Kumari's Kicking Tee: A Rucking Good Blog

2011 in Rugby Union

2011-12-29T03:54:00.000-08:00

Well... it's been quite a year hasn't it? We've had it all: broken legs, feuds with coaches, dwarf-throwing, births, deaths, marriages and twitter-related outbursts to boot. Not to mention a World Cup and some top quality rugby.

Highlight of the Year:

Winner: The World Cup in New Zealand was highly anticipated by players, officials, coaches and fans alike. And it did not disappoint. In a world of professional rugby there were a number of stand-out performances from the so-called 'lower-tier' teams; I'm thinking Canada, Russia, Georgia, Tonga and Samoa here. The tournament itself was impeccably staged, with stories rife of the kindness and hospitality of the locals. True enough, the writing was on the wall, or on the trophy. It was always going to be the All Blacks in 2011 - not to say France didn't arguably deserve to win that final. Many, myself included, were heart-broken Wales did not manage to reach the final to challenge the hosts. Still many more believed Australia would be in the mix for the coveted trophy. With so many valid contenders, 2011 was one of, if not the greatest World Cups of all time.

Low-Point of the Year:

Winner: England's well-documented fall from grace is, well, well-documented. Mike Tindall embarrassing the Royal Family and throwing dwarves; accusations of sexual-misconduct with hotel staff; Manu Tuilagi jumping off a ferry; players playing only for money... the list of reported misdemeanours goes on. For a team who were victorious in this year's Six Nations, for a team with a World Cup, for a team who pride themselves on having the largest player base of the Home Nations, their decline and general descent into disarray is embarrassing and unacceptable. Now that the entire coaching staff has been overhauled, England fans are all united in hoping that 2012 will bring less embarrassment and more... well, anything.

Villain of the Year:

Runners-up: Marc Lievremont makes me laugh. In the beginning of his reign, it looked fairly promising. He tried out vast numbers of team selections, and seemed to be heading in the right direction. Until it all came to a crashing halt shortly before the World Cup. His own players hated him. And considering the way he talked about them to the media... it's not too difficult to imagine why. I mean, I don't think the players were being too sensitive when they were slightly offended by being called 'a bunch of spoilef brats. Undisciplined, disobedient, sometimes selfish. Always complaining, always whingeing.' After France's dire showing in the World Cup, it is somehow unbelievable that they made it to the final. But they were quite magnificent in the final; later revealed to be virtually nothing to do with their illustrious coach.

Scott Johnson looks like a toe. Okay, not enough to make it onto this list, but it goes some way to promoting him to my Top 3 here. What an arrogant, odious, unkempt and irritating creature. Going back a few years, he was the beneficiary of the coup that saw successful Wales coach Mike Ruddock. But this year he's outdone himself. He's taken the Ospreys; one of the most blessed club sides in the world. And he's ensured systematic under-achievement. In recent weeks he's been lambasting Nigel Owens on Twitter; calling his respectability into question, accusing him of improper conduct with opposition players. He is often to be seen giving cocky pre-match interviews ahead of mediocre Ospreys performances. He is almost always oddly absent to face the media afterwards. In his latest outburst he of the Ospreys - the team whose official policy actually includes a ban on fake tan and coloured boots - has labelled the Cardiff Blues 'Galacticos', and his side 'little minnows'. So called 'mind' games from one of the game's dullest wits. Good luck with him, Scotland..

Winner: Speaking of misusing social networks, Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu is ridiculous. Don't get me wrong; I totally agreed with him about Samoa's unfair schedule at the RWC. He was even shortlisted for Player of the Year in 2011. However, in my humble opinion - he's an ass. Comparing having to play two rugby games in a week to genocide, the Holocaust, Apartheid... unbelievable. Poor ol' Owens was a victim of this joker as well. For Fuimaono-Sapolu to label Owens, one of the world's most respected and successful referees biased and a racist is unacceptable behaviour. If anything, singling Owens out for being Welsh is in itself racist. If you ask me getting a six-month ban suspended for 2 years was not enough of a punishment.

Game of the Year:
(Honourable mention also to Edinburgh 48-47 Racing Metro and Australia 6-15 Ireland)

Runners-up: Leicester 41-41 Gloucester - how often do you get 82 points and 10 tries in a game and still have no winner? Indeed it looked as though the Tigers had this one in the bag until the dying seconds of the game, as my Villian of the Year Eliota Fuimaono-Sapolu scored a try to earn an historic draw for the Midlands rivals. The game broke the record for the most points conceded by the Tigers at Welford Road, as well as the record for the draw with the most points in the English Premiership. A hat-trick in 14 minutes for giant Samoan Alesana Tuilagi must be pretty close to a record as well; in all both teams scored 5 tries apiece in this impossibly fast-paced match that showed off some of the best attacking play (and some of the worst defending) the Premiership has to offer.

The 2011 Heineken Cup Final has to go down as one of the most remarkable sporting events of all time. Northampton Saints and Leinster were two of the most in-form teams of the year - something that doesn't always happen in the final. The occasion was certainly grand - England against Ireland at the Millennium Stadium in Cardiff. In a nutshell: the first half was Northampton's and the second half was Leinster's. Northampton, certainly the underdogs, came out all guns blazing in the first 40, and scored tries through Ben Foden, Dylan Hartley and Phil Dowson and went in with a comfortable 22-6 half-time lead. It has since emerged that it was youngster Jonathan Sexton who inspired the Irish side at the break, and it certainly worked as the Celtic side totally reversed the flow of the first half, scoring three tries of their own, two courtesy of man-of-the-match Sexton which took his personal tally to 28 in the game, with Scottish lock Nathan Hines adding a third try to put Leinster home-and-dry as European champs.

South Africa 17-16 Wales - This was the game where Wales announced themselves upon the World Cup. Arguably the team of the tournament up until their semi-final loss to France, coming up against then-reigning champions the Springboks in their first pool game seemed a daunting task way back in September. As it turned out, the men in red probably should have won. The advantage was often difficult to gauge: the Boks started the strongest, launching an efficient attack from the kick-off that led to a try for the excellent Francois Steyn. The match will likely be remembered for the James Hook penalty ajudged to be wide by Wayne Barnes et al. But it should be remembered for a contest of brains and brawn, as two of the most dynamic sides in world rugby did battle. It should also be remembered as the game in RWC 2011 when the southern hemisphere sat up and realised the northerners did actually pose quite a threat.

Winner: There were a number of remarkable things about the game that ended Crusaders 44-28 Sharks. Firstly, the Crusaders' home game was staged at Twickenham, thousands of kilometres away from the AMI Stadium, making it the first Super Rugby game staged outside of the SANZAR grounds. Secondly, the match raised £175,000 for the Christchurch Earthquake fund. Thirdly, there were nine tries in a pulsating game that dispelled any ridiculous claims that the Southern Hemisphere club game isn't of as high a quality as the Northern Hemisphere. Yes, okay, there were some missed tackles, which in the Aviva or PRO12 would probably have been turned into rucks or mauls and slowed down. It's ridiculous to claim the Super 15 teams are all about running rugby and shy away from contact. The Sharks, of South Africa, had a pack at Twickers that averaged just short of 18 stone per forward. Owen Franks put in one of the most impressive defensive performances of a prop, seemingly hitting every Sharks player in the vicinity. Sonny Bill Williams, never to be outdone, reminded everyone of his boxing and rugby league past with a ferocious shoulder charge on Sharks' No 8 Ryan Kankowski. The likes of Dan Carter, Sonny Bill, Israel Dagg, Brad Thorn, John Smit, Stefan Terblanche, JP Pietersen and Bismarck Du Plessis need no introduction, and they may have clashed violently on the field, competing to within an inch of their lives for the win. But it cannot be ignored that this game highlighted the great things about our sport. The teams came together in unity to the other side of the world; not only did they raise awareness of their brilliant league, but they raised money and provided hope for the thousands affected by the terrible earthquakes in New Zealand. This game represented everything that is great about rugby.

Player of the Year:

Runners-up: Honourable mention has to go to Owen Farrell, who has come of age this year. Saracens are undoubtedly one of the best teams in Europe, and he has certainly been at the forefront. His apparent lack of nerves saw him lead the London side to the Aviva Premiership No 1 spot, and also saw him get the better of opposing number Toby Flood in one of the best finals the Premiership has seen. Some impressive efforts in the Heineken Cup this year have seen him hailed as the future of English rugby, and rightly so.

Jamie Roberts is Wales's go-to man. He's strong, fast, intelligent and generally the breath of fresh air rugby needed. He's constantly talked about amongst the best players in the world. His deployment as second-receiver in both the Welsh national and Cardiff Blues sides has proved to be a genius move, and there are now virtually no defences who can competently cope with Roberts. Indeed his defence is second to none, his thunderous hits often stopping potentially threatening attacks in their tracks. The trainee-doctor is exactly the medicine Welsh rugby needed.

Sergio Parisse is my personal rugby idol. He has every skill - he's a strong runner, one of the best line-out forwards in the business, his handling skills are lightyears ahead of most of his teammates and has even been known to drop a goal or two in his time. He's possibly the most complete rugby player there has been. In an often infuriatingly average Italian side Parisse has been their shining light for many years. He was among the few players Stade Francais bothered to hang onto as they culled players in their fragile financial state. I mean, he's married to the former Miss Universe, for God's sake. If that doesn't merit some recognition...

Winner: David Pocock isn't Richie McCaw. Shocker. Pocock is possibly one of the only players on the world stage who can match the All Blacks captain like for like. World class cheater, I mean. Pocock's work at the breakdown is quite simply exquisite. At only 23 years of age Pocock has already been hailed as the greatest forward in the world. There is little more to say on the matter. Pocock is the most exciting, dynamic player the world has seen for a long time, and his impact in the World Cup was phenomenal. The real shame of the World Cup was that we didn't get to see Pocock battling it out in the final against McCaw. Although I suspect had that happened McCaw wouldn't have been so readily offered that knighthood.

Team of the Year:

Runners-up: Canterbury's Crusaders must make the list, for the absolute courage, tenacity and determination shown in recovering from a catastrophic earthquake destroying their stadium and killing more than 180 fans. Many of the players suffered loss themselves, but this didn't stop the squad from personally helping with the clean-up and rescue effort in the destroyed in the cities. These players are revered as heroes for their on-field exploits - their actions in the face of adversity proved they are actually heroes in the true sense.

Leinster are simply a class outfit. To return from a 22-6 deficit to lift the Heineken Cup against the hugely impressive Northampton Saints on the biggest stage in European rugby was one thing. To continue playing their unique brand of total rugby despite losing 14 players to the World Cup and more to injury is another.

Unlucky not to be chosen for my coveted position, Wales made quite the splash in 2011. After a tawdry few years on the international scene, a largely young squad turned out some excellent showings in the World Cup, and succeeded in winning the world over - the outrage following Warburton's infamous red-card demonstrated that. Gelling together with impeccable conduct and a positive attitude as they did, with so many youngsters and new-caps among them inspired rugby players across the globe.

England Women probably won't make it onto too many articles of this kin. And that's one of the reasons they make it onto mine. Womens rugby is woefully underrated. Particularly in Britain, where it is frequently of a high quality. This year England's women did what its men could not; they beat New Zealand. Won a series against them, no less. They turn out a team of amateurs, women who have careers and families to look after as well as representing their country. They are a credit to England, women and rugby players everywhere.

Winner: New Zealand. Well, who else? It had to be really. Love them or hate them, they have showed the rest how to win for many years, 2011 being no exception. Be it by the most occasional cheating, or by playing the most impressive and incisive support-play rugby, they have rightly become known as the best team in the world. The team to beat, made up of some of the world's greatest players. How can a team containing the likes of Sonny Bill Williams, Ma'a Nonu, Dan Carter, Ali Williams, Jerome Kaino, Kevin Mealamu, Israel Dagg and Richie McCaw to name just a few not be team of the year?

Scarlets v Ospreys 26.12.11

2011-12-27T13:16:00.000-08:00

Scarlets v Ospreys 26.12.11

The Scarlets treated a rare sell-out crowd to a win over their biggest rivals the Ospreys at Parc-Y-Scarlets; there was nothing to celebrate for Adam Jones on his 150^th appearance for the Ospreys however, as the prop left the field with an injury during his team’s loss. The West Wales derby is always a fiery one and this Boxing Day clash was no exception. Two squads packed with big names and rising stars lined up on a muddy pitch to do battle.

There were fascinating line-ups throughout the sides, with Rhys Priestland v Dan Biggar, Shane Williams v George North, Matthew Rees v Richard Hibbard just a few among high-profile clashes. Arguably the two in-form Welsh regions going into the festive period, both sides had suffered disappointing defeats in the Heineken double-headers. It was the Scarlets who seemingly had the upper hand following the European bouts, having suffered two agonisingly close losses to perennial European challengers Munster; while the Ospreys came off second-best by larger margins to English Premiership champions Saracens. And indeed it was the Scarlets who had the upper hand on Boxing Day, out-manoeuvring the Neath-Swansea outfit throughout the side.

Scott Johnson’s controversial comments about Welsh referee Nigel Owens’s use of social networking sites only furthered the furore around the fixture, which was off to a tense start. Given most of the to-do was over an apology issued for the Ospreys scoring from a forward-pass in the same fixture last year, we can probably expect more, as replays showed the Ospreys only try through Barry Davies was the result of a forward pass.

The head-to-head between Biggar and Priestland began virtually from the kick-off, as the first twenty minutes of the game developed into a kicking contest as the conditions and the occasion got the better of the fast-flowing game the sides are used to. I think it’s plain to see why Priestland has been knighted as the fly-half incumbent for Wales, particularly given Biggar’s haphazard display. Very little Biggar tried seemed to come off, and his petulant theatrics would have been more at home in a pantomime. If Biggar is to challenge Priestland for the Welsh 10 shirt, he needs to improve his decision making and calm down. Attempting a cross-field kick and ignoring an overlap is not something likely to be forgiven in Wales – particularly not in a team which features the deadly finishers of the likes of Williams, Bowe and Davies.

North was barely used in the first half by the Scarlets, and his presence was only slightly more amplified in the second forty. In saying that, the touches he had counted; a scintillating break down the right wing was only halted by some excellent Ospreys defence. Matthew Rees’s performances for his region of late have highlighted the significance of his absence from the World Cup campaign. He is surely one of the most agile hookers in world rugby, and his work in the loose is outstanding. His performance edged that of his opposite number Hibbard, though both line-outs struggled throughout.

In all, the home side were deserving winners on one of the biggest days in the Welsh rugby calendar. Both teams pride themselves on cultivating future stars, and there were several on show. On the losing side impressive performances from Ashley Beck and Justin Tipuric stood out; both looking like excellent prospects for the future. It baffles me why the Ospreys, with a class-act like Rhys Webb on the bench, persisted with Kahn Fotuali’i for so long, when the Samoan was clearly having a bad day of Eeyore proportions. With uncertainty over whether former Scarlet and Osprey Mike Phillips will make selection for the Six Nations, the scrum half berth will inspire some particularly interesting competition. To my mind, viable contenders come in the shapes of Lloyd Williams, Gareth Davies, Tavis Knoyle, Richie Rees and Rhys Webb (if he gets game time).

The Scarlets have shown throughout the season the benefits of a functioning academy system, and this game provided a platform for many of its youngsters to shine. Priestland, after a couple of shaky weeks in Europe, recovered to deliver an excellent display, controlling the game beautifully behind a scrum on the back foot. The turkey clearly agreed with him. Dom Day was having a stormer of a game until his untimely exit from the match through injury; though for me the outstanding forward of the day was Aaron Shingler, who was seemingly all over the pitch; making breaks, tackles and rucking like there was no tomorrow. If that performance doesn’t warrant consideration for an international call-up, I don’t know what does. Liam Williams has vindicated his selection for the Wales squad in December with a number of impressive performances at full-back and wing for the Scarlets, and could be challenging Leigh Halfpenny for the Welsh 15 jersey. Ben Morgan was a powerhouse behind the Scarlets scrum – the will-he, won’t-he question of Welsh qualification must be getting louder in Gatland’s ears..

On a day traditionally known for left-overs, it was largely a day for fresh offerings, as youngsters on both sides stood out.

RFU Report Fiasco: And it just rumbles on...

2011-11-26T18:26:00.000-08:00

Where to even begin with this mess?

I'm not going to start by lamenting the English playing performance in New Zealand here. To me, that seems almost irrelevant now anyway, it's all part of some distant past. That is the truly stupid thing about this (well, one of the many) - that it has stopped being about rugby, for the most part.

The English players' extra-curricular activities during the World Cup were well documented at the time. Rather too well documented for their liking, but as Brian Moore said at a recent lecture he gave in London, of course it was. The modern rugby player knows, or should know, that the press, social media and public are watching their every move, waiting for a scandal or photo opportunity. Moore went so far as to say the main factor that has changed between the life he knew as a pro international rugby player and the current one is the mobile phone. These players know that they will be pounced upon by the media if they step out of line, and yet certain members of the England 'team' were idiotic enough to engage in dubious activities well and truly in the public eye.

From reports of aggression and total lack of personality from taxi drivers, to dwarf-throwing and (false) accusations of sexual harassment see below, the guys just could not catch a break. There were and are those who will insist the English were targeted by the world's media, including their own, and were unfairly victimised. There are those further who will claim all the other nations were doing the same things they were doing. These are the people who didn't hear about the Welsh squad's strict curfews and rules, team-bonding and self-imposed drinking embargo. These are also the people who didn't notice that when two New Zealand players stepped out of line, they were severely reprimanded and didn't do it again.

Aside from the issue of rugby conduct, there is a basic matter of politics and tradition when it comes to the rather ridiculous case of Mike Tindall. Like it or loathe it, he's a member of the Royal Family now, by extension, by proxy or by whatever. He's linked to them. It seems so unlikely on looking at him that it's hard for me to forget that fact, although he apparently did, when he was cavorting around Queenstown and wherever else with blondes and dwarves et al. I would never call myself a royalist but even I could see the potential problems in having good ol' Mike over for Christmas dinner at Buckingham Palace and having to worry about whether he was going to start tossing the corgis around the room for kicks. He brought the tradition and connotations of the monarchy into a fair bit of disrepute with his behaviour over there, let alone his own image, bank balance and marriage.

But enough on that. We all know what was reported widely in the papers. We all now know that Tindall potentially faces an astronomical fine and ban from English rugby. We know that Martin 'Johno' Johnson has resigned, along with some coaching staff who will find it exceedingly difficult to find work for awhile. This business of leaked RFU reports has heaped a whole load of new controversy on the union. Perhaps more than it can bear.

The reports, in case you've been living under a rock, were compiled by the Rugby Players' Association, the RFU and the Aviva Premiership clubs. They were supposed to remain totally confidential and private. They were certainly not supposed to be published over and over in national newspapers. Through this breach in security there have been several developments.

Brian Smith has resigned as England attack coach.
Mike Tindall, Mark Cueto, Ben Foden, Chris Ashton, Nick Easter and Dylan Hartley have been implicated by The Times as having been heavily involved in drinking games.
Lewis Moody's motivation as both captain and player have been called into question.
Issues of Martin Johnson's loyalty have been pinpointed as a major factor in England's steady recent decline.
Virtually Johnson's entire coaching staff have been labelled incompetent by players.
A serious drinking problem has been pinpointed not only by external media but by players within the camp.
Issues of selection and man management have been highlighted and blamed for poor World Cup showing.
The whole RFU system has effectively lost all credibility.

