain. Personally I think he'd do better in rugby league's NRL or Super League competitions. Am I missing something here? Does he bring something else to the set-up we don't pick up from the stands or on the TV? I'm really at a loss here. Thanks, Dom.
Dominic McCarthy, New Zealand

Hi Dominic, Tindall predominately provides experience and leadership to a team that is still evolving. There's an argument to say that you need his stability in a backline that is so inexperienced, apart from Cueto. There's also the argument of who you would replace him with - as I understand it, he is well respected by all his team-mates and that is the crucial aspect, as they wouldn't believe in a player who couldn't cut it. Let's see who turns him inside out during this tournament - I suspect very few, if any.

Hi Jerry, looking at the way Sean O'Brien has been playing in both the Magners League and the Heineken Cup, do you think it will be a difficult job for Jamie Heaslip to get back in the Ireland starting XV? In addition, do you think O'Brien has the potential to become a truly world class number eight, judging by his performances so far this year?
Steve Keegan, Ireland

Hi Steve, without doubt O'Brien has had the season of his life and would probably have made the team in some capacity had Heaslip been fit. This would appear to be his breakthrough season - next season will be the biggest to see if he can improve further and become a real class act consistently.

Hi Jeremy, after his recent performances, including for the Saxons on Saturday, do you still think Chris Robshaw is "dopey"? What else does he need to do to change your opinion? Cheers, Andy.
Andrew Vuckovic, England

If Robshaw keeps getting sharper, he should have a bright future with England

Hi Andy, in an article for another outlet this weekend I actually picked Robshaw in my England back row (it might have been a moment of weakness). If he improves further there is every likelihood he will be playing for England in the future, but at present he needs to be sharper.

Jerry, there is a lot of debate at the moment about time-wasting at the scrums through resets.Many are of the view that professional sides are using this as a way to kill the clock. Surely the easiest and most simple solution would be for the referee to call "time on" when the ball is passed from the back of the scrum, or when the number eight picks up? Would this not cure the farce we have at the moment?
Seb Warwick, Bath, England

Hi Seb, there's no doubt the scrums are a farce at the moment and I understand that all the coaches involved in the Six Nations have had a meeting with representatives of the refs taking charge of the games. We should see improvement, more scrums being completed and less time wasting. I only hope it happens.

Looking at what France has become with its new-money investments into clubs and signing players such as James Hook and Jonny Wilkinson, do you think that rugby is slowly going down the same route as football? If so, do you think this would be good or bad for the sport?
Ben Martin, England

Hi Ben, this is a big topic at the moment and a very interesting one. It's a player's choice where to go and play their rugby and if it happens to be France then a lot run the risk of not being selected for the national team. The very best players don't have to worry too much about selection because if they continue to play well they will be selected for their national teams. I don't think rugby is going down the route of football because most players are remaining in the UK and resisting the big money in France.

You can follow Jerry on Twitter at http://twitter.com/JeremyGuscott

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