The Six Nations Championship is back on our screens and in our hearts.

Although, I must admit that my enthusiasm for the competition appears to be dwindling with each passing year.

It is a lovely tournament that is steeped in history, but it all just feels a bit stale now.

My first experience of the sport was the 2003 Rugby World Cup which, as most of you will recall, was a landmark moment in English - and British - sport as England became the first nation from the northern hemisphere to be crowned world champions.

That was swiftly followed by my first experience of the Six Nations which I absolutely loved, even though the world champs finished a disappointing third in the six-team mini-league.

Despite this, the novelty of an annual international round-robin competition kept me hooked for a few years, especially given that so many international sporting events are held every four years and follow a knockout format.

But over time this excitement has waned, with the same old stories being rewritten year after year. While it is a tournament for six nations (the clue is in the name), you know only one of four are realistically going to be in with a shot of winning it.

One of England, Wales, Ireland and France have been the victors in each of the 19 years since the Five Nations became six with the inclusion of Italy. Scotland have challenged once or twice but have never been in proper contention, while Italy are routinely the whipping boys.

That formula is likely to be applied again in 2019, with Italy having lost to Scotland last week in the match that usually provides their only real hope of picking up a win (although they have managed the odd win over France).

Put simply, the competition needs freshening up, and not just by adding try and losing bonus points like the tournament organisers did a few years ago. A proper freshening up.

There has been talk for some time of the next best European rugby nation, Georgia, possibly being included in the future, which is something I would welcome.

But I wouldn't want them to be merely added to the line-up with the tournament becoming the Seven Nations, as that would just dilute the competition further.

I would rather see a playoff between Georgia (or whichever nation wins the second-tier Rugby Europe Championship) and the bottom side in the Six Nations to decide who competes in the following year's tournament.

It may not add much, but it would at least introduce a note of peril, of possible relegation, and breathe some new life into the competition.

It would certainly make the Scotland-Italy match a lot more interesting, if nothing else...