Within the reports, the only coach to come out of the player reviews positively was Graham Rowntree, the scrummaging coach, who was hailed as 'fantastic'. Some of the many negative comments about the other coaches were:

Dave Alred (kicking): 'We had kicking problems and yet almost every morning who do you see swanning around in a polo shirt about to play golf but Dave.'
John Wells (forwards): 'He was out of his depth. There must be 20 coaches in the Premiership who would do better.'
Brian Smith (attack): 'He simply doesn't understand the game well enough.' 'The players had all the ideas for strategy and all he did was write the players' ideas on the board.'
Mike Ford (defence): 'His analysis was like a white wall of jargon.' 'Defensive and lineout drills were 2-3 years behind.' 'Full of pointless stats.'

So on the whole... not great. These comments and others have led to Smith's resignation from the set up, likely much to the relief of one unnamed player, who said in the report 'I would be delighted if he went.' Even the very act of his resignation was fucked up by the RFU, who posted the news on Twitter before the agreement had even been signed. Bureaucracy at its best, folks.

The concept of professionalism was called into question not only by the conduct issue, but also by that of money. From within the players' camp there were clearly divisions, with comments from certain players clearly aimed at others, such as

'To hear one senior player in the changing room say straight after the quarter-final defeat, “There’s £35,000 just gone down the toilet” made me feel sick. Money shouldn’t even come into a player’s mind.'

In one sense this comment could be construed in a positive light, as it shows not all the players are money-grabbing imbeciles. However, when taken in conjunction with Rob Andrew's comments on the matter:

‘It was very disappointing that a senior player group, led by the captain Lewis Moody, disputed the levels of payment for the squad. It led to meetings with RFU executives in the last few weeks before departure for NZ. This led to a further unsettling of the squad. Some of the senior players were more focused on money than getting the rugby right.'

Of course Moody responded to these comments in the expected fashion. He claimed he had always been fully committed to captaining England and that money hadn't been a major motivating factor. But the problem really can be traced back to man-management, as outlined by

‘We didn’t really have a good captain. I think Johnno liked Moody as he left the team talks to Johnno. He wasn’t very good at team talks, just f****d a lot.’

Perhaps the most talked about issue has been alcohol and its consumption. Through the reports it has become apparent that there were players within the squad who also had problems with it. Players have come out and labelled the drinking 'unacceptable' and 'immature'. On a purely pragmatic level, excessive binge drinking could explain a seemingly lacklustre physical performance in the World Cup matches. On every other level, it was totally stupid and incomprehensible as to why it was allowed to continue at the level that it did.

Selection was called into question prior to the World Cup by the public and the press. It has been argued both by pundits and by those within the internal reports that Martin Johnson's selection policy was rather too 'loyal'. Tom Wood's exclusion from the team was called into question numerous times, along with Chris Robshaw, who according to one player 'proved themselves to be the fittest, the strongest and played out of their skins in training. But they were overlooked for “senior” players.’

Granted, the so-called 'sexual harassment' claims of one Annabel Newton have subsequently been proven to be pretty much fabrications, barely any of the party involved, or indeed the squad as a whole can really rejoice or come out looking much cleaner. A lot of careers stalled or maybe even broke down with the World Cup and its fall-out and it's going to take a hell of a clean-up to try and fix it.

Welsh Squad Announced for Australia Clash

2011-11-26T18:23:00.000-08:00

Forwards: Gethin Jenkins (Cardiff Blues), Ryan Bevington (Ospreys), Scott Andrews (Cardiff Blues), Lloyd Burns (Dragons), Huw Bennett (Ospreys), Matthew Rees (Scarlets), Bradley Davies (Cardiff Blues), Luke Charteris (Dragons), Ian Evans (Ospreys), Sam Warburton (capt, Cardiff Blues), Dan Lydiate (Dragons), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys), Lewis Evans (Dragons), Toby Faletau (Dragons), Ryan Jones (Ospreys)

Backs: Tavis Knoyle (Scarlets), Lloyd Williams (Cardiff Blues), Rhys Priestland (Scarlets), Dan Biggar (Ospreys), Jamie Roberts (Cardiff Blues), Jonathan Davies (Scarlets), Scott Williams (Scarlets), Shane Williams (Ospreys), George North (Scarlets), Alex Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), Leigh Halfpenny (Cardiff Blues), Liam Williams (Scarlets)

So, Gatland and co have largely gone with an experienced squad to challenge the Wallabies. The squad selection has been hindered by players being ruled unavailable by their non-Welsh clubs.

After a strong showing away at Northampton I think one or two of the Scarlets' forwards can be disappointed at not being included this time, though it is good to see Ian Evans finally making his return to the international stage after a series of blighting injuries. Speaking of injuries, Wales have been dealt a series of blows in most key positions; Adam jones is reportedly out with a calf injury, Paul James carrying a thumb injury and Craig Mitchell unavailable Wales are somewhat short at the front row, with relatively inexperienced players Scott Andrews and Ryan Bevington looking likely to play. On the whole the forwards look to have the edge over the southern hemisphere side; they performed well in the Bronze Medal final in New Zealand and with the additions of Evans, Andrews, Lewis Evans and Justin Tipuric the pack should have an added aggression this time around.

The backs, shorn of overseas players James Hook, Mike Phillips, Lee Byrne, Dwayne Peel and missing Aled Brew and veteran Stephen Jones, still look an exciting prospect. Liam Williams, who has made an excellent debut for the Scarlets earns a call-up, and could challenge Halfpenny (if he recovers from injury) for the full-back berth. Alex Cuthbert of the Blues also deserves the chance of a first cap, though could find it difficult to stake a claim, with one wing already taken by the retiring Shane Williams and the other likely to be claimed by George North, assuming his groin injury has healed by December.

Injury concerns are rife throughout the squad, the Wales selectors having named eight players currently carrying injuries in the 28-man squad. Injuries to Jamie Roberts, North, Rhys Priestland, Halfpenny, Dan Lydiate, Jones, Luke Charteris and Huw Bennett could be either a blessing or a curse to Gatland. Injuries caused the arrival of Toby Faletau, Rhys Priestland and more onto the international scene, and could therefore be seen as a stepping stone for Williams, Andrews etc. On the pessimistic other hand, injuries could easily be exploited by the hugely talented Aussie backline. Assuming all the players currently injured can't play in the game Wales will be in a little bit of a crisis, with so many important leaders and positions ruled out.

The squad selection has raised several eyebrows, including both of my own, for the omission of Stephen Jones. I'll admit bias, being a both a Steve-o and Scarlets fan. However I don't think this was the right way to deal with the current overflow of fly-halves. I also am unsure as to the readiness of Dan Biggar to re-attempt taking the reigns at international level. I personally think Stephen Jones deserves to be played, and the squad needs him to be selected. He's a steadying influence, able to control the game and is experienced enough to take on the Australian back-row and backline. This is also an opportunity for Wales to take an elusive victory over a southern-hemisphere side that Stephen Jones deserves to have a chance at participating in. I think retaining Sam Warburton as captain for this match is a fair decision, with Gatland citing his reason as carrying on with the momentum from the World Cup.

The inclusion of the uncapped players shows promising continuity with the practice of introducing new players to the team, in practice for the future. There is a possiblility this squad is a bit too much of a gamble in terms of injuries and omission of experience. However this will be a great send-off for one of Wales' greatest ambassadors both on and off the field, and Shane Williams deserves all the celebration he will surely get on December 3rd, as one of the greatest wingers ever to take the field.

Saints Shocked By Scarlets in Heavenly Result

2011-11-26T18:11:00.000-08:00

Originally posted November 21 at comeonwales.co.uk.

Okay, cheesy title I know, but it has to be celebrated.

I was lucky enough to be at Franklin's Gardens on Friday night to watch the Heineken Cup clash between the Scarlets and Northampton Saints. It was a brilliant occasion for all those wearing red, but judging from the occasionally violent reaction of the Saints fan in front of me, this jubilation was not one shared by all...

Before the game I had my doubts as to how the Scarlets' pack could stand up to the formidable Northampton scrum, but was pretty sure the Welsh backline had a considerable edge over the likes of Ashton, Artemyev et al.

I'll be honest, quality-wise it was a reasonably bad game. The Saints in particular had appalling handling and looked out of sorts; at times the Scarlets themselves seemed determined to give the home side an actual try-scoring chance. But nevertheless it was the Scarlets who struck first, and from a scrum, no less. Liam Williams crossed the line after three minutes, before anyone could make sense of the Scarlets' strong start. With the conversion added by Rhys Priestland the visitors were off.

Two more tries before half time from the Scarlets effectively sealed a famous victory for the Welsh team. Granted, the second try was kinda controversial. But hey, who's complaining? Well to be honest every Northampton fan sat around me, and very loudly at that. There was a pretty blatant knock-on off Sean Lamont from a restart and Aaron Shingler followed the most basic rule of rugby - he played to the whistle. Now, I'm not one to rub salt into the wounds of opposition fans after a loss... *Ahem*, but what were the Saints players thinking? You learn at Mini Rugby to play to the whistle, and all those irritating coaches at grass-roots level were vindicated on Friday when the Saints players halted in their tracks and allowed Shingler to score. They can blame referee Fitzgibbon as much as they like, but they shouldn't have let that go through. Simple.

Ryan Lamb added a few penalties to give the Saints a faint glimmer of salvaging the home-tie and were caught napping when Jonathan Davies set up Shingler's replacement Matt Gilbert who made it over the line to make it 21-9 at the break. Well-deserved, even if the swarms of Saints fans leaving to drown their sorrows after 30 minutes didn't agree.

I expected the home side to come out all guns blazing in the second half, and they really should have capitalised on the sin-binning of Scarlets' flanker Jonathan Edwards. Instead, bucking the trend it was the Scarlets who scored whilst they were reduced to 14 men, with Rhys Priestland hacked the ball ahead, highlighting George Pisi's defensive weaknesses in the process. Bonus point in the bag, and guaranteed happiness for the weekend.

I don't give any value to this talk of Jim Mallinder's links to the England job causing the Saints to play like buffoons. Northampton are usually a slick and powerful outfit, and with a professional of the calibre of Mallinder (unintentional rhyme) it's hard to envisage something like that getting in the way of the Heineken Cup. The defeat is simply down to the fact that the Scarlets took their chances, played by far the better rugby and had a game plan that was better thought out than that of the home side. After the Saints' brilliant previous few seasons the loss can surely only be explained as hangover from the heartbreaking last-gasp defeat at Munster last weekend.

The Saints clawed their way back to salvage the losing bonus point, but two successive defeats seemingly spell the end of hopes of emulating last season's knock-out round success.
On the other hand the Scarlets are flying after two impressive victories in the first two rounds. They top the pool with 9 points, edging out next opponents Munster who are on 8 points. The Irish outfit will surely be the toughest opposition yet, and the next two clashes against them will prove crucial in the battle for quarter-final qualification. The only downside for the Scarlets could be a few injuries sustained at the game, with Shingler exiting the field after only 30 minutes, Matthew Rees having to have treatment on his recent neck injury, Iestyn Thomas being replaced after 65 minutes and George North being helped off the field after taking several knocks. But, with a whole raft of youngsters mixed with seasoned professionals in the Scarlets' ranks, the next few months will be fascinating, as two of the best-supported clubs clash. Which red will come out on top? Only time will tell.

(Well I had to have a cheesy ending to round it off, didn't I?)

The Future

2011-10-26T08:13:00.000-07:00

Well that's over and done with. It's a travesty that Wales have slipped down the IRB 'rankings' so far... don't even get me started on England's position... but time will prove once again that the IRB are having a bit of a laugh.

With the rest of the 2011-12 season ahead of us things are looking pretty bright for the state of Welsh rugby I daresay. As a Scarlets fan I'm obviously immensely pleased with their last couple of performances, particularly beating the Blues soundly by 27 points at the weekend.

the Scarlets have been unlucky with their pool for the Heineken this year, with last year's finalists Northampton, perpetual winners Munster and tough French proposition Castres. I will be at the pool game in Northampton and expect it to be a tough match, having also seen the Blues lose to the Saints last Christmas. However they are looking good in the LV= Cup, currently sitting pretty at the top of Pool 3.

In terms of developing youth, the most impressive region must be the Scarlets, who through Nigel Owens, Gareth Jenkins and others have built up virtually an entire squad of youngsters who have been performing admirably even without the many World Cup stars in the usual first XV. Adam Warren, Aaron Shingler, Liam Williams and Ben Morgan all turning out hugely impressive performances in recent matches, with young players Scott Williams, George North, Rhys Priestland and Jonathon Davies all to return.

The Ospreys have introduced several youth players into their squad in the last few years, which is proving to enhance competition for places; Matthew Morgan seemingly stealing the stand-off position from under Dan Biggar's nose and playing

well in the Ospreys' loss to the Saints at the Brewery Fields on Saturday. Their unbeaten start to the Rabodirect PRO12 (HATE the name, doesn't exactly roll off the tongue...) has put them in good stead for the coming season. My only concern if I was an Ospreys fan (and it's hard to imagine such a thing) would be that they're not getting Mike Phillips, Lee Byrne and James Hook back, with all three headed off to France. However, they are beginning to build up a new squad of younger players with Kristian Phillips and Matthew Morgan standing out so far particularly well. Chauncey O'Toole is a player I've watched many times before playing for RGC 1404, and whom I have no doubt will make a big impact on the league this season and in the future.

The Dragons find themselves in the Amlin Challenge Cup this season, seen by some as a pointless and easy competition in Europe. However I daresay Darren Edwards and his team may have something to say about that, after having been drawn alongside Exeter Chiefs, Perpignan and I Cavalieri Prato in Pool 4. The Dragons have been pretty impressive in the youth department also, recently making history as Hallam Amos took the field against London Wasps at only 17 years and 28 days old. In that same fixture the Newport-Gwent outfit also had Jack Dixon among the replacements, dragging down the squad's average age at only 16 years, 313 days old. Of course the squad will be buoyed by the return of world class forwards Lloyd Burns, Luke Charteris, Dan Lydiate and Toby Faletau, along with Aled Brew from the RWC squad.

It seems strange to describe the World Cup stars Sam Warburton, Leigh Halfpenny and Lloyd Williams as 'youngsters', but they certainly are in comparison to their teammates at the Blues. It's also distinctly odd thinking that veteran Gavin Henson, who seems like he's been around since the beginning of time, will be one of the youngest additions to an aging Cardiff team. The Blues can only look upwards from here, with the return of the World Cup players and the start of a new coaching reign for Justin Burnell and Gareth Baber. The Blues could potentially target a quarter final berth in the Heineken Cup this season, competing with Edinburgh, London Irish and Racing Metro 92 to graduate from Pool 2.

However, despite the notable success of the Scarlets in drafting in young faces, the Ospreys have a younger average age of their official squad as posted on their website. The Ospreys' average squad age is 23.9 years, with the Scarlets close behind at 24.3. The Dragons are on average 25.6 years old according to their website, with the Blues hobbling in at 27 years old on average. The general feeling of youth among the Welsh regions can only be a good thing for the future of the WRU. In addition to these players playing at home there are countless other Welsh players playing overseas - the aforementioned former Ospreys off to France, Martin Roberts at Northampton Saints, Nicky Robinson at London Wasps and Gareth Delve at the Melobourne Rebels.

The future's bright, the future's red.

Okay so that's a pretty sucko ending but I can't think of anything clever.

We're All In This Together

2011-10-26T08:12:00.000-07:00

Originally posted October 20th at comeonwales.co.uk

Right. So this is it, Wales' swansong in RWC 2011 tomorrow morning. I think we've all (me included) lost a bit of perspective this week. Being in the Bronze Medal play-off is a tremendous honour and a massively big deal.

Wales have been stand out, and are being universally lauded for their heroic efforts. James Hook has come out this week and said the team are dedicating this game to Sam Warburton, who cannot play due to IRB sanctions (no further comment from me on this matter is necessary, i'm sure). Gethin Jenkins has been handed the captaincy for this historic match, and it certainly goes without saying that the whole of Wales (and most of Britain and Ireland) will be behind him come kick off on Friday.

Whether Wales secure third place or fourth, it is an absolutely incredible achievement, considering the poor results we've had in recent times. This team (of players, coaching and backroom staff) have put our little principality on the map, and secured our place among the rugby greats of the future. Come on Wales, do it for Sam.

Cymru Am Byth

2011-10-26T08:11:00.000-07:00

Originally posted October 15th at comeonwales.co.uk

Let's get this out of the way. Alain Rolland should never have been refereeing this game. Could it possibly get more biased than an Irish-French referee? Not only that, but one who has consistently made huge errors of magnificent proportions for the last 4 years? It's the most bizarre, ridiculous and unbelievable decision by the IRB to appoint this joker to the game. It was a decision compounded by the fact that the man chosen obviously has no grip on reality, clearly lacks the ability to think under pressure and who ruined the entire tournament by rashly brandishing a red card.

In saying that, I'm not going to give any more acknowledgement to that. Wales were fantastic. They are quite obviously the best team in the world. Forget whoever wins next week, they are not the champions. Wales overcame losing their primary captain Matthew Rees. They overcame losing the brilliant Morgan Stoddart. They overcame a ridiculous decision by yet another referee that robbed them of a result against the reigning World Cup champions. They overcame losing their first-line fly half for the semi-final. They are truly the greatest team in the world, and the respect for them must surely overshadow that for either of the two teams that will contest the final.

Sam Warburton is destined to be the greatest player of his generation. Of all the players to be sent off, he was probably the last one Wales would have wanted. He's been an utter inspiration not only to his team-mates and fellow players, but to rugby fans and young players the world over. It is unforgiveable that his record will be tarnished by Alain Rolland's mistake.

Every one of the players in Wales' squad deserves a winner medal. The main plus point for all of us is that this team is so very young. They haven't reached anywhere near their prime yet, and I cannot wait for Wales to take vengeance at England 2015.

It will be difficult to shake the feeling of utter and total devastation, but Wales fans have to. Coming into this tournament, most people would have been pretty happy with a Third-Place Play-Off. Granted, from the first five minutes of their campaign, we knew they deserved more. But it wasn't to be. There are a million positives to take out of this performance. Not least the players that have forged careers out of just 7 weeks. I'm talking about Toby Faletau, Rhys Priestland, George North, Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton et al. The Welsh coaching staff have implemented a solid base for many many years for the WRU. The future is well and truly bright for Welsh rugby. They may have been robbed of a place in the final of New Zealand 2011, but you can be sure they will get there next time. And many more times. They are the future.

Love Thy Neighbour

2011-10-26T08:10:00.002-07:00

Originally posted October 14th at comeonwales.co.uk

There's been quite a bit made in the press in the last few days about various England fans who are apparently jumping ship (no, I'm not referencing you, Manu Tuilagi...) and coming over to the light.

There have been a few in depth interviews and people have been pondering this question as to why on earth England fans should suddenly start supporting Wales. It's unnatural. It's bizarre. It's inexplicable... until you look at the Welsh team.

