France will take a step closer to a first RBS 6 Nations Grand Slam since 2004 with victory over Italy at the Stade de France on Sunday and would consolidate their fourth place position in the IRB World Rankings.

Even an emphatic victory over the Azzurri - a side ranked 11th and 12 rating points below them - would not give them enough points to leapfrog Australia in third.

However, a loss to Italy coupled with an Ireland victory at Croke Park could see the defending champions regain fourth position. Ireland will be looking to mark captain Brian O'Driscoll's 100th test for his country with a victory but they cannot relinquish fifth spot, even if Wales were to win by more than 15 points.

Should this happen, and England also beat Scotland by a similar margin, then only six hundredths would seperate the three rivals ensuring competition for fifth, sixth and seventh places remains fierce.

A repeat of Wales' victory on their last visit to Dublin would lift them above Argentina into seventh place, regardless of the winning margin. Warren Gatland's side could climb another place to sixth if they win and England suffer a third successive Calcutta Cup defeat on Scottish soil.

Scotland could climb to 9th, their highest position for two years, if the beat England by more than 15 points at Murrayfield.

Georgia and Russia may have already claimed the two direct passages to Rugby World Cup 2011, but there is still plenty at stake in the latest round of European Nations Cup matches this weekend.

The battle to decide who qualifies as Europe 1 and Europe 2 - whereby slotting into Pool B or C - is unlikely to be determined until 20 March when Georgia and Russia meet on neutral soil in Turkey.

However, the race to win the European Nations Cup is only one intriguing element as the top tier enters its final stages, with Portugal and Romania battling to claim the third spot that will keep their hopes of playing at RWC 2011 alive.