Now, I know a lot has been said about the English players' off-field antics during this tournament. I'm also aware that there are those who believe too much has been made of them, and that it's irrelevant to the rugby playing aspect of the team. Blah. I am not one who wholly subscribes to this view. There's no denying it, and pretty much all of my friends who support England have agreed, the players have roundly disgraced themselves. Start with the fact England's rugby has been woefully sub-par for the entirety of the World Cup. Then there was Tindall-gate, then the apparent sexual harassment of a hotel worker by three further players, and then to top it all off Tuilagi decided to jump off a boat... I mean, I would too in his position, but that's irrelevant.

Contrast this with Wales. Yeah yeah, there's a clamp down on drinking. Yes, they've been having choir practice and generally acting like actual grown-ups off the field. But the most important factor in the sudden mass of new found support for them is the sheer class of rugby they've played. This of course owes in no small part to the obvious team spirit, cameraderie and dedication that's clear whenever the squad takes the field.

It's been firmly established by the world's media that Wales are the form team of the whole lot. They've played the most attractive rugby, they've given a brilliant account of themselves both on and off the pitch, and what's more (England management take heed) they're doing it without badmouthing opposing teams, causing national scandal and harassing public service workers. Pretty good work, really.

So, all in all, do I think it's a huge shock that there are England fans who are supporting Wales this weekend? No, I don't, it's not a matter of nationality, pride or history. It simply means these are England fans with common sense. Which is the altogether more shocking thing...

Wales' Young Guns Prove Age Is Just A Number

2011-10-26T08:10:00.001-07:00

Originally posted October 10th at comeonwales.co.uk

Pretty much all the build up to Quarter Final 1 was about that elusive quality, the proverbial 'experience'. Much was made of Ireland's perceived dominance over Wales purely because six of the starting XV for Wales on Saturday hadn't been born when the inaugural World Cup took place, whereas Brian O'Driscoll et al were apparently alive when dinosaurs walked the earth.

However, all this preoccupation with age proved to be about as useful as having Bryce Lawrence officiating. Wales' supposedly 'inexperienced' team dominated their Celtic rivals for the best part of 80 minutes. As has been said many a time in the media in the past 5 weeks, the back-row battle is crucial - and there aren't many back-rows I can think of who could put together as comprehensive a performance as Warburton, Faletau and Lydiate gave in the QF, and have given throughout the tournament thus far.

There can be no doubting that Wales are the in-form team going into the semi finals. Wales have consistently played the best rugby and arguably have played the most exciting games. There are many who still think the All Blacks are destined to win, but even these must admit that Wales have displayed a far better calibre of rugby than them consistently.

The young average age of Wales' squad has clearly worked to their advantage. True, it could have gone either way. But it ended up being a masterstroke by Gatland, implementing the likes of Priestland, Faletau and North. It's a well known cliché that size doesn't matter when playing rugby. It should be a similar logic when applying age to the game. Sam Warburton has all the attributes necessary to be a hugely succesful captain - he's at the top of his game, widely lauded as one of the best 7s in the world; he's got a commendable attitude when it comes to committment to the game rather than alcohol; he's clearly got the loyalty of his players... so why is the fact he's a 'young and inexperienced' 23-year-old the first thing on people's lips when discussing him? Probably not the best topical example to use here, but Fernando Torres was just 19 when he was made Atlético Madrid's captain, and went on to be pretty darn successful at the massive football club too. It's an irritating addage, but age is just a number.

Warren Gatland's seemingly bizarre pre-tournament selection policy/interview responses/general behaviour... has been more than vindicated. In fact, I expect the bronze statue of him to be erected outside the Millennium Stadium any day now. In all seriousness, he's pulled off a masterstroke with this team, with all and sundry calling it 'the best Wales side' for some time, which is a plaudit and a half when you consider who's not in it (I'm talking Martyn Williams, Dwayne Peel, Tom Shanklin, Stephen Jones to some extent).

The performance against Ireland showed how far from boys the Welsh players have come. The Poland training camps have been a hot topic of conversation since their announcement, many calling them 'controversial' and 'over the top'. But let's not get ahead of ourselves - it was no Kamp Staaldraad; as far as I'm aware Mr Gatland didn't wield a gun, it was pretty much voluntary stuff that led to Warburton's side being hailed as the fittest and best-prepared in the tournament. Ireland's veterans O'Driscoll, O'Callaghan and O'Gara etc. were shown up against a superior side on Saturday.

In saying all this about going on about age, I'm doing it myself. It has to be said (even by those of us in the Tavis Knoyle Fan Club) that Mike Phillips was outstanding. It was a near perfect performance from the scrum-half, epitomised by the unbelievable dive for Wales' second try. Shane Williams set the ball rolling with his 58th try for Wales and Jonathon Davies silenced the handful of doubters with a superb performance at centre, rounded off with a well-taken try to close the game out completely.

In essence, I wouldn't say Warren Gatland has picked a young team. I'd say he's picked an outstanding team who have shown this every step of the way in RWC 2011. The quarter final victory against Ireland merely demonstrated that the talented bunch can perform under pressure. Wales go into Saturday's clash with the fluid French brimming with well-earned confidence. Every one of those youngsters have come of age.

Quite the Finish

2011-10-26T08:08:00.002-07:00

Originally posted October 3rd at comeonwales.co.uk

Wales finished Pool D with a hugely impressive display against Fiji.

It's hard to say which was more impressive - scoring a massive 66 points, or keeping a clean sheet in terms of defence, not shipping a single point to the South Sea Islanders.

Before the game, I daresay there weren't many people who doubted the Welsh would triumph in the clash at Hamilton. However I don't know how many people believed our boys would produce a clinical performance that saw total defensive domination and a pre-half time bonus point.

Nine tries from eight different scorers spelled total defeat for the Fijians, who despite looking more organised in their final game than several previously became virtual cannon fodder for the Welsh moves.

The performance was a far more efficient one than that against Namibia - arguably because of the better calibre of opposition. Not conceding a single point is a huge accolade that must go to Shaun Edwards, for transforming Wales from the perpetual flair boys of Home Nations Rugby to the squad with the tightest and toughest defence in the Northern Hemisphere.

George North and Scott Williams stood out as the young Welsh squad showed the rest of the world they are definitely a force to be reckoned with now and in the foreseeable future.

The only potential weakness in Wales' gameplan would still appear to be the lineout, where Wales are certainly missing Matthew Rees' expertise. Hopefully any potential weaknesses here can be rectified before the big quarter final against Ireland. I daren't get too optimistic. Ireland are a quality squad with a lot of experience and will surely behigh in confidence after beating Tri Nations champs Australia. We shall see.

Is This It?

2011-10-26T08:08:00.001-07:00

Originally posted September 30th at comeonwales.co.uk

After Samoa's bruising encounter with South Africa, it's looking like Wales are through to the knock out round, as Fiji need to beat Wales by something ridiculous like a 62 point margin to knock them out. As unpredictable as Wales are of late, that's never going to happen.

South Africa have vastly improved from their somewhat shaky start against Wales. It's an interesting question as to whether the game would have still been so close had Wales been playing the reigning champions in the last round of pool matches rather than the first. Wales have had a solid performance level throughout the pool encounters, it's time to step it up in the final match before the quarter final (looking like it'll be against old foe Ireland).

Great Scott

2011-10-26T08:01:00.000-07:00

Originally posted September 26 at comeonwales.co.uk

Twelve tries, bonus point well in the bag, job done.

Though in saying that, Wales weren't exactly convincing in the first half. Early on there were countless errors creeping into the game (particularly at set piece and breakdown time). The second half was an exercise in futility for the Namibian defenders, as the Welsh seemingly ran through every training ground move out there - the majority resulting in tries.

The floodgates were thrust open in the second half and in all Wales ran in 12 tries courtesy of Scott Williams, George North, Lee Byrne, Gethin Jenkins, Alun Wyn Jones, Aled Brew, Toby Faletau, Jonathon Davies and Lloyd Williams.

Jenkins, Stephen and Ryan Jones showed what Wales had been missing with three impressive and integral performances, with Jenkins scoring probably the best individual try of the tournament with his 49th minute epic. Ryan Jones was involved in every facet of play, and showed some impressive handling skills, particularly in the lead up to the final try. Good ol' Stevie Wonder controlled the game calmly and his top class distribution game allowed the rest of the Welsh backs to run amok. Today showed the advantages of Wales having a stoic, distributing fly-half (Jones or Priestland) rather than the all-singing, all-dancing attacking types like James Hook. Integral as he is to the team for the 'big' games, having Hook as first receiver either limits his creativity or stifles most of the attacking potency of the hugely talented backs outside him. George North on as a substitute was back to playing the way Scarlets fans are used to, breaking tackles and offloading to set the line breaks in motion. Leigh Halfpenny proved to be a catalyst for virtually all the Welsh tries, combining with Byrne for yet another score.

Though the first half was scrappy it is difficult to single out players as weak links. Which is presumably causing the selectors a bit of a headache with the final Pool match against Fiji still having the potential to be a road bump on the way to the Quarters. Come on Wales, get to the knock out stages... anything could happen.

That Was Close...

2011-10-26T08:00:00.000-07:00

Originally posted September 18 at comeonwales.co.uk

Granted, I watched the game slightly bleary eyed after the first night of Freshers at University. But I don't think I'm mistaken in saying that Wales came very close to losing their second game on the bounce against Samoa.

Samoa are a massively talented outfit. Their physicality is literally second to none and they are a pretty entertaining side to watch. When it's notyour team opposing them, of course.

Wales' vastly improved fitness proved once again to be the key. There were some pretty crucial errors, particularly with regards to the breakdown that no doubt Gatland and McBryde will be looking to rectify before the next game against Wales (Monday 26th - 7.30). The loss of Lydiate was noticable in defence, particularly at ruck time, and there will be a lot of anxious people waiting to also hear news on James Hook's shoulder injury which forced him to retire from the field at half time.

But the bottom line is the win. It was hard fought, and we owed it to a try from Shane Williams (wonder how many times that has happened...). We all knew Samoa were one of the toughest asks in basically the toughest pool in the tournament. In other news, Wales should be thankful really that South Africa saved their form for the week after playing Wales. Wales outplayed the Boks in virtually every area of the field, but I have to wonder if they would have done so if they had played them in the mood they were in versus Fiji.

The next game is Namibia. I'm not going to be arrogant and assume Wales will win, but I'm not going to be irritatingly humble and say it's going to be a very difficult game. Namibia can put some impressive phases together, and Wales should be wary of their tendancy to drop goals; though realistically theire defence should merely provide cannon fodder for (hopefully) some successful Welsh backline moves, the likes of which have been missing in the opening two games.

One win out of two is a decent enough record. What we need is four out of five.

Heartbreak

2011-10-26T07:59:00.000-07:00

Originally posted September 12th at comeonwales.co.uk

I think it's worse to lose by one stupid point than by 50. Much, much worse.

First off, how good were Wales? They were unrecognisable from the vaguely disappointing team at the Six Nations, worlds away from the defenceless team who crashed out in 2007. Okay, the start of the match was a little shaky, and South Africa scored a pretty decent try through the excellent Frans Steyn. But after that it was virtually all Wales.

The Welsh forwards were sensational. In the past, when Wales have been blessed with the traditional flyers in the backs, the forwards have sometimes come up short. However, it wouldn't be totally unfair to say that the pack were the stars on Sunday. Obviously Toby Faletau performed the best he has in my living memory. Dan Lydiate was a sensation, making the hard yards, putting in the important tackles and basically being the quintessential flanker, and was one of the main reasons Wales had 60% possession. Captain Fantastic Warburton led by example, taking the game to the Boks and being rewarded with the Man Of The Match accolade. Charteris (an inspired selection, by the way....) was pivotal to an impressive performance all round the field.

The fact that the reigning World Cup champions had to make 134 tackles (plus the 17 that they missed) tells the real story of the game - that the Welsh team didn't make any aspect of the game easy for the opposition.

Rhys Priestland continues to make the 10 shirt his own and silence any critics that may still be lurking out there. A virtually perfect tactical performance at outside half marred only by that drop-goal miss. He controlled the game beautifully, his kicking out of hand was pretty impressive and he didn't cower away from the abrasive flying tackles of the South African back row Spies, Burger and Brüssow. After a shaky start at full back Hook also settled into his natural rhythm and was an imperative attacking force (although arguably he could have halted the Steyn try..?)

Jamie Roberts was almost a force unto himself, breaking through probably every one of those 17 missed tackles himself, all the more impressive since he was lining up against the brilliant Jaque Fourie and Jean de Villiers/Butch James. Shane Williams showed once again why he is the legendary figure that he is in the sport; and whilst George North had a quiet game and made a few errors he was a solid link in the defensive line.

The entire team were pretty superb - Huw Bennett's dive pass included... - and I am absolutely gutted we didn't get the win. Granted, South Africa scored two good tries and Wales were silly to concede the second, but I think the vast majority of rugby fans wanted Wales to win. After 20 minutes of the match yesterday Wales lost that underdog tag for a good long while.

Good Old (Arrogant) England Get A Shock

2011-10-26T07:58:00.000-07:00

Originally posted September 10th at comeonwales.co.uk

"You don't want to go to a quarter-final winning by 100 points in every game because it will be a shock when you come up against a team that can play a bit."

That delightfully humble and decent quote came from England's defence coach Mike Ford earlier in September. It's lovely to know that the RFU are living up to their reputation as an arrogant and ignorant set up fully lacking in sportsmanship. In the modern day, professional era of our great game it's disgusting to have people working within it to be so idiotic.

In this respect it was satisfying for neutrals/lovers of decency/Welsh supporters to see England all at sea for more than 60 minutes against Argentina. Jonny 'Saviour of Western Civilization' Wilkinson missed 5 kicks in a display that was frankly humiliating. Delon Armitage was a deer in the headlights virtually everytime the ball was passed to him; he stood so stock still in front of the would-be tacklers they seemed confused as to whether he was real or a Tussauds-style waxwork. In fact, maybe it was a genius tactic from Martin Johnson... No, that doesn't sound right. It's been known for months that Ashton is pretty much England's most potent attacking method, so it must have been a shame for him and England fans alike to see the oval ball sailing faithfully over his head/past his bootlaces every time one of his apparently jet-lagged/lobotomised team mates tried to pass it to him.

Argentina performed admirably, especially considering the injuries they've sustained to several of their key players. Towards the end of the game with the introduction of the excellent Ben Youngs, Matt Stevens and Dylan Hartley, England's game seemed to receive a new lease of life and Youngs cut through the Pumas' defence to score the sole try. In fairness, I don't think prior to the game many rugby fans actually truly believed Argentina had the firepower to totally overcome England, due to the fact they had a less than satisfactory warm up session and have lost virtually the entire team who shocked the rugby world in 2007.

England have a great squad this year, and to be honest are more than likely to go far in the competition (if they improve on today's performance). However, the media bombarding the rest of us with a constant stream of images of 'our' heroes and insulting comments about the rest of the world isn't doing anything to improve Anglo-everything relations. Having former England captain Phil Vickery shouting 'Come on England!' and claiming Argentina are getting the rub of the green with the referee's calls isn't exactly up to the Bill McClaren standard of commentating. According to the Daily Mail 'Note to the hosts: here's one team of All Blacks who don't plan to choke.' Oh? Obviously Martin Johnson hadn't updated his plans with the completely impartialnewspaper. In my eyes that is crossing the line between a banter-ish joke and plain disrespect for one of the greatest rugby nations, the hosts no less. It's inane and offensive statements and articles like this that prevent us from fully embracing our neighbours. I often hear English friends complaining that 'everyone hates us for no reason!'. I don't think it's a matter of 'hate', more a resentment at having every English victory flaunted to the point of ennui.

So, Mike Ford, I'm guessing you got a shock. Winning by 4 points isn't really anywhere close to winning by 100 is it now? Maybe you should concentrate on actually training your side instead of making derogatory, insulting and disrespectful remarks about the other nations in the World Cup.

Big Game Time

2011-10-26T07:54:00.000-07:00

Originally posted September 5th at comeonwales.co.uk
I was pretty proud of my efforts if I'm honest...

So this is obviously going to be a big bone of contention around Wales (and the world).. The starting XV for Sunday's big clash. I'll probably change my mind a good few times between now and then, but here goes...

1. Paul James - Think we're pretty certain now Gethin Jenkins ain't going to make it for the opener, which isn't actually the end of the world, as James has had a pretty good warm up campaign with Wales, and is a more than adequate prop. The issue is coming up against the South Africans, who might turn up weak as they did against Australia in the Tri-Nations, or might turn up with their typically massive, bullish pack looking to dominate.

2. Huw Bennett - While Matthew Rees was obviously a huge loss to Wales, as not only was he captain and a great technical hooker, he was also one of the best Welsh pack players in the loose. Bennett will need to up his game against the Boks front row - hooker could be the veteren star John Smit but will probably be Bismarck Du Plessis, who is widely regarded as one of the best hookers in the world at the moment. Going to be a tough ask from Bennett, but he's capable on his day.

3. Adam Jones - Got to be. One of Wales' stalwarts back to first XV glory (we hope). Hopefully the break from the game will have done him good and not actually let him become rusty. The scrummaging will have to be top notch if there's any hope of gaining ground and points against South Africa.

4. Bradley Davies - Tough onne to call this, for me. Davies didn't show his best form in the series against England, and I'm always an advocate for the uniqueness of Luke Charteris in the Welsh boiler room. Charteris adds the extra height and lineout prowess to the Welsh pack, which might be an issue Gatland looks to strengthen, with the loss of first choice hooker and with the ominous opposition of the world's greatest line out forward, Victor Matfield.

5. Alun Wyn Jones - Got to be. Shows his passion prior to every game during the anthem, and then during the game with strong burst of speed and power, ferocious tackles and the occasional scuffle or two (we wouldn't respect him if he didn't, right?). Cemented his place a long time ago.

6. Dan Lydiate - Wales are fairly limited as far as specialist flankers go, but even if there were more choice, I daresay Lydiate would be selected for the No 6 jersey. He is probably Wales' answer to the brilliantHeinrich Brüssow, in terms both of similar looks and builds and jackling ability at the breakdown. Granted, Brüssow, as pretty much undisputed champion of the breakdown has the edge, but with levels of refereeing at the ruck still being relatively unclear, there is certainly room for Wales and Lydiate to edge the South African jacklers out of the game.

7. Sam Warburton - Well obviously. It's a testament to the calibre of Warburton as both a player and a person that there have been no (to my knowledge) detractors of his appointment as World Cup Captain. A worthy successor to the master Martyn Williams, Warburton is one of the new breed of professional rugby players who combines skill, strength, brains and personality. Warburton's hero may be Richie McCaw but he should certainly not rest on his laurels when it comes to dealing with the South African flankers, who will surely target the Welsh fly-half, whoever it may be... (spoiler alert, it's probably not Stephen Jones...)

8. Ryan Jones - Now, I say Ryan Jones mostly because he's been talked about so much this week by the Welsh camp that I'm pretty sure he'll be involved. And since the lock and flank positions are basically sewn up, 8 is the place. However, if I were to choose, I might be tempted to have a go with Andy Powell at 8, bringing Toby Faletau in as a replacement. Jones has a strange tendancy to drive with the ball with his head down, which leads to virtually no gain-line penetration and therefore no go-forward: the thing Wales will most need against the Springboks. Faletau could be a useful weapon as he is relatively unknown, and could prove a useful prospect in the loose. However, in terms of pick ups from the base, it's hard to see any better Welsh contender than Powell. Pierre Spies is probably the fastest 8 in world rugby, and one of the most powerful. Powell is really the only viable opposition for him, if Wales' game-plan is to attack man-to-man, head on.

9. Tavis Knoyle - My views on Mike Phillips have been well documented in this blog I fear, but I do concede he played a good game in the second England match. However Knoyle is perfect for South Africa. He's like a bulkier, stronger version of Dwayne Peel (no offence to Dwayne!). Knoyle has a great combination of physical strength and sniping speed that could be a game breaker against the Boks' physicality. Wales can only match their forwards so far to move forward - it might take a quick break down the blindside or a clever punt from Knoyle to ignite the Welsh momentum.

10. Rhys Priestland - I know, I know, I'm being bold and possibly suicidal. But there is good reason (see below..), I think. Firstly, I think Priestland is a damn good stand-off. He controls the game as good as a seasoned professional, his touch-finders are pretty darn impressive and he has arguably a much better distribution game than James Hook, the only other real contender at this point (if we are to believe the stories thatStephen Jones is out.) Either way, the Welsh fly-half is going to be a target from the forwards, and positional play will be a key against the kicking wizardry of players such as Morne and Francois Steyn. Whether that puts Hook or Priestland ahead in the pecking order... it's hard to say. But hell, I'm a Scarlet.

11. Shane Williams - It's gotta be, right? Come on, the Great Entertainer playing his last World Cup against the World Cup champions? It's the stuff of legends. Clint Eastwood will make an honest living with this story in a few years. And as I've said before, remember the Rougerieincident? Massive opposition wingers are no object for our Shane. In fact, his dancing feet will likely be the remedy for a lot of close fought physical game it will likely boil down to. Bring it on.

12. Jamie Roberts - He's a bit of an institution now. Quick, powerful and with some pretty useful handling skills, he's sort of the epitome of the modern day back (along with several others..). He has been pretty well neutralised by SA in the past, but this year is Wales' destiny year... come on, you feel it don't you? No? Just me? ...

13. Jonathon Davies - The perfect midfield partner to Roberts, some would say. Deceptively quick and just as strong as Roberts, the brilliant Welsh defence basically centres around these two. I say mess with this pairing at your peril.

14. George North - Obviously. He's proven against South Africa (two tries on his debut, thank you very much), and Bryan Habana is practically his biggest fan as it is. Of course, what with him being so firmly on the Boks' radar, it could be a death trap to send the relatively inexperienced winger out there in the southern hemisphere. But North is presumably the ideal balance with Williams on the opposite wing.

15. James Hook - I know, I know. Hook for ten, Hook for Prime Minister. I know. Pipe down. I wouldn't ever say James Hook is a vastly talented rugby player. He is probably the most talented Wales have got (I hope you're listening, Gavin...). This is precisely the reason why I don't want to see him at 10. Firstly, his distribution is not great at all. I mean, mine wouldn't be either if I could do what he can do with a rugby ball in hand. But that's really the key to the Welsh outside-half role - distribution. I love to see Hook coming down the field, cutting through the back line at those angles he has absolutely perfected. On another note, I don't think Lee Byrne has earned his place back. He will have had to have pulled off some miracles at training to be back in contention after a huge lay-off and a pretty poor showing in the Warm Up. Some commentators were surprised he was taken Down Under as is. He will probably redeem himself and get back into the team, but I hope he isn't rushed back in, at the expense of possibly Jonathon Davies, who deserves his place. Now, back to Hook... I think his talents (speed, change of angles, acute change of pace, reverse passing, miss-passing, taking the high ball and counter attacking etc. etc.) are wasted at half back. And I'm not just saying this as a Scarlets fan. I'm saying this as a James Hook fan, a Welsh fan and a lover of the game.

Now, it has become clear to me that Warren Gatland, his team and I don't exactly see eye to eye often when it comes to selection. Obviously he knows better, which is why he's out there in New Zealand getting paid to live the dream and I'm sitting at home in North Wales at a computer monitor. However, I would love to see some bold decisions being made (i.e Hook at 15, Knoyle in for Phillips, Powell instead of Jones) and I think with Wales' excellent defence and their new modus operandi, they could pull these off to their advantage.

I fully expect to be wildly wrong when the actual team is announced, however. Don't judge me too harshly.

No Turning Back Now...

2011-10-26T07:52:00.000-07:00

So guys, this is it. Scary stuff, the team is off, and we should all now be getting ready for some seriuosly early morning rugby viewing (This will be more difficult for some than others - e.g. me who has to negotiate Freshers Week at Uni as well as watching rugby at 3 in the morning. Should be fun..)

Originally posted August 31st at comeonwales.co.uk

First game against the reigning RWC champions should be interesting. It's quite a tough one to call really, with Wales pretty much on Cloud 9 at the moment, after a successful warm up campaign and a jump up the World Rankings to 6th, and South Africa coming in with a mixed bag of results - coming a clear last in the Tri Nations but defeating the World Number 1 team New Zealand in their final game with a much improved performance.

There's definitely a heightened sense of optimism around Wales, as everyone has jumped on the beating-South-Africa bandwagon. I firmly believe Wales have a good enough team to beat any other team. However there's always the familiar hump of the mental block when it comes to New Zealand and Australia. This year could see Wales making it pretty far, and with the run up they've had, I personally will be absolutely gutted and disappointed if they're not challenging for a berth in the semi-finals.

Whilst I still think we underestimate the Boks at our peril, come on... it's easy to imagine our boys lifting that cup, isn't it? The first game is crucial.

It's Official...

2011-10-26T07:51:00.001-07:00

Originally posted August 22 at www.comeonwales.co.uk

So the squad has been named...

No major shocks to be honest, though I'm gutted for Martyn Williams not making the cut. Sam Warburton as captain seems pretty lucky to me (touch wood) and I think the inclusion of Ken Owens at hooker adds a Matthew Rees-esque dynamic to the squad which has been lacking.

Poor ol' Gav's untimely wrist injury could be the reason he is omitted, and luckily Gethin Jenkins looks to be recovering enough from his calf injury in time to feature heavily.

Fingers crossed for the World Cup.. I'm uncharacteristically optimistic..

It Wasn't Always Pretty, But At Least It Was A Win

2011-10-26T07:50:00.000-07:00

Originally posted August 21 at www.comeonwales.co.uk

Two wins on the trot... My, aren't we lucky?
I think a lot of people looked at the Argentina game as an easy option; a big winning margin opportunity before jetting off to the Land of the Long White Cloud. As an ardent supporter of the underdog, I was really pleased to see how dominant the Pumas were for the opening 30 minutes. They seemed almost effortless in constructing phases, and had the usually excellent Felipe Contepomi managed to convert all his kicking opportunities early on, I daresay Wales would have found it more difficult than they did.

However, in saying that, the two at-the-death tries by Wales were pretty impressive. Support play was the key, and is something that stands them in good stead for the upcoming World Cup.

The Welsh scrum by and large was impressive, and the return of Adam Jones was welcomed gladly. The forwards on the whole upped their collective performance, I felt, and with the next fixture being against South Africa, Warren Gatland and co are probably quite optimistic about the pack's chances.

However, not all the returning players took their chances well enough. There has been speculation from Kingsley Jones and Phil Bennett that Lee Byrne hasn't done enough to secure a place, and I have to agree. I have always believed Morgan Stoddart deserved the full back berth in the Welsh squad over Lee Byrne, and so was absolutely devastated at the cruel blow dealt to him at Twickenham. Having been at the Millennium Stadium for the game yesterday I have to admit I, and all the fans around me, were roundly unimpressed by Byrne's efforts at 15. Hook filled in more than adequately there against England, and with Rhys Priestland performing excellently at fly half it would perhaps be a good option to try Hook filling in in the back three, should Gatland decide to part company with Byrne.

Hate to say I told you so (who am I kidding?) but the speed of passing from Tavis Knoyle was phenomenal compared to the often laboured service of Mike Phillips. Lloyd Williams was much improved from the last time I saw him play at the Millennium for the Barbarians, and looks an exciting prospect for the future. I think it's the smart choice to start with Knoyle against the Boks on the 11th of September.

On the whole I had a thoroughly enjoyable day at the Millennium Stadium, and the WRU have to be commended for opening up the lower tier to families. It was great to see a whole new generation of Wales supporters (and probably players) at the Stadium watching their heroes in action.

However, it was sickening to hear the booing and jeering and hooting from those infernal horns every time Contepomi stepped up to take a kick. I've always believed the Welsh fans are the best in the world, and that the Millennium is the greatest stadium. It was awful to hear such unsporting behaviour, and to see the 'Please Respect the Kicker' signs ignored emphatically. The behaviour of a lot of Welsh fans in this respect was a sour note on a pretty great round up of Wales' warm up games.
Wales must go into the World Cup with renewed confidence after a competent second half performance against Argentina, and with certain players (Alun Wyn Jones, Tavis Knoyle, George North and Andy Powell) putting up their hands firmly for first XV selection.

Roll on the World Cup.

Much Better...

2011-10-26T07:49:00.001-07:00

Originally posted August 13 at comeonwales.co.uk

Seems like Mike Phillips has been reading my blog...

On the whole, that performance was a step in the right direction. The defence was even more solid than last week, and thanks to myconstructive criticism Mike Phillips has seen the error of his ways.

Wales once again almost totally outplayed England. Arguably without dominance at set pieces England would have been blown away on the score board. As it was, Wales once again came up short at the scrum and line out more often than not, but other than that are probably pretty pleased with their performance.

As I said before the game, I had hoped Gavin Henson would take this game to remind us all of the talent he has. In the first 15 minutes he did that, and it looked increasingly likely he was edging closer to a coveted World Cup spot. However there was yet another twist in the Henson tale, and tomorrow he will be undergoing a scan on a suspected broken arm. I for one am hoping the scan is negative and it's just a precaution - just as I'm hoping tests on Matthew Rees and Rhys Priestland will show up positive results for Wales.

The less than convincing line out today was one of the signs of Wales missing their skipper, despite Rees' main strength arguably being his aggressive play in the loose. Burns did a good job as the game went on, and with a few years looks sure to mature into an excellent first team hooker. However, every Wales fan must have their fingers crossed for a miraculous recovery for the Scarlets hooker, as he is a mighty asset for Wales.

Priestland once again stepped up to the plate in the first half at No 10. His kicking was virtually perfect, he controlled the team and played a key role in the abrasive defensive line up. It was a cruel blow for him to have to retire from the field at half time, but as Mr Gatland said post-game, it's quite nice to have someone of the calibre of James Hook to be filing in. Hook's had his eye on the 10 shirt for a long while, and played admirably throughout the second half, capping off a great performance with a try to seal victory for the home team.

With next week's clash against Argentina being the last hurrah for Wales in terms of preparation, it will be interesting to see which XV Gatland fields, and who puts up their hand for the trip to New Zealand.

Big Day - The Sequel

2011-10-26T07:47:00.000-07:00

Originally posted August 13th at comeonwales.co.uk

Not to sound like a broken record, but it really is do or die for Wales today. Well, it isn't, that's a metaphor. But you see what I'm saying.

Looking at the respective line ups today I'm looking forward to what promises to be a wholly more entertaining encounter than last week's at Twickers.

James Hook v Ben Foden
One of the more interesting clashes, in my opinion. As a Northampton fan, I'm looking forward to seeing what Foden can do, but as a Wales and Scarlets fan (who face the Saints in this year's Heineken) I'm hoping he's stopped pretty sharpish. Foden's main strengths are arguably taking the high ball and his electric-quick breaks through opposition defences. However, James Hook is pretty much universally lauded for his vision and ability to accelerate through minute gaps, and what with Wales having lost an out and out full back in the brilliant Morgan Stoddart, Gatland may be looking to have Hook fill in there for RWC? I have to back Hook in this game, firstly because I'm Welsh, secondly because it's at the Millennium and thirdly because it almost seems like a case of Brawn vs Brains - Foden may be able to run quickly at defences again and again, but that alone won't win them the game. James Hook possesses the tactical nous and ability to think ahead that used to epitomise Welsh backline play, and is something the English simply don't have in spades.

George North & Shane Williams v Chris Ashton & Mark Cueto
Let me reiterate - I'm a Northampton fan as well as a die hard Scarlet. But in saying that I seriously hope the running threat of Ashton is neutralised quickly this afternoon. Based on the solid defensive performance of last Saturday we can be reasonably safe in assuming he won't be allowed to run amok. On the offchance Ashton is in fact declared unfit for the match after 'rolling his ankle', then it would seem Matt Banahan will be promoted. In this scenario, there will no doubt be a lot of chatter prior to the game about 'big v little' or something equally mundane, regarding Shane and Banahan. For all those who still think that height and weight are an issue for vertically challenged players like Shane, cast your mind back to Wales v France, 2005. A lot of commentators made a lot out of the imposing height of Aurélien Rougerie, and then watched stunned as Williams left him in his dust on the way to the try line or bundled him into touch for a line out. It's a fallacy that you have to be some huge massive guy (cough cough, Manu Tuilagi) to be strong in rugby. It's about technique, and a lot of the time it's about skill. Which, to sum up my essay here, is why I think Wales do have an edge over England, regardless of whether Ashton is passed fit or not. Cueto is the only back from last week's disappointing England performance to keep his place - this could mean that he is being given one last chance to cement a place in the squad today, which should see him up his game from last week. For Wales, North and Williams are two of the most exciting wingers in world rugby, and with their contrasting styles offer a double edged sword to Wales' attack. Compare this with England's usual style of bulldozing if Banahan comes on. And in the event it's Cueto and Ashton who line up today, there will have to be some major differences in the defence from last week to allow them any running space. If Wales, and North and Williams in particular, can defend just as (or more) tightly than last week, it's hard to envisage Cueto or Ashton causing too many problems. I hope.

Jamie Roberts & Gavin Henson v Mike Tindall & Shontayne Hape
How much shall we bet that most of the pre-match punditry is concerned with the infamous Mr Henson? And not, let me add, because people are expecting great rugby from him. I'll be the first to lay into him about his various TV soirées etc. etc., but I can also remember the Ospreys winning the Celtic League back in 2005 - the same year that he skyrocketed into fame with 'that kick' against, oh wait the very same opposition as today. Shocking. Whilst I firmly believe there are more deserving players than Henson to go to this World Cup, the underdog-supporting part of me would love him to come out all guns blazing today and pull of a Mathew Tait-style blitz of the English midfield. Which, okay, seems kind of unlikely today. Tindall may be getting on a bit now, but I highly doubt the stalwart would allow himself to be picked up by a former Strictly Come Dancing contestant (he didn't even win. Which somehow makes it worse). Hape also now has something to prove, following the debut of Tuilagi last week, which had all the English sports pages in raptures. Jamie Roberts will surely provide some stability in the midfield pairing, and is assured of a place to New Zealand, injury permitting.

Rhys Priestland v Toby Flood
This is an interesting one. Toby Flood has said in the week that "Jonny has all rights to the shirt at the moment." (BBC Sport). So he's coming out on the field looking to perform well enough to knock golden boy Wilko out of Johnson's first team plans.... Good luck there then. Then we have Priestland, who some might say had a shaky start to his career with the Scarlets, but who suddenly came into his own in the last season. Priestland was rather a revelation last week in my opinion. He defied a lot of expectation and not only held his own against a barrage of brutal Englishmen, but he shone at times. Not literally, of course. He seems,touch wood, to have outgrown any nerves and be able to think clearly, have composure under pressure, and arguably kick better touch-finders than the incumbent Stephen Jones. I'm not for a minute suggesting Jones should not be the first choice No 10. I think he's so underrated and is imperative for Wales in more tricky games. But I think Priestland has laid a firm claim to the understudy berth - something which no doubt James Hook has his eye on. Flood against Priestland is a close one to call, with Flood perhaps having more to lose with a lacklustre performance. It'll come down to who can hold his nerve in the cauldron of the Millennium.

Mike Phillips v Richard Wigglesworth
Alright. Well I think I've previously made my feeling pretty clear about theconstant inclusion of Phillips in the Wales XV, without really any performances to back it up. Martin Johnson seems not be be afflicted by the same need for monotony as Gatland, and has shaken up his half back pairings, and allowed the less experienced Wigglesworth a chance to prove himself, as he starts his first test at 9 for 3 years. I have to back Wigglesworth here if I'm to have any credability as a blogger. Man that sounds weird. But I still firmly believe it's time for a change, and I would have loved to have seen Tavis Knoyle or Lloyd Williams being given a chance here. It makes good sense - three warm up games allows for the three scrum-halves to be given a shot each. It's not like Knoyle is inexperienced; he came on last week for a maddeningly short time and changed the entire momentum of the game. There's a good chance Williams will play against the Pumas next week, I suppose, but this surely has to be Phillips' last chance to show he can handle the sheer pace at half back. Wales' scrum-half often has a more vital role to play than his English counterpart, and I suspect that may be the case again this afternoon. Wigglesworth is trying to cement a new place for himself in the team and needs to perform well. Phillips is trying to cling on to the place he has held for the last 3 years, and if he doesn't perform miraclestoday, I don't see what excuse Gatland can have for keeping him there yet again.

Toby Faletau v Nick Easter
Another interesting match up here. Faletau followed up his brilliant debut against the Barbarians with a less than convincing return last week. It is important to consider that he is so inexperienced on the international stage, and it's easy to forget from his run against the BaaBaas that he's still just a young guy, winning his first few caps. In saying that, he will be aware that he needs to step it up this week. The No 8 spot is still relatively open at this point, with a number of players not really putting their hands up for it. Faletau deserves at least another chance to show what he can do on the international stage. Easter is a well settled member of the England squad, and seems to have his place secured, after Johnson released Thomas Waldrom from the squad last week. In that sense, I will back Faletau to outshine Easter. He has youth, pace and innovation on his side, and the Millennium Stadium crowd will only spur him on.

Sam Warburton & Dan Lydiate v Hendre Fourie & Tom Wood
Wales have two excellent young flankers in Lydiate and captain Warburton, and it's hard to think of any England flank players who can match their speed and tenacity. Except, of course, the excellent young flanker Tom Wood. Wood deserves a chance to take a RWC squad spot, and with Lewis Moody looking like he might be another pre-tournament casualty, Hendre Fourie stands in good stead to be on the plane to New Zealand, as the only other specialist 7 in the party. In saying that, I don't think Wood and Fourie are as strong as our boys, and I think Warburton and Lydiate have it covered, and should be in with an excellent chance of starting in the World Cup.

Alun Wyn Jones & Luke Charteris v Courtney Lawes & Louis Deacon
Yet another Northampton star lines up for England, and could provide tough competition for Jones and Charteris. I'm really glad Charteris is being given a chance to play, as he is a great asset for Wales in the second row, and has to be in with a good shout of a spot in the squad. Alun Wyn Jones is pretty much a shoe-in, as a good leader and great all-round player. The locks are vitally important in today's game, and since England believe they have the edge with their forwards, it's pivotal that all the Wales pack are up to the task this afternoon. I think Wyn Jones and Charteris is a nice combination to try out, and offers a lot of line out options, somewhere Wales do need to improve a little.

Paul James, Lloyd Burns & Craig Mitchell v Alex Corbisiero, Steve Thompson & Dan Cole
I'll be disappointed if Wales can't find a way to edge the English front row out today. James and Mitchell have formed an excellent front row with captain Matthew Rees in the past (thoughts are with Rees, hoping he can make it), and without the perceived first choice pair Gethin Jenkins and Adam Jones, I think Wales have got a pretty good front row here. Burns is a relative newcomer to the Wales team, which is a good move by the Wales coaching team, particularly if Rees is ruled out of contention. England's forwards were dominant in the game last week, but with a pretty much entirely different pack (only Corbisiero retains his place in the forwards). England are known for their strength at scrum time, which presumably sees their front row as favourites. I have faith in the Welsh boys though, and I honestly think they can more than hold their own. The inclusion by Johnson of veteran Thompson is either a masterstroke or a complete joke, and I'm not sure which yet. Dylan Hartley presumably has the first choice hooker place in the bag.

Wales have got the edge. The stonger line up, home advantage, all signs point to a Welsh win... right?

The Great Scrum-Half Debate

2011-10-26T07:45:00.000-07:00

Originally posted August 11th at comeonwales.co.uk
And yes, okay, I was proven wrong...

Okay now seriously, am I the only one who noticed a huge shift in momentum when Knoyle came on for Phillips on Saturday? Yes, there wasa time when Mike Phillips was an enigma to a lot of opposition defences (notably the French drift). But there's only so many times they're going to fall for the same dummy, and the All Blacks for instance, are not that naive.

Tavis Knoyle offers a lot to the Welsh backline. He has strength, speed and vision and a lot of everything that has been lacking for the last few seasons. It's time for a change. Wales was at its best when Dwayne Peel was sniping around the fringes, inciting line breaks and executing pinpoint flat passes to perfection. And yes, it's no coincidence that both these players are Scarlets present and past respecitvely. The Scarlets' signature style of play is the epitome of what Wales should be playing. It's what they're known for, and it's what the fans have come to expect. And no, I'm not forgetting that Phillips was once a Scarlet. I'm also not forgetting that he left after being second fiddle to Peel - a situation that was reversed for the national team.

I'm not for a minute saying Phillips isn't a great player. He is a strong runner and ball carrier, and for a time was a very potent and effective No 9. But his passing is slow, he's not as quick as Knoyle and maybe the reason Wales aren't quite at full throttle is that there's a delay in moving the ball from the breakdowns to the backline etc. Admittedly, Phillips is probably a smarter choice than the inexperienced Lloyd Williams, who is arguably too fresh for the first team. But if Peel gets into the squad this week then I have to be honest - my fingers are crossed he takes the place on the bench and Knoyle reigns as the incumbent scrum half.

It does seem that despite many shake ups in the rest of the team, Warren Gatland is determined to keep Phillips in the 9 shirt for yet another week. Is this because he's giving him one last chance to really grab a starting XV place? Or is it because the team has been left for so long it's too late now, with just 4 weeks to the World Cup, to make the necessary changes?

Saturday will show us.

Big Weekend Coming Up

2011-10-26T07:44:00.000-07:00

Originally posted August 11th at comeonwales.co.uk

Okay, so it's kind of make or break time for Wales on Saturday. Let alone the big one at the Millennium Stadium - a chance for payback, time to actually follow through on hopeful performances with a win, time to step it up a gear - lest we forget South Africa, Wales' Pool mates are welcoming back a whole host of their first team players in a bid to make up for some pretty disappointing Tri Nations form.

As a fan of both Wales and South Africa, I'm looking forward to the weekend with a sense of excitement and apprehension. On the one hand, Wales have to win this week. If they play as well as last week (slightly better, let's hope) they surely have to be favourites against the old enemy at a sold out Millennium Stadium. I mean, the atmosphere is better (Jerusalem seems timid and pointless compared with Bread of Heaven, no?), the supporters are better, and God knows, the rugby is better. This weekend's game promises to be better than the last. On the other hand, it is hard to conceive of a team containing talents such as Matfield, Spies, Du Preez and Habana not turning out a pretty stellar performance come Saturday morning. And this is the part that causes the apprehension. I'm a tad nervous that Wales might not face up to the powerful Springboks in the way they can.

Wales are more than capable of beating South Africa, the World Champions. South Africa are my second favourite team, I believe they have one of the best mixes of players, and their playing style is abrasive, yet entertaining (a mix our friends over the bridge haven't quite got a hold of yet). I truly hope that Wales can get over this psychological voodoo when it comes to the Tri Nations teams. There's no denying the southern hemisphere teams have a heck of a lot of brilliant players. Their basic rugby skills are second to none. But Wales are famous for their rugby for a reason. I'm not one of the majority, who sits back with a nice pint of Brains SA and bemoans the loss of the 70s 'running rugby. It amazes me how much people seem to live in the past. Wales currently have a squad a lot of other nations would envy, and, dare I say it, there are even a couple of players who might challenge for a place in the great 1970s squad. There is strength in depth in a lot positions, and with creative talent of the like of Hook, Davies and Warburton, there is ample opportunity for Wales to break the World Cup duck.

The return of James Hook and Gavin Henson to the team might not be as formidable as the influx of stars to the Springboks line up, but I'm damn sure this Wales team can be challenging for top spot in Pool D. We need a big performance this weekend. We need a win.

Inconclusive...?

2011-10-26T07:42:00.000-07:00

Originally posted August 6th at comeonwales.co.uk

Well, I'm not too sure what to make of that. Wales' World Cup campaign got off to a mixed bag of a start at Twickenham. There were moments to be positive about - North's tries, some heroic defence and an always welcome try for our Great Entertainer. And there were moments to assume the familiar position of head in hands.

With less than 15 minutes on the clock Wales had England on the ropes with a blistering and continuous attack on the line. This eventually led, inevitably it seems, to yet another try for North Wales' own George North, thanks to a brilliant lead up and an excellent (potentially forward, whisper it quietly) pass from Morgan Stoddart.

And yet, painfully predictable, it faltered. It slowed, and suddenly England's boring, boring forwards game came to the fore. Good ol' Jonny felt so boxed into a corner he felt compelled to take an uncharacteristic drop goal. Far be it for me to be partisan, like.

Wales' forwards suffered at scrum-time, which begs the question - people keep talking about the imminent return of Gethin and Adam, and hopefully captain Rees... is it going to make that much of a difference to the scrum? Can we really put the onus on these three individuals to reverse a worrying pattern of forward decline? Yes, we can. We have to, if we're going to fulfil our destiny and win the World Cup, right? One thing's for sure, if the lineout doesn't pick up soon, it will be difficult to escape the pool stages.
Wales' defence showed so much improvement early on. The Barbarians game in June had some good signs, but the first half defence in particular today was solid, stoic, and Stoddart-led. Something seemed to change after half time though, as Welshmen started falling off tackles, though they picked it back up by the end, throwing everything at the opposition in search of a victory at Twickers.

The Welsh backs saw a lot more of the ball in the second half. Partly, it has to be said, thanks to the injection of pace with Knoyle that is sorely lacking with Phillips. Moves were starting be put together, there were hints of the flowing rugby we're used to. George North's second of the day was the culmination of patient work, countless phases and a try-saving tackle on captain Sam Warburton.

Much to my chagrin, the two most loathe-worthy players in the English side (hard to pick, right?), Haskell and Tuilagi crossed the whitewash. Could my day get any worse? Yes, it turns out. My heart sank with Stoddart, and the heart palpitations only got worse when he was stretchered off. Arguably Wales' most dynamic player of the first half, what a terrible time for him to get an injury.

This first warm up game inevitably raises questions. Are Wales' forwards too weak to compete at the RWC, or did they just come off second best to a well-worked England pack? Will the addition of injured players such as Stephen Jones, Gethin Jenkins and James Hook prove to be the galvanising force Wales need?

And so, a judgement? Yeah, there were moments of pretty much abject disappointment. For those of us who believed England were there for the taking it's pretty painful, because they were. It was a winnable game for Wales, and we came pretty darn close. But it's not all doom and gloom by any means. Compared to the Six Nations I reckon we can all be pretty happy. Wales have improved a lot, there is definitely hope.
Let the English come to the Millennium Stadium and then we'll see. Wales have to win next week. The performance today was fine, but they'll need to step it up a couple of gears to have a chance in this World Cup.

Wiping the Dust Off This Blog...

2011-10-26T07:39:00.000-07:00

So I've been writing for the Western Mail's online rugby blog www.comeonwales.co.uk for a couple of months during the World Cup and got bitten by the writing bug again (don't worry, it's not dangerous...)

So I'm going to upload all my posts from that site to this blog and then carry on from there :) Just in case you were wondering, like...

Wales 6N Squad

2010-01-18T12:21:00.000-08:00

Backs: Gareth Cooper, Leigh Halfpenny, Tom James, Richard Rees, Jamie Roberts, Tom Shanklin (all Cardiff Blues) Dan Biggar, Andrew Bishop, Lee Byrne, James Hook, Kristian Phillips, Tom Prydie, Shane Williams (all Ospreys), Jonathan Davies, Stephen Jones, Martin Roberts (all Llanelli Scarlets)

Forwards: Bradley Davies, Gethin Jenkins, Deiniol Jones, Andy Powell, Sam Warburton, Gareth Williams, Martyn Williams (all Cardiff Blues), Huw Bennett, Ian Gough, Paul James, Adam Jones, Alun Wyn Jones, Ryan Jones, Jonathan Thomas (all Ospreys), Matthew Rees (Llanelli Scarlets), Luke Charteris, Dan Lydiate (both Dragons, Eifion Lewis-Roberts (Sale Sharks), Rhys Gill (Saracens)

For once, and this may come as a surprise to many... But I actually think Gatland and co have got this pretty spot on.

Obviously, the loss of Peel and Mike Phillips is devastating, but it is also, in my opinion a blessing in disguise. Martin Roberts is clearly one of the great future scrum-halves, and Richie Rees has been playing some sharp stuff off the back of an overly failing Blues pack this season.

The best news as far as I am concerned is Kristian Phillips, of whom I have long been a fan. Let's face it, The Great Entertainer Shane is on his last legs I guess, and he surely needs a successor.

The major disappointment for me is that Ken Owens is yet again not included. Surely he is the future of Welsh rugby?

Anyway, we shall let the tournament be the judge.

For now..

Never a Boring Year...

2010-01-13T13:17:00.000-08:00

It's been a while, huh?

Well, good readers, a new year is upon us. Which is a good news for Rugby Union if we're honest.. Because let's face it, 2009 was catastrophic, 12 months of scandal and controversy.

Bloodgate. The famously imfamous blood-capsule debacle set up by rugby legend Dean Richards. For those of you who have been living under a rock for the last year: In a nutshell Harlequins were playing Irish big-guns Leinster in a Heineken Cup quarter-final on 12th April. As time slipped away from the London side, Quins winger Tom Williams left the field seemingly with copious amounts of implausibly crimson blood pouring from his mouth. The score was 5-6 to the Irish and luckily enough, Williams' substitute was in fact specialist goal kicker Nick Evans. Unfortunately for Quins he was unable to score any points and gain the advantage for his team. They lost the match and Leinster went on to win the cup. Of course, the most damning piece of evidence was deemed to be television footage of Williams winking at the substitutes bench as he left the field exsanguinating what was later discovered to in fact be fake blood from a joke capsule purchased at Richards' request from a joke shop in Clapham Junction. What happened next is well documented in the world of media. In the wake of this Harlequins were fined £259,000 while former head Dean Richards, Tom Williams and team physio Steph Brennan were banned for their roles respectively and Chairman Charles Jillings resigned in the aftermath of such a scandal.

Eye-Gouging. Before I state my view.. let me set the record straight. Eye-gouging is a heinous, disgusting, horrifying form of violence, among the worst, in my view. There is certainly no place for it in rugby. However, to this end - it has always been around. Ask any old player with a receding hair-line and a beer-belly and they'll tell you about when they got the opposition hooker's index finger in the eye. Or some such tale. It's terrible, but it happens. It's not new, so why is everyone suddenly so up in arms about it? To be frank, it seems to be because Schalk Burger was accused of having committed this crime during a test match against the British and Irish Lions. Don't get me started. I've had many an argument about this since the alleged incident, made all the more ironic because victim Luke Fitzgerald's countryman Alan Quinlan missed the much-hyped tour due to an accusation and subsequent ban for gouging. In any case, whether he deliberately made contact with Fitzgerald's eye or not, Burger was handed an 8-week ban which ruled him out of the third and final test. Of course, there are those among us that have suggested that perhaps Burger's significant reputation preceeded him - that of the big-hitting, typically South African aggressive flanker. There was of course the small fact that South Africa were the team to beat, World Champions, Tri-Nations champions... and simply on fire.
Since then, of course, much celebrated Italian captain Sergio Parisse against New Zealand. And, in my view just the most stupid incident ever, and one which I saw live on TV, French scrum-half Julien Dupuy repeatedly gouging Ulster back-rower Stephen Ferris whilst playing for Stade Francais. He was slapped with a 24-week ban, which he ten audaciously appealed and succeeded in being granted a week reduction. Ferris was even more unlucky as Stade prop David Attoub also allegedly gouged him during this same match.

Substance Abuse.. First it was Mike Tindall, boyfriend of Princess Royal's daughter Zara Phillips, who was caught drink driving after a night at the Cheltenham Races. He was banned from driving for three years and fined £500. He was swiftly followed a few months later by Bath's narcotics binge. Celebrated England prop Matt Stevens, runner up on Celebrity X Factor, no less, was tested positive for Cocaine. Of all things. Coke. Why? we ask ourselves. Almost a dead-cert for the England prop-forward berth, and thrown away for cheap, or not so cheap, thrills. Which was a bit of a shame, being honest. Then the club's end of season soiree had its post mortem in the tabloids and on the internet... resulting in allegations of violence, drunkenness and yet more drug abuse. Legendary idiot Justin 'The Plank' Harrison was cited as shouting 'Class A, it's okay, everybody's doing it!' to young members of the Bath squad on the way to the party, and he and Bath co-captains Michael Lipman and Alex Crockett and strikeman Andrew Higgins were banned for allegations relating to drug-use (the latter three refused drug tests, for dubious reasons). All four left the club, Harrison returning to his native Australia (with probable packing orders), Higgins retiring (dishonourably) from the game and Lipman and Crockett with 9 month bans and their reputations in tatters.

Crime and Punishment.. Bizarre. Very, very bizarre. That's the only way I can think to describe French centre Mathieu Bastareaud's mishap whilst on tour in New Zealand. Again a Stade player.. must be something in the water. *Fun Fact* Bastareaud is the cousin of Arsenal centre-back William Gallas. Anyway, after losing the second test to the All Blacks, the promising player ventured on a night out to Wellington. The next morning he had managed to earn himself a suspected fracture to the eye socket and some pretty serious facial lacerations. Hmmmm. He told the intrepid Kiwi coppers he had been the victim of an assault at the hand of five assailants. New Zealand Prime Minister John Key issued an apology to the French, assuring his country was still a perfectly safe tourist destination. Unsurprisingly, this was all taken seriously and a full investigation was launched, which turned over some CCTV footage of the hotel, showing an uninjured Bastareaud returning to his hotel. Which, for those of you keeping score, would mean the assault never happened. When confronted with this, Bastareaud confessed to having fabricated the tall tale after tripping over a coffee table in his hotel room whilst *shock horror* under the influence of alcohol. What followed were a rather shocking sequence of events. Rumours surfaced that the injuries had actually been sustained during a punch-up with several French team-mates, and the FFR (French Rugby Federation) were involved in a messy cover up. It was then reported in his native France that the unfortunate centre had been admitted to a secure psychiatric facility after an attempt at suicide. Now it was French Prime Minister Francois Fillon's turn to issue an official apology. Incidentally, it has been suggested that Bastareaud's indiscretions will cost him his national place for a number of years, although considering he's been hauled off to a loony-bin it's not completely surprising..
There was then of course the unexpected arrest of Australian rising star Quade Cooper. On burglary charges. Am I the only one who didn't see that coming? Since the initial headlines, more facts have emerged, and I am completely nonplussed as to what's gone on. And this delightful quote from Cooper's lawyer Angelo Venardos still leaves things as clear as mud; "There is a lot more to this story but I am restricted in what I can say. It is not as if Quade and someone else jumped in a car, packed their balaclavas and house-breaking implements and came down to the Gold Coast." Cooper is pleading not guilty, and the trial continues...

Postman lets the cat out of the bag.. Possibly the worst kept secret in rugby was finally let out for all the world to hear when legend of the game Gareth 'Alfie' Thomas came out as gay. While I'll admit half the Welsh rugby world seemed to know of such rumours (myself included..) it seemed to be pretty substantial news across the globe. I think it's certainly brave of him to do this, and it's great that he's endorsing tolerance and diversity and whatever else. But does no one else feel sorry for his ex-wife, Jemma? And I'm not being funny, but the whole thing was blown wildly out of proportion. And it's a little weird that he's made this revelation now. Out of the blue. Kerching, anyone? Many people came out in support of Alfie, and it was said that nothing would change. But it has to, surely? It's rugby. It's still a gentlemen's game played by thugs. And yes, Thomas may be one of the most respected and celebrated players of his era, but this may be pushing the boat out too far for some of the traditionalists in the game.

And so, to conclude. A lot of rather exciting events unfurled themselves unceremoniously on the unsuspecting world of Rugby Union last year. Is it wrong that I hope for more of the same?

Ha..

2009-04-23T14:42:00.001-07:00

Clearly the citing commissioner reads my blog ;)

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/rugby_union/my_club/leicester/8000437.stm

Moaning. Part 1

2009-04-14T11:40:00.000-07:00

Professional sports. Fine, I’ve defended the concept on many an occasion. But I find myself frequently hating the idea and those who force feed money into teams, or franchises as they’re now called.

Virtually every sport is now professional – football, rugby, tennis, even things like darts and Crown Green Bowls, which, let’s be honest, aren’t even sports. I have always thought that it’s an overall good idea.
Talented sportspeople who love their chosen sport are paid to do an even better job. They are trained, conditioned and coached to become the best players physically and mentally. This is good for them firstly. Let’s face it – some of these people aren’t the brightest sparks, and they may not be making much of a living anywhere else. Lest we forget, there’s a recession on, everywhere apart from Stamford Bridge and Stade Ernest-Wallon. This is also good news for us sporting fans. Much as I love watching my beloved semi-professional Rhyl FC on a Saturday afternoon, it doesn’t compare to watching Liverpool on Sky Sports. Professional sports have led to a rise in the standard of the sports, therefore meaning generally more enjoyment for the fans.
The only other advantage I can think of is that there are also now a much bigger variety of merchandise available – rant on that later.

But surely we can all agree that on some level, professionalism in sports has taken the soul out of it, just a bit? Let’s look at my personal area of expertise – rugby. I mean, these are guys who spend day after day hitting people, and pumping iron. Now don’t get me wrong – this is not a rant aimed at the players; if I had half the talent players the like of Martyn Williams, Butch James and Yannick Jauzion have, I’d be getting paid for it too. But at the same time, these people weigh upwards of 15, 16 stone, and much of that is muscle they acquire through thoroughly un-holy methods. It’s not natural! Now while a lot of people will agree, it can be aesthetically pleasing – let’s just take a step back. In later life, aren’t these people going to pay for their frolics around the park with arthritis, joint problems and just general ailments?
And while there are players with substantial natural flair and skill – take the aforementioned three, for examples - there are presumably those who through day-in, day-out training and conditioning and analysing have acquired a certain technical nouse which allows them to play alongside these players. That is not the spirit of rugby, nor how it used to be played. The players who are good enough; who understand the game, who have progressed through second teams, who have flair, skill and courage; should be the ones who play, surely?
Let’s look at the Gavin Henson problem. Well, one of the many. I’m not saying he’s not a great player – on his day he can cut defences like a knife and who can forget the Mathew Tait thing? However, I can’t help but think that sometimes he is played and selected because he endorses things, and is a talking point and sells tabloids.
And sponsorship. I mean, seriously? Is there any need to plaster every inch of these skin tight ‘shirts’ with slogans and logos and badges? It’s vulgar, to be honest. But then again, I suppose it could be a ploy, like football goalkeepers do to distract the strikers. I mean, if I’m there on the field and I see the McDonald’s M dancing in front of me I may be kind of distracted too.
But still, that is no reason to lose credibility. Some sporting ‘franchises’ are ridiculous – take Basketball. When I first went to the British League Finals there was a team called the Scottish Rocks. The next year they were there again – the Scottish Record Rocks now. Then the third year I saw them they were the Scottish Phoenix Honda Record Rocks. And then I stopped going. The fans that used to chant were suffocating halfway through the team name.
And the stadiums. For me, it gets no better than a rousing stadium name for your team. Stadium of Light. Anfield. Stradey Park. The Millennium Stadium. But The Emirates Stadium? The famous Landsdowne Road will become The Aviva Stadium. It’s grotesque. Never heard of Coca-Cola Park? You may know it as Ellis Park, that’s why.
I think I may have mentioned merchandise before. Now, I am a bit of a hypocrite here. I own over 20 rugby shirts and have various flags, jackets and pieces of stationery equipment myself. But, I think that producing underwear, bed clothes, Christmas tree decorations and kitchen utensils en masse is a bit excessive and a tad silly.

I often hear the now familiar adage about how ‘in my day’ players playing even international rugby were doctors, lawyers, bricklayers - they had another trade to fall back on. Supposing, God forbid, one of the lesser known members of a professional squad suffered an horrific injury. Not bad enough to kill them, but bad enough for them to have to hang up the ol’ boots. This guy has played professional rugby since he was 16 – he came fresh out of school, and has always been a rugby player. He has to presumably learn a new trade, or else take a low wage at something simple, unless he is lucky enough to be picked up for a media job or coaching.

The injection of cash into the boardrooms and executive suites has had a direct effect on the lowly fan, too.
Ticket prices. Tickets for derbies and finals can go for astronomical prices – families are going hungry so Dad can go see the Liverpool derby or see Bath in the Premiership final. Is this really ethical? It takes a lot out of the atmosphere at matches. In the ‘good old days’ there would be the upper classes, sure, in the seats and the boxes. But the middle-lower classes would make up a large portion of the crowd. These are the people who sing the anthems and wave the flags. And, most importantly, heckle the referee.
And the current storm that’s brewing – terrestrial vs satellite television. Lots of people don’t have Sky TV. Let alone those who pay the additional fee for Sky Sports. The Heineken Cup and some Internationals are already shown almost exclusively on Sky Sports (some Heineken games can be found on Welsh language station S4C), taking the Six Nations away from BBC would exclude a huge amount of rugby fans from watching rugby – in the comfort of their own homes anyway.

And finally, for the pièce de résistance. My pet peeve. The worst thing about professional sports with all this money. The bribery, the unfair advantages and the general flash of cash.
Now, for those who are not familiar with the intimate workings of Welsh rugby, I will explain. The Scarlets’ relationship with the Ospreys (The Hairspreys) is one of great hatred. Well, hate’s a strong word maybe. It’s like Liverpool-Man United. Wales-England. Almost. Basically, they’re age old rivals and bitter enemies. And as a primarily Scarlets girl, I am genetically designed to dislike the Hairspreys. But I dislike them for more than just thos honourable reasons. I dislike them for the same reason I dislike Chelsea. They use the resources available to buy up all the players they want. Some may call them the best players, but hey, I’m not here to argue about that today.
They lured Mike Phillips away from the Blues. Personally, I think that’s a decision he’s going to live to regret. The Blues are on the up. And since Lyn Jones was unceremoniously outed the Hairspreys have been on a slippery slope. They buy superstar after superstar – Justin Marshall left after a short stint, as did Stefan Terblanche, and if the rumours of Phil Waugh coming over to the Liberty are true I don’t suppose he’ll last long either. The reason is this – the attitude. I can’t imagine it’s fun being in a ‘team’ with a bunch of prima donnas in Swansea. That’s my theory as to why they seem to implode during pressure games. Too many stars trying to prove themselves, eroding at the solid platform the excellent forwards create. And the fact that a team like that doesn’t win all the time is tragic and a travesty. If you’re going to steal all the players, at least do something with them.
Leicester Tigers are the same. Obviously, I’m not one to point the finger. But one could suspect that the numerous dubious calls that went the way of the affluent wealthy East Country team were not given by chance. For example – I find it hard to believe that not one, not two, but three referees on the field failed to spot that Nick Abendanon’s shoulder injury that caused him to leave the field and probably contributed to Bath’s eventual loss was caused by an off-the-ball hit from the massive Alesana Tuilagi. Let’s face it, he would be difficult to miss 17 stone of Samoan does catch the eye somewhat. The question has to be raised – what are the ‘assistant referees’ (touch judges, to you and me) there for, if not to spot infringements like that, along with knock ons, off-sides and technical fouls. Which, by the way, were abundant in the match, and almost perpetually went unspotted. And I believe there was something fishy about the way the final restart (or lack of final restart actually) was handled.
Not to take anything undeserved away from the Tigers – they know how to win big games, they are rugby royalty, you could say.
But I think it is something to be looked into – long has it been in sporting folklore that the wealthiest teams usually win. And the decisions seem to go their way. I’m not in a position to suggest a reason for that, I mean what use is imagination if you cannot use it eh?

For me, the solution to all this is simple. I think professional sports should remain, not just for the reasons highlighted, but also because it is an institution now. It is an industry. But I think the distribution of revenue for teams, or franchises, should be more even. If not exactly, fairly even. There should not be clubs that are known as the ‘rich’ clubs. This will make more competition. This will create more rivalry. This will be where great games, and teams, are made. And that is what sport is all about, isn’t it?

Mermaids Tour To Rome!

2009-04-05T02:06:00.001-07:00

Rome '09 promised a lot... and it delivered!

The only downsides were that we had to get up at 3 to get the plane from Liverpool, and that we could only stay for 2 1/2 days.

We arrived in Rome to blustery yet sunny conditions, the excitement beginning to brim over. We were met at the airport by Chris, who is possibly the most amazing guy ever.. :) We were then chauffeured to our hotel - The Grand Hotel Beverly Hills, no less. Oh the way we stopped to stock up on booze - most of the girls bought a couple of cans of lager to take to the match. We were checked in, then assigned our rooms. We had 20 minutes to quickly explore, get ready and jump up and down a few times, then we were off again - to the Stadio Flaminio! We had about half an hour to kill before we made our way to the stadium, and we took in the sights of the Piazza Flaminio, and ate the most amazing pizza snacks ever. That was the quietest 10 minutes of the tour!

We then took the walk to the stadium - highlight of this walk would be Loz walking into a pole... bodes well I guess? We arrived at the stadium with our bag of beer swinging from Anna's arm. Then some bad/good news, depending on how you look at it - we couldn't take the cans into the stadium! So there we were with 12 cans of lager and only 3 plastic cups we could take in. Valiantly, Anna, Louis and Kumari stepped up to down more than their fair shares of the stuff, and then we proceeded into the beautiful stadium.

The match atmosphere was brilliant - we had great fun cheering along with the Italian and French fans around us, while Joely, Sarah and Kumari spent the whole match waving flags madly, in an attempt to get on the TV, which apparently we managed. Happy days.
France were simply majestic - they were back to their old ways, which was really annoying - WHY OH WHY did they slip for the England match, of all matches? But anyway, for me one of the best players on the field was the awesome Sergio Parisse - one of, if not the best No. 8 on the planet. There were only 2 scrums in the match, which is unusual, especially for an Italian match. However, this made for an even better spectacle, as the French capitalised on Italian errors, of which there were many, and ended up scoring 7 tries.

After the match we walked into the centre of Rome and went to an Irish bar (ironic, eh?) to watch the end of the England-Scotland match and the Wales-Ireland battle. We stood in a gaggle in the centre of the pub, screaming ourselves hoarse, fighting with the many more Irish supporters. I was heartbroken at the end - not because Wales lost or anything, purely for Stephen Jones' frustration, he is easily the most consistent Wales player and it was unfair that he should have to end Wales' account on that note. However, we were cheered up with the most amazing ice cream ANYONE has ever tasted, like, ever... and then we all had huge amazing pizzas for dinner.
After that it was off to the hotel in various hilarious taxi rides, and by the time we got back to the hotel eveyone was looking a little tired.

The next morning we got up bright and early to go sight-seeing! We were set a challenge, to 'see who could learn the most of the Italian anthem', but we knew we would be given points for execution, innovation and creativity also. One group - Abi, Loz and Kumari wrote their own version of the anthem - more of which later.
THe day was a roaring success, the Mermaids took in some culture, including the Colosseum, the Wedding Cake, the Trevi Fountain and actually ran in the Rome Marathon. Well, we ran across it, to get to an ice cream shop... :) After doing a spot of souvenir shopping, some of us went into a little cafe where we had THE most delicious Hot Chocolate ever.

Then we took the illustrious Metro to a great little restaurant, where we were treated to several courses of delicious Italian fare and a seemingly eternal supply of alcohol :) This was to supply the girls with a lifetime supply of memories, and supplied Kumari with several texts of quotes. Prize of the night would have to go to Loz, or Miguel as she is now known, for several hysterically funny moments, not least a rousing performance of the new Italian Anthem, by Abi, Loz and Kumari:

Today, we saw the Colosseum and the Typewriter,

It's also called the Wedding Cake

And then we went to the Pantheon.

We then ran through the Marathon,

And then we all had ice cream

Anna's got a new dad, who's also our best friend.

That last part is really a private joke... don't ask.

The night was eternal, a close eye had to be kept on Miguel, as she kicked over a lamp in Joely, Mwsh and Sarah's room, and stole their room key and hid in Kumari's pocket... completely by herself.

She eventually passed out, and there were a few snatched hours of sleep, before the Mermaids were on the move again, sadly this time on the way home.

After taking over the departures lounge, the Mermaids filed onto the plane home, and after Jill assaulted two strangers with Mint Humbugs the flight was relatively normal, aside from an iffy landing which sent most of the girls into peals of laughter, others into screams and a select few an interesting shade of green.

Thanks has to go to Chris, for being unbelievably generous to all of us. Also to Ann, for organising the whole tour. Louis and Jill, for keeping us all in check and amused with your various comments. Also to all the girls, for being amazing as normal :)

Mermaids + Rome = AMAZING :)

Congrats Ireland

2009-04-05T02:04:00.000-07:00

Okay.. obviously I'm disappointed with Wales' form and their subsequent loss of the championship and FOURTH place finish :

However, it's about time that Ireland won something, and they played an intelligent game throughout the 6N and they won even when they didn't play well. That's the mark of a good team, and a good coach - Go Declan Kidney! The leadership of Paul O'Connell and Brian O'Driscoll was top notch as well, they are both definite inclusions in the forthcoming Lions Squad announcement.

Okay, seriously?

2009-02-23T11:58:00.001-08:00

How many chances is Gavin Henson going to get? Am I the only one who thinks this is getting beyond a joke?

I mean, don't get me wrong; I think he's probably one of the most talented and exciting midfield players around. He's going down in history. Hell, he's going down in the media.

Drunk and Disorderly. This is not the first time. But there we are, I guess 'they' will deal with him as they see fit :)

The only real shame is I wasn't around when he started throwing this money around...

Kick-off

2009-02-08T11:57:00.001-08:00

England v Italy
I will never get those hours back. Oh My God. England were appalling. Harry Ellis gave it his all to be fair... Andy Goode had a somewhat shaky game. Probably my favourite England back Cueto had a pretty decent match, particularly in defence, and much as I hate him, Haskell wasn't too bad. Oh, wait, except for that IDIOTIC trip. WHY?
Poor old Mauro. Am I the only one who feels that Nick Mallett is clearly a blundering idiot, and should be (metaphorically, of course) shot? Mauro Bergamasco is one of Italy's finest players, and a damn efficient flanker. But he clearly does not have any scrum-half skills. Or forititude, for that matter. If it was me, and if I was that bad at number nine, I would have said "Look, here, Mr Mallett. What's your game? I can't do this. Put me back at 7." Or whatever that is in Italian. As sick as I am of all the media in the whole wide world harping on about Mauro's Monstrosity, there really isn't much else to say about the Italians. Hope they get better... :S

Ireland v France
Ahhh.. thank God. That's more like it. A truly great match between too truly great teams. Harinorduquy's opening try was well worked, and for a while it seemed that Ireland weren't going to have much of a reply. But then it exploded - the excellent Osprey Tommy Bowe set up No 8 Jamie Heaslip to step his way through the French backline to score in the shadow of the posts. Ireland had the upper hand, but clearly no one told France. Sea-Bass went on a frankly scary rampage, and showed some surprising pace to almost go all the way. Just after half time Brian O'Driscoll took us back in time and showed some of the old form the captain was renowned for - breaking through the French defence, brushing off a weak Beauxis-attempted tackle and diving under the posts. But France soon struck back with Maxime Medard snatching a chip over the defence from his fly half to score for France. Beauxis' second drop goal seemed to signify a trademark France last minute win, but a fabulous forward drive propelled Gordon D'Arcy, back from injury, over the line to score. Ronan O'Gara's third conversion of the night sealed a delicious victory for the men in green, searching for that elusive Grand Slam.

Scotland v Wales
Dear me. What a dangerous game, this rugby. Firstly, my thoughts are with Simon Webster and Geoff Cross - both of whom were injured in dangerous collisions with Martyn Williams and Lee Byrne, respectively. Byrne also at one stage looked to be rather woozy, after his head slammed into the Murrayfield turf. But he was as solid as ever under the high ball so seems to be fine. Wales showed why they are favourites for the competition with some gorgeous handling moves that resulted in Byrne offloading to Tom Shanklin to score, followed by terrific team play and an outstanding show from Wales' forwards allowing Alun Wyn Jones to power over the Scottish try line. Replacement Chris Paterson (another startling selection this weekend) kicked a penalty and came close to adding a superb solo effort try to the score sheet. But Wales held out, and the half ended with Stephen Jones adding his second penalty. Jamie Roberts played excellently throughout, possibly his best moment coming from his break through the Scottish midfield. The ball found its way to Shane Williams on the right wing, who cleverly ducked under Sean Lamont's tackle to offload a superb ball to Leigh Halfpenny, for the youngster to score in the corner. Wales' fourth try came from the Great Entertainer himself. Shane saw a gap on the try line and dived through, to score his 45th test try. Unfortunately Shane's next act was to allow the electric and amazing Maz Evans to shimmer past him and Lee Byrne to score a great try in the corner for the hosts. a good match, and an acceptable start for the reigning champions.

Six Nations

2009-02-04T13:46:00.000-08:00

Okay.. so it's been awhile :)

Firstly, I would like to express my disgust at the lack of Peel. Dwayne Peel, that is, in the Welsh squad. Even if he now plays his club rugby in England for Sale Sharks, he is nonetheless one of the greatest scrum-halves of all time, in my opinion. At least he's now in the squad, even though it was only as injury cover for Gareth Cooper, who, not too long ago was playing understudy to Peel. Curious these things.

Secondly, fair play to England for finally making some tough decisions and choosing wisely. Cipriani, although he has his moments, is completely over-rated. In time, he might well grow to become a Michalak-style fly-half. But at the moment he's a flashy, inexperienced liability. I've often wondered why the former-Leicester linchpin has been somewhat ignored for his country; he is solid, dependable and can produce some real magic moments. He has a huge boot on him, something which on paper should suit the traditionally 'boring' English way down to the ground. At long last Goode has been drafted into the England team to face the Azurri at Twickers.

Thirdly, how amazing is it that the Six Nations is back? And I think this could be one of the most evenly-matched tournaments in a while. Certainly, Wales deservedly go in as favourites, and of course I will be willing them the Grand Slam all the way; but I think

Scotland's club sides have been playing excellently in their various competitions, and with the Evans brothers and a strong mobile forward pack, maybe Murrayfield can get some of those tries it's been yearning for for the past two years.
Italy get stronger every year. Sergio Parisse, fresh from being nominated for IRB Player of the Year alongside Shane Williams and Dan Carter, is one of the best forwards in the world, and his lineout skills are renowned, equally his goal-dropping prowess.
England have a strong squad all round. Despite the untimely loss of Matt Stevens through Cocaine addiction, players like Ben Foden, Danny Care and Steffon Armitage will all be pushing hard for starts, alongside stalwarts Julian White, Mike Tindall and the excellent Mark Cueto.
Ireland's shining star, out-half Ronan O'Gara has been in typically scintillating form for Munster in the Heineken Cup and Magners League, and will be expected to carry on in this rich vein in the 6N.

I can't think of anyone more deserving of the IRB World Player of the Year gong than Amman man Shane Williams. He will go down in history as one of the most loved sporting characters of the generation. His tries (the ones against France and Ireland spring to mind) in last year's Six Nations were among the best we've seen for a while, and they definitely brought a lump to my throat and a tear to my eye. Complimented, of course, as most 'great' wingers are, by an astounding pack of eight and supported by one of the most talented backlines in world rugby, Williams was on fire particularly in the last season.

This tournament is going to be the best yet :)

2007-2008 Overview

2008-12-28T03:29:00.001-08:00

It's been an all round good year as far as Welsh Rugby's concerned, hasn't it? To begin with, a Grand Slam! And not only that, but one I was able to attend... doesn't get any better. It wasn't just the wins, either. It was the energetic, proud and exciting style of play the Welsh boys won with. And of course, Shane Williams breaking records and winning awards like there's no tomorrow. On behalf of EVERYONE, a big congratulations to the Welsh Sports Personality of the Year and the IRB Player of the Year. Two huge accolades and well deserved by Wales' leading try-scorer.

Sadly the Magners League Champions were not to be found in Wales this year, Cardiff Blues narrowly losing out to Leinster in the late-season battle for the top. A thoroughly enjoyable season, with highs and lows for all four regions. The Scarlets played some trademark scintillating rugby in the first half of the season - no result showing this more than the 52-23 routing of Leinster or the 35-17 win over the Blues, which saw them leapfrog them in the Magners Table. Towards the tail end of the season however, they seemed to drop off the pace somewhat with some disappointing results (Scarlets 12-29 Edinburgh, Connacht 20-18 Llanelli Scarlets). Phil Davies, director of rugby, was sensationally sacked by the region in April, after the disappointing results. Many fans, including myself, felt this was hugely unfair and terribly handled, as the previous season Phil had led the Scarlets to a Heineken Cup semi-final and some very respectable results.

The Dragons were fairly unlucky with their eventual league placement in eighth position, as they had won as many as sixth placed Scarlets, and lost one less. Some of their lacklustre performances though cost them bonus points, in an all too familiar story at Rodney Parade. Ironically, in the first match of the season the Dragons beat the Scarlets by 30-23 at Stradey Park. The Newport-Gwent team had a somewhat sporadic set of results there on in, including the following week a 13-40 thrashing by East Wales rivals the Blues. Wins against Ulster, Edinburgh and Leinster were eventually cancelled out by results such as Munster 45-19 Dragons, Ulster 38-13 Dragons and Leinster 41-8 Dragons.

Previous seasons' champs the Ospreys would no doubt have been disappointed with their 7th place finish, one below bitter rivals the Llanelli Scarlets and just beating the Newport Gwent Dragons into 8th. There were some impressive results, like the 37-7 home win over Connacht and the 32-7 defeat of Ulster, but frustrating losses against Connaght, Edinburgh and Ulster limited their overall tally. Towards the tail-end of the season, longterm successful Ospreys coach Lyn Jones stepped down. There had been some speculation about his position, as new positions such as performance director had been added above him, which he was rumoured to not be happy with.

Cardiff were the only region to end the league with a relatively comfortable position, only missing out on the top spot by 5 league points. Some big wins over the likes of Ulster, Edinburgh and Glasgow (30-17, 0-20, 32-16) secured a very respectable finish for the team. The Blues saw two of their stars, Leigh Halfpenny and Andy Powell, gaining worldwide recognition as they soared with the Welsh team in the Autumn Internationals.

The EDF Energy Cup saw the Ospreys emerge victorious at Twickenham after they overcame English big-guns Leicester Tigers 23-6. James Hook dominated, by pariticpating in both tries scored by Andy Bishop and Alun Wyn Jones, converting both scores and kicking three penalties in total. The Tigers had to make do with an Andy Goode penalty-drop goal combo as they crashed out in front of a largely Tigers crowd in the English capital.

Both the Ospreys and the Blues got into the semi-finals of the Heineken Cup, but unfortunately both lost out to strong opposition - The Ospreys going down 19-10 to English team Saracens, while The Blues were always underdogs against Kings Of Europe Toulouse, and eventually lost 41-17.

The Autumn Internationals were, overall, successful. I was lucky enough to have virtually front-row tickets to the first up, World Champions South Africa. It was a thoroughly enjoyable game to watch and the atmosphere was incredible. The common conception is that Wales should have won because South Africa only won by a small amount. Personally, while I agree that Wales should have played better than they did, I think South Africa would have kicked it up a level if Wales had played better. The Springboks are too good for Wales this year. Next year, I think there will be a very different outcome.
The Canada game was terribly disappointing. Gatland's relatively young fifteen played well in very, very short periods, seemingly unable to string together more than a few phases. Canada played very well and knew how to exploit Wales' weakneses. In the end Wales came out of a disappointing game 34-13 victors.
There is always a terrific atmosphere and hype about a Wales v New Zealand game, and this one was no exception. For me, there were two highlights - the stand Wales made against the Haka, that was the stuff of legend - and Stephen Jones' performance. The Welsh defence looked awesome, especially in the first half, and all in all Wales can be very proud of the performance, despite a 9-29 loss.
Gatland said in the build up to the Invesco Perpetual Series that Wales needed one Tri-Nations scalp, and they overcame Australia to get just that. Jamie Roberts' brave challenge on Stirling Mortlock cost him a fractured skull, but that physicality certainly laid down the gauntlet for the rest of the players. An early try from Shane Williams and one from the superb Lee Byrne laid down the groundwork for the excellent Stephen Jones to kick one conversion, two penalties and a drop goal to finish off the Wallabies. The match finished Wales 21-18 Australia, and the Millennium Stadium erupted.

Magners League Rugby

2008-09-17T11:19:00.001-07:00

Magners League 08-09 kicked off last weekend, the Welsh regions getting off to an overall positive start in all fairness; the Scarlets and Ospreys both winning against Irish opposition, the Blues securing a 12-12 draw with last season's champions Leinster and the Dragons just losing out to a strong Glasgow side.

Then followed the usual early season derby matches - beginning with Cardiff Blues versus the Ospreys. The capital city team were totally out gunned by the star-studded Ospreys side; 4 tries to 1, in a performance that will have delighted Sean Holley and crowd, worried Dai Young and company and probably induced a mixture of the two for Gats and his cronies.

Then the next day came another East v West grudge match, the Scarlets paid a visit to Rodney Parade. The Dragons seemed to have the game in the bag for the first half, leading at the break 25-6. But the Scarlets, true to previous form, played some Wales-esque flowng stuff and scored 19 points to just pip the Gwent outfit at the post.

Speaking of, poor Paul Turner eh? I mean, nice guy, but he just looks so miserable. My head hurts, my feet stink, somebody shot my dog... But then again, I would probably look like that if I had the catastophic curse over my team he seems to have. Poor guy.

Then came the very close-run victory for the 'Dream Team' over Glasgow at Ravenhill. In my opinion the Scottish side have come on leaps and bounds and were really unlucky not to get the win, but fair play to the Ospreys for digging in and getting the score right at the death.

Cardiff Blues then played Ulster at home; in a very fetching Fuschia kit that somewhat contradicts their name but nevertheless is awesome... where was I? Oh yeah. I thought the Blues played one hell of a lot better than their last match, and excellently considering it was their third match in three days or something ridiculous like that. Leigh Halfpenny was a sensation in his first full appearance for the region (even though it wasn't a full appearance as he had to be carried off following a nasty cut to his face). It was also great to see Chris Czekaj back playing after the horrific injury to his knee last summer in Australia.

The Scarlets (now minus the Llanelli in their name) ran away with the last Magners League match at Stradey against Connacht 45-3. 7 tries in all, the atmosphere was great at the legendary ground. But you have to feel for Connacht, the team equivalent of Paul Turner it would seem; I thought the referee could have given their try just for pity's sake, it wasn't a bad effort in all fairness.

Well, the Dragons... what to say? A 50-6 defeat says it all, I think. In the words of their talismanic coach 'the floodgates' opened. I'll say.

It probably seems like I have it in for Coach Turner and his band of merry men, but to be honest it's just that I can't see how the WRU can deny North Wales a region when one of the ones it endorses is performing this way.

National 10s Tournament

2008-09-17T11:19:00.000-07:00

Colwyn Bay Mermaids were the only team representing North Wales at last weekend’s National 10s Tournament. After a very early start the girls endured a gruelling journey through all the windy roads to Llandovery, which resulted in nearly everyone feeling very ill indeed!
Without even playing a game Abi Beards, one of the most experienced Mermaids players had to be taken to hospital with stomach pains. Several players were carrying injuries, but had to play as the squad was just 13 players.

The opening match was against established side Newport; sporting several former East Wales U17 players. The word was that Newport were a strong scrummaging side. The Mermaids were nervous going into the match as their scrummaging skills and the front five had not yet been put to the test and were hampered by injuries. However they gave a creditable display and Sarah Johnston, who has been a reluctant No 2 held her own against her opposite. Emma Beaumont scrimmaged in the front row for the first time, joining Ellen (Mwsh) Jones and they held their own against the Newport front row. The Mermaids’ defence was exceptionally strong throughout the match. They were able to defend their try line time and again, preventing what would normally have been certain tries. From this defensive base Emma and Jane Owen made excellent line breaks giving Colwyn Bay the upper hand for a lot of the match. Colwyn Bay’s tries were scored by Sarah Johnston and Ellie Rawicki, with Yasmin Leung adding one conversion. There was some confusion about the score, with both teams and the spectators believing the win belonged to the Mermaids, but the referee ruled a 12-12 draw.

Jade Mills and Kumari Tilakawardane had to miss the second match against Neath through injury. The Neath game was one the Mermaids knew would be tough, the West Wales team being renowned for hard play. Colwyn Bay played hard and impressed both the opposition and the spectators, Ellen ‘Mwsh’ Jones played particularly well. The Mermaids on their own broke away twice only to be stopped close to the try line by excellent cover defence by Neath. The score at 30-0 didn’t reflect the Mermaids’ hard work and great defence.

The final U18 game was against Cardigan, who combined with Newport to complete a team. The match was very closely fought, with some good attacking play from the Mermaids. The first half ended 10-0 to Cardigan though the Mermaids vowed to fight back and they did just that, Sarah Johnston scoring a great try under the posts just after the break. Immediately after Kumari was unlucky to be hauled down just before the try line after a fantastic break by Joely Benton.

The players all want to congratulate Loz McGee on her first rugby match, for playing so well and making several important tackles. The coach and manager’s joint players of the tournament were Anna Parkin for tackling non-stop and being constantly in support and Loz for such a fantastic debut.

After the tournament there was a regional presentation, with North Wales U18 squad members Joely Benton, Sarah Johnston, Anna Parkin, Emma Beaumont, Jane Owen, Abi Beards and Kumari Tilakawardane receiving their badges. Congratulations also to Amelia Stubbs, former U17 Mermaid, who was awarded North Wales U14 Player of the Year.

Heineken Cup 2008-09

2008-07-12T06:01:00.001-07:00

The Pools have been drawn. There's no going back now. This season's Heinkeken Cup was won by crowd-favourites Munster, who defeated Kings of Europe Toulouse at the Millennium Stadium. So who looks good to emulate them this soming season?

POOL 1: Munster, Sale Sharks, ASM Clermont Auvergne, Montauban
POOL 2: London Wasps, Leinster, Castres Olympique, Edinburgh
POOL 3: Leicester Tigers, Perpignan, Ospreys, Benetton Treviso
POOL 4: Stade Français Paris, Llanelli Scarlets, Ulster Rugby, Harlequins
POOL 5: Toulouse, Bath Rugby, Newport Gwent Dragons, Glasgow Warriors
POOL 6: Biarritz Olympique, Gloucester Rugby, Cardiff Blues, Rugby Calvisano

Seeing as Munster have just won it for the second time, they have to be favourites for Pool 1 at the moment. Clermont are a good side, however, and with some new additions in Luke McAllister and Dwayne Peel the Sharks will be looking to make a splash.

Wasps have played some excellent rugby in the past season or two, but the question being asked is is the loss of the talismanic Lawrence Dallaglio too much for the London team to deal with in Pool 2, especially with the challenges of Leinster, Edinburgh and Castres?

Pool 3 has to be one of the contenders for the 'Pool of Death' tag. Leicester are perrenial European heavyweights and can never be written off, but the Ospreys have challenged the Tigers and pushed them close recently, and are eager to better their quarter-final position last time round. Perpignan are always a threat too.

The Llanelli Scarlets, as has happened every year they have appeared in the tournament in living memory, have ended up in a difficult pool. They have stylish French outfit Stade Francais to deal with, who will be hoping it's third time lucky as they have been runners up twice. Ulster and Harlequins will be tough opposition also in Pool 4.

Toulouse, as per usual, will begin the campaign quite high up on the favourites list. They have been drawn in Pool 5 with the impressive Guinness Premiersip outfit Bath, and the somewhat faltering Magners League sides Glasgow and the Dragons.

And the final pool is also pretty difficult to call. Biarritz, Gloucester and Cardiff have all given impressive accounts of themselves in 2007-08 Heineken Cup and their respective domestic championships, while Calvisano are widely regarded as the best Italian club side.

The challenge for the Heineken Cup 2008-09 looks to be one of the most entertaing, nail-biting and thrilling yet. Stay tuned!

Summer Tours

2008-07-12T05:36:00.001-07:00

Ahh it's that time of year again. Time for those early bleary-eyed Sky Sports viewings. Summer Tours. 2008 saw England go to New Zealand, Scotland to Argentina, Ireland to New Zealand and Australia and Wales journey to South Africa.

None of those destinations are particularly easy tasks, in fact, they're all bloody hard. But that's what touring's all about, right?

Scotland won one and lost one on their trip to famously-physical Argentina. The reviews of the Scots were generally positive, particularly after the second test. Things seem to be looking up for Hadden and co. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pVLHfQ3cN9I

Ireland were possibly the best performed Northern Hemisphere side on their tour. They lost by 10 points to the All Blacks and by 6 points to the Wallabies. But despite two losses on the scoresheet, the side performed admirably, and there's definitely big things to come from a few - notably Rob Carney and Denis Leamy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Kaxr5XM79TM

Wales went to World Champions South Africa to try and knock them off their pedastal in their own back yard. Lacking several first-team regulars, Wales werre always underdogs, and the first test certainly didn't go to plan. They were pretty heavily beaten 43-17, but the two tries were created from positive phases of play, so all is not lost. The Second test was much more productive for Wales and in my humble opinion one of the greatest tries ever was scored by Shane Williams. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mHxVICdWz-I The scoreline slightly flattered the Boks this time, 37-21.

Ahh, England's summer tour to New Zealand. Well as far as England are concerned, the rugby was nothing to shout about. Something to scream about maybe. Not great performances, it has to be said, from the World Cup finalists. The First Test was 37-20, the All Blacks outscoring the team in white by 4 tries to 2. The Second Test was 44-12, a tad more comprehensive. But let's face it.. no-one really remembers the rugby on this tour. And that's why I think the whole fracas afterwards was just a cunning ruse (not something we would normally associate with this team but hey) to detract from the woeful playing down under. Playing rugby, that is. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w782aoJMdBE&feature=related
The tales of what went on there are well documented, very well documented. It has recently emerged that the four players questioned in conenction with the wohle affair were Danny Care, David Strettle, Mike Brown and Topsy Ojo. Apparently Strettle and Care were only witnesses who walked in on Godk-knows-what, but surely that begs the question why was Strettle subsequently dropped from the England XV and sent to the Saxons with Ojo and Brown while Care remained? Who knows. And then, just as that was beginning to get to be old news, Mike Tindall pleads guilty to Drink Driving. Good God. What ever is the world coming to? :)

Grand Slam!

2008-04-14T13:28:00.000-07:00

There are no words.. 19th March 2008, Day of the Dragon! Atmosphere in Cardiff.. on the train to Cardiff, absolutely buzzing.

Typical 'Welsh' weather in Cardiff, dismal, cold and raining.. but that couldn't dampen the spirit. Singing, laughter, on French and Welsh faces. French supporters buying Welsh hats and scarfs, every cafe within a 3 mile radius of the capital crammed with people.

You could tell the day was something special as you approached the stadium, even 2 hours before kick-off. Thousands and thousands of people milling around the streets, and when the Welsh team bus arrived, you would swear it was the full 72 thousand fans stood there cheering it on. As they passed, my dad turned to me and said 'just imagine what they're thinking.. where were all these buggers when we were losing?' Well, in answer to that, most of us were still there, cheering the bloody bus on, in the freezing cold, sweltering hot, and just generally crappy weather.

Inside the stadium is something I swear I will never forget. You could barely breathe, the air was that thick. Never before have I heard that amount of noise, anywhere, let alone just in the stadium before. I'm sure there were at least 3 red shirts for every blue, but whether or not they were the French I saw buying Welsh souveniers I don't know. We went through the rounds of Delilah, Bread of Heaven, Calon Lan and so on, and all the usual pre-match formalities. But there was something unusual about this day.

Despite some awesome play from the Welsh boys, the early exchanges were merely penalites from Hook and Skrela. The magic moment of the entire tournament came from an uncharacteristic mistake from Yannick Jauzion. He spilled the ball just inside his own half, and Shane Williams pounced. I firmly believe I had the best seats in the house for this game, and I saw everything as Shaney ran towards me, lightning quick. He hacked the ball on twice, and when it just rebounded off the post pad into his arms - we knew. So much noise, so much emotion. Amazing moment.

But the moment I truly knew for sure the Grand Slam was won came shortly after this. France had an attacking scrum on the 5-metre line. They were pushed off the ball by the magnificent Welsh pack. It was then that the Grand Slam was well and truly won. There were two Stephen Jones penalties and a Yachvilli one, before Mark Jones set off on a mesmerising run almost the whole way up the pitch only to be stopped inches from immortality. But the final nail in France's coffin came from the superb Man-Of-The-Match Martyn Williams. He picked the ball up from the base of a ruck and scooted through to score, just yards from me again!

The celebrations that ensued were chaotic, loud, emotional, but overall Welsh.

Stranger Than Fiction.

2008-03-12T14:47:00.001-07:00

England. Deary me, Brian, such a pickle.
If I remember correctly, I used something along the lines of 'Never a dull moment doesn't really begin to describe Gavin Henson's life does it?' in the snippet about Charlotte Church's other half. Well Danny Cipriani seems to be carving out a similar reputation for himself.

First there was the infamous 'Danny Cipriani Slept With A Man' tabloid story, which gave me hours of endless amusement, I can tell you. For those of you uncultured birds who don't know about the story I shall give you a brief low-down.

So apparently 'Cips' (quite inventive those fellows down at Wasps) was 'in a relationship' with one or other - or both? - of the Cheeky Girls.. those talented musicians born in Transylvania. You know the ones, who sing those cerebrally-challenging songs like 'The Cheeky Song (Touch My Bum)' and 'Hooray Hooray (Have a Cheeky Holiday)'. Uh huh. So this story isn't boding so well for young Danny, is it?
Anyway, then a story broke about Cipriani, 20, taking a model named Larissa Summers to a Ramada Inn. Fine, fine. Then, a week later, BAM! Turns out Larissa used to go by the moniker Darren Pratt, and had a bit of male genitalia, and transformed Cinderella-esque after going under some sort of knife.

Must have come as quite a shock to poor ol' Cips.

And then Brian Ashton, who once hailed him as the 'Future Of English Rugby', rather than 'Danny Cipriani Who Slept With A Man', would have you believe Cipriani is a drunk. As if we didn't already think that based on his choice of conquests.

Well, turns out Danny was merely handing some tickets over to an acquaintance at this nightclub he was pictured leaving at 1 am. You know, how you do.

And then Cipriani was dropped because of 'inappropriate behaviour'. Really. Inappropriate maybe, but for his brief time with Larissa rather than his meander through the streets of London!

Then, to bring you back to the present day, Cipriani has now been selected ahead of Wilkinson, the one who single handedly won England the 2003 W.C (nice abbreviation yeah?). Funny how everything works out.

Darren Pratt must know someone.

Croked

2008-03-12T14:29:00.000-07:00

The so-called 'Croke Park Factor' was eliminated, by Shane Williams' 'X Factor', as Ieuan Evans, quite the wizard himself, put it.

The Welsh went to Dublin as underdogs, despite the fact that they had won their last three matches, two pretty emphatically it has to be said. Personally, I missed the live coverage of the match, during a netball tour in Glasgow.. so had to make do with updates from several reliable sources.
'Wales losing 6-3 at half time' came the text, after two missed calls from a die-hard Welsh fan. Things weren't looking great. But I still had a feeling in the pit of my stomach telling me not to despair.. I felt things would be looking up.
'Phillips sin-binned cos some ******* Irish idiot held the ball'. Or not.

'M Williams sin-binned.' Crap.

And then.. through the Scotch mist..

'Shane try! Wales 6-10!'

And from then on I was certain. Wales, Triple Crown, pending Grand Slam decider. Does it get any better? Perhaps we could wish for someone other than France to play against. They are the definition of flair. But then again they are also the definition of 'unpredictable' too, so who knows - to use an annoying commentator cliché - which France will turn up.
I can tell you this though, oh wisened readers.. it sure as hell will be a nerve-wracking watch. And for those enough BLESSED enough to have coveted tickets, it will be almost unbearable, I'm sure.

Gatland. Howley. Edwards. McBryde. The list is endless I'm sure of people who have helped all this happen, and I'll wait until this time next week to go on one of my rants =]

BRING ON THE FRENCH!! COME ON WALES!

The Italian Job

2008-02-26T10:50:00.000-08:00

Step 3, complete. A fine performance by Wales earned them their third victory in the RBS Six Nations last weekend, witnessed by yours truly. A remarkable afternoon, not particularly enamoured with the staff at the Milliennium Stadium, but hey, even their incompetence couldn't spoil what was a marvellous win for Wales.

A tentative start, as per normal, was nonetheless made up for by five tries, all conerted, and with 4 penalties to boot. Or, to Stephen Jones' boot. After Wales had all the ball and all the territory, it came as a slight surprise when the Azzuri got the first try of the game - a botched up lineout, a la Rees, and over popped Martin Castrogiovanni, the thunderous prop, duly awarded by way of TMO.

Mr Dave Pearson was at his scintillating best, almost outdoing himself on 17 minutes, when Dwayne Peel put Ian Evans into acres of space, who promptly offloaded to Shanks, who looked over the hills and far away, when Mark Jones falls, and is determined to have held back that curly-headed Bergomasco (the one in the backs). Ahh well, good ol' Dave and the Italians got their rewards later. Forty seven point later. *Evil Laugh*

A few good minutes for Italy before the Welsh first begin. Lee Byrne continued his hot form, running like his boots were on fire over the line for the first Welsh try of the afternoon. But, the Italians play some great stuff for the remainder of the first half, keeping Wales at bay, so the half time score is 13-8.

Second half, different story. Unfortunately Peely left the field with an injury, but Phillips does more than just fill the void, and Wales score 4 more tries, the next coming from the legend that is Tom Shanklin, on his 50th appearance for Wales, who picks out a telegraphed Masi pass in midfield, and sprints home. Jonesey converts.

Next thing you know, the one and only Shane Williams is clear for his first of the day, as Stephen Jones hits a lovely angle and one pass to Shaney, job done. Jonesy converts.

Twelve minutes later, all change. Jonesey exits and Hook enters. Oh no, not all change, Wales are still scoring! Lee Byrne in for his second from 50 + metres, and sets the Millennium Stadium alight.

Credit must go to the forwards, particularly the back row, who have been consistent so far this tournament. Martyn Williams needs no introduction, Ryan Jones is captain and Jonathon Thomas has continued his upward spiral of form and his workload is gigantic. The front-row held their own against a renowned Italy pack and the two Ians were everywhere.

Hook converts, and the next one n'all, this the second in Shane Williams' brace. Fantastic dancing feet, as per usual, does not allow the Italians to add to their tackle count, which is already above 120.

47-8, job done in Cardiff, and the celebrations begin in style in Cardiff for the night.

A Great Colwyn Day!

2008-02-10T11:00:00.000-08:00

Colwyn Bay U17 Mermaids travelled to Bangor on Sunday morning to play a friendly match against Bangor. There were some attempts at jokes when spectators realised the Bay were sponsored by ‘Food Glorious Food’, a local catering company, and Bangor by the Aga shop. This turned out to be apt, as the Mermaids certainly were cooking on gas! Also the ref was sponsored by Warburton’s bread – so it was a veritable ‘feast’ of rugby

Straight from kick off Colwyn Bay threatened, and after a few phases, borrowed U14 Mermaid Ellie Evans ran clear for the first try of the morning. The Mermaids had virtually all the possession, but didn’t make quite the use of it they would have hoped, only scoring another 3 tries in the first half; a great bursting run from the captain Joely Benton, a well worked try scored by second row Abi Beards, and one from scrum-half Anna Parkin.

In the latter half, Colwyn Bay allowed Bangor to field an extra two players for game practice, and when Bangor were awarded a penalty early on, it seemed their over-lap would pay off, until the Mermaids turned the ball over and Sarah Johnston broke through to score beneath the posts. A second for Ellie Evans soon followed, and winger Emily Jones was very unlucky not to score a try moments later. This was made up for, however, when Ellie Rawicki scored a Shane Williams-esque try in the corner. Several good rucks for the Bay awarded Anna Parkin her second try of the day, and Kumari Tilakawardane was denied another try for the Mermaids due to a high tackle. Jane Owen kicked excellently; converting 5 of the 8 tries, and Sarah Johnston in the unfamiliar role of hooker won all the scrums, both Colwyn Bay’s and Bangor’s put ins.
Credit must go to Bangor, who have improved significantly since the last time the two teams met, at the beginning of the season. All in all, a rewarding trip for the Mermaids, who played a great game 10 against 12, winning the game 50-0. An excellent Colwyn Day.

Not really much of a match, but a nice score to have. This really higlights the need for better facilities and coaching for rugby in North Wales, not just girls' rugby!

Thistle While you Work..

2008-02-10T01:24:00.000-08:00

And so Wales march on to the third round, with 2 wins out of 2! Now shame on all you doubters after the 62-5 defeat to England last year! Shame!

The foundations were laid out by Henry and Hansen, the walls by Mike Ruddock, the decor by Gareth Jenkins and now the finer points of engineering by Gatland.

Great matchday ambience in Cardiff on Saturday, all the fans in fine voice, the Brains flowing, and daffodils and kilts every which way you looked! The Wales team bus was greeted by an army of red shirts, and Warren Gatland, the King of Cool, even looked mildly apprehensive when faced with this shrieking hoarde. My mother proudly testifies that Stephen Jones smiled at her while she jumped up and down and waved a huge inflatable daffodil. I informed her that if I was in the great man's situation, with some crazy woman brandishing an oversized plant in my face, I might smile nervously too.

In the first moment of the game I thought the men in red were going to absolutely sprint away with it, but they made bloody hard work of the game, and seriously, James Hook.. Judging by the people sat around me.. well they were becoming stressed, to say the least. Some of the quotes are not fit for your delicate eyes, so I will keep them for personal entertainment.
"Get him off! Bring Jonesey on! He's wearing blue, butt. He's a Scot!" Hook is hugely, impossibly, ginormously talented and has a flipping astronomical future ahead (or so I've heard!), but he needs to stop panicking and passing the ball to Scottish folk =] He's fine to just play his normal game - he's streets ahead of most people anyways. But the majority of the first fifteen largely contributed to the rise in sweat gland production in Wales yesterday.. but the substitutes once again made a hell of an impact. Peel, Jonesey, Jenkins, Rees and Delve were all pretty immense when they came on. But there were the usual 3 stand out performers for me, Martyn Williams (actually the whole back row were pretty great for Wales), Shane Williams and Mike Phillips, who is rapidly making the place his own, despite a well played twenty minutes from Peel.

But the match was pretty much as I'd expected, and the most exciting moment came when there was a technical error and the scoreboard read 'Wales 230 Scotland 12'.
But it's darn annoying now that everyon'e saying that Wales won because of a 'dubious Shane Williams try'. I didn't actually notice it to be dubious, and if they have to go over footage 6 times with a fine toothed comb then surely that's against the spirit of the game? And anyway, is everyone completely illiterate? Even without the resulting 7 points, Wales still would have won comfortably by 23-15.

But this is what happens..

On a positive, the Ireland and France game was truly a spectacle, both teams showing just what they can do, attacking wise, and Ireland unlucky not to get the win. France are once again a force to be reckoned with, but is that good or bad news?

Second Round

2008-02-08T14:01:00.000-08:00

They're already talking of 'Second-Match Syndrome', as Wales have suffered from before. But a win tomorrow against the Scots would be just what the doctor ordered.

With several players ruled out through injury, there were 3, yes, 3, changes to the Wales team line-up for the match tomorrow. Jamie Roberts comes in, to win his first cap, in place of Mark Jones, Tom Shanklin plays a long-overdue part in place of Sonny Parker, and Alun Wyn Jones is replaced by team-mate Ian Evans. The men in blue are also shorn of several key players, including Rory Lamont and the excellent Simon Webster, so it oculd be said that neither team has a completey first choice starting XV.

If I was an opinionated person, I could bring up my usual Osprey rant right about now. But I'm clearly not, so I won't. Well, maybe just a little. Now there are slightly more Blues in the team, but no Scarlets or Dragons. The fact that half the 'best team in Wales' can't even get into the Osprey's first fifteen doesn't really make a great statement to me. But what do I know? Then again, at least one Neath-Swansea first team member will be playing on Saturday. Nikki Walker, that big bloke wearing 14 for Scotland.

There's quite an array of predictions rolling around for this one, and it promises to be an interesting, if not totally exhilarating game. Wales are desparate to banish any Jones-esque As Long As We Beat the English thoughts, and Scotland need to drastically up their game from last week's drubbing to a well-oiled France. Both nations are after the elusive win tomorrow, and at the ned of the day it all comes down to which group of supporters gets more drunk and sings louder.

Hate to say I told you so... Actually no. I love it.

2008-02-07T10:15:00.000-08:00

Well well well. As immortalised by the legendary Kelly Jones, As Long as We Beat the English, we don't care. And although it's tempting to say "Yep, job done, that's a wrap.." etc etc, it's important Gatland and co. don't do that. Next step, Grand Slam 2008.

New year, new coaches, not partiularly a new team, but pretty new belief. This will either crash and burn or succeed. Theoretically, it should be all or nothing after all the stuff that's happened in the past. But I have a feeling, this time, a little more patience will be shown, and in a few weeks time we'll all sit back and smile. Not only did Wales BEAT ENGLAND , but they won their other matches too (fingers crossed - especially as I['m going to all the home matches!!)

Aaaaanyway, to the glorious match of last Saturday. After a less than convincing win from Ireland, big stuff was expected from the old compatriots Wales and England. To be honest, the first half was pretty awful. England were made to look half decent by the bloody awful play Wales created. Or didn't create.

And then half time rolled around. And Gatland, Edwards and Howley presumably did their thing. And they brought the Super Subs on. What an impact. Popham, Jenkins, Shanklin Evans.. Mike Phillips played a blinder, and because of this has retained the coveted number 9 shirt for the second week in a row. Something he can't actually seem to do at club level, but hey. He deserves the start just for his reaction to the final whistle.

Does it get any better? What a game. What a result. Hopefully a tournament to match. If you're English than sorry. Take that to mean whatever you want :)

And So It Begins...

2008-01-30T10:32:00.000-08:00

And so as Rhydian Roberts gains a first class degree in music from Birmingham City University, Warren Gatland names his first Wales team. Which also happens to be the first Wales team since the 40s that has one club providing players in the amount of double figures. But the question is, will this be the first win for the men in red at Twickers for 20 years?

Now, as one or two of you more astute ones may have noticed, I'm not exactly a huge Ospreys fan - this is because, as a person from the Scarlet's 'region' I'm genetically designed to loathe them =] I don't however, just a healthy amount of rivalry.. and I'm not stupid enough to ignore the fact that they have accquired an impressive number of International stars and now have a pretty complete team. Or two. However, my qualm is that in my opinion, although they have a collection of people the UN would be proud of, they haven't performed to the best of their ability, or anywhere near to it.

I've always admired and respected Lyn Jones, as one of the few coaches in modern times to have a genuine sense of humour (and obviously an eye for talent). And I do think that all the criticism of him has been a bit unfair - although nothing in the league of Gareth Jenkins' or Stephen Jones'. If you had a job at the richest, biggest and most commercial club side in the Principality then you would be sweating a bit when it came to selections too. I know I've already harped on about Richie Pugh and don't worry, I won't subject you, kind reader, to that again. But it is an issue.

But anyway.. I do think that 13 of the feathered kind is a little excessive. 13 Ospreys, 1 Blue and 1 Scarlet on the 'hallowed turf of Twickenham'. Now, we can listen to the spiel about picking the 'on form players' in Wales, or we can examine facts. Facts! Facts! I hear you cry. Well, although tis true that the Neath Swansea outfit are hanging in there in the quarters of the Heineken Cup (the premier rugby club tournament in Europe), so are the Blues. And it is the Blues who are blowing away competitors, commentators and compatriots all at once with their breathtaking brand of rugby, akin to that played by the Scarlets in previous seasons. So I have to wonder, why the world's greatest flanker, Martyn Williams, isn't joined by any of his teammates from the capital on the teamsheet. Surely Gethin Jenkins, who was Welsh captain not too long ago, could be squeezed into the tighthead berth? And don't even get me started on the rest of the team. Obviously most of it is justified - Shane Williams, Jonathon Thomas, Mike Phillips, Ryan Jones, Gavin Henson.. Okay so I don't have much of a point. But SOME of it is debatable. Sure.

But, I shall reserve judgement (from here onwards) until Sunday. When I shall have to put up with an inordinate amount of gloating and arguing as Joely and Anna, our proud England supporters, turn up for the long bus ride to Llanidloes for the North Wales v East Wales girls fixture, should Gatland's first attempt return unsuccessful. But it's all part of the fun.. and part of the price we pay for supporting Wales. I have a feeling in me bones though.. but wouldn't want to jinx it! Allez les Rouges!

Farewell to another Scarlet Legend

2008-01-15T08:53:00.000-08:00

Just a few months after the untimely departure of Ray Gravell, the Llanelli Scarlets (and maybe Wales?) have lost a Scarlet stalwart in Dwayne Peel, long hailed the best scrum half in the world. It was announced today, just days after the story was in the Wales on Sunday newspaper, that he is moving to north-England club Sale Sharks at the end of the season.

Now, as a huge Scarlets fan, I'm bitterly upset and disappointed. But as a Peel and rugby fan, I think it's quite possibly the right choice to leave the club. Peel's name has become synonymous with Llanelli, and rightly-so. He has been at Llanelli since he was 16, and has been a regular Scarlets first team player since the region's inception. He is, or was, in my opinion one of the greatest scrum-halves. But recently his form had seemed to have dropped, and a range of injuries has limited his playing time. Maybe a move to a n ew club, and a new league will help him.

“My move’s not about money as the deal to stay at Llanelli was similar to that offered by Sale – it’s about the fact that, not having lived outside Wales, I’d like to experience life in another country for a short period.” he said.

Umm... experience life in another country? Ok, granted, many of us would like to say that England and Wales are a world apart. But seriously, life in Wales and England these days really isn't that different. Fair enough if he had moved to France or something...

The real difference will be in the rugby he plays there. There's been a lot of public scrutiny about the Magners League in recent months, and I do feel that the standard has slipped since it changed from just the Celtic League! Supposedly the Guinness Premiership is more competitive, so we'll see.

The switch is also very interesting because of the recent 'Peel Law' as it has been dubbed, named after our own Dwayne, not just some weird variation on 'Lemon Law'. Warren Gatland's suggestion to those open-mided fellows down at the WRU was taken happily with both hands. That is, that no player who moves to a club outside of Wales will be selected for Wales duty. Or will be 'frowned upon. Oh God.

And this is supposedly for the good of Welsh rugby. I for one don't think this will be the case. Sure, in some ways, it will highlight the obvious fact that there are foreign players taken up spaces of Welsh jersey candidates. My only example will be that of Richie Pugh at the Hairspreys. The guy called 'The Next Richie McCaw' was kept out of the team, the squad, and eventually the club, as he was sent on a loan to 1st Division side London Welsh. All this because Lyn Jones and his cash-flashing friends decided to bring in an ex-All Black for every game. I don't have any objection to bringing Marty Holah in, but why does that mean no inclusion for the 'Welsh McCaw'? Do they not know about alternating down at the Liberty?

But this whole new rule thing is surely stopping the development in Wales? My example here will be Stephen Jones. His spell at France brought him back to Wales as one of the best fly-halfs in Britain. His kicking, vision and tactical game came on leaps and bounds, and he was still selected for the Red Dragons the whole time he was in Montferrand. There weren't many complaints when he was playing at his best either. Plus, thanks to various 'big-wigs' there are only 4 regions in Wales, due to the unfortunate closure of the Celtic Warriors and the refusal to form any sort of team or establishment whatsoever in North Wales. that means, at the very unlikely maximum, there can only be 60 Welsh players playing first team rugby a week.

But then, with the WRU incharge of the rugby in this country, what hope do we really have in the long run?

I'm sure, of course, this will give ample opportuity to dump long-serving and long-suffering Stephen Jones from the plans. There will be a big speech about how the half-back pairing of Jones and Peel has been broken up, and as such they can't play for Wales together. And when that happens you may read my blog, reminding any bemused souls that Jonesey was still picked with Dwayne while he played in France. But then again, they'll do anything to get rid of Stephen Jones. Who, for my two cents' worth, is a better all round stand-off than the illustrious James Hook, who is still, no doubt, extremely talented. But ahh well...

*Statement from WRU*

The Welsh Rugby Union has been informed by Llanelli Scarlets that Dwayne Peel is leaving Wales to play his rugby in England.
The WRU wish Dwayne well and thank him for his contribution to Welsh rugby. The WRU were aware of the impending move last week prior to the announcement of a proposed new strategy to regard the location of any player as an important factor in international selection.
The WRU stands by its policy of supporting the four Welsh regions in their development and retention of players from Wales.

Interpret it how you will, folks...

Gavin, Hairspreys and Drunken Train Journeys...

2007-12-05T10:24:00.000-08:00

Never a dull moment doesn't even begin to describe Gavin Henson's life really does it? So blah-de-blah he played and got dropped by Hansen and Henry... then he got selected by Ruddock, played superbly in GS05, won the Celtic League with the Hairspreys, got selected for the Lions, was part of the infamous staged picture incident, got injured and didn't play all that much. Fought back to full fitness, played for the Hairspreys (for a few months) and then was promptly cited for elbowing Alex Moreno of the Leicester Tigers. God knows Leicester haven't ever elbowed or physically harmed an opponent. So he then went to court to contest his suspension (of sum odd 10 weeks) and got it reduced to seven. Whooooo result. October 2005... jeeeez 'My Grand Slam Year' first surfaces... interesting to say the least.

First of all March-October ain't a year, mate.

Second, no one in their right mind would write a big ol' book slagging off their Wales coaches, team-mates, people he's going to play against...

Thirdly, I'm ashamed to say I bought it. And read it. And found it thouroughly enjoyable. So the book was sold, read, and discussed (rapidly and at length) throughout Wales, Britain, and I'm sure Gav will tell you, the entire God-known universe, and eventually Alfie Thomas and his chums got around to reading it. And they didn't find it quite their cup of tea. So they asked Gavin to apologise. He did, and no more was said...

Oh except for the part where Alfie refused to have a press conference because Graham Thomas was there. And Graham had written a quite lengthy and flattering piece about Henson in some matchday programme or other. But let us not forget, these are professional sportsmen, adults, representing our country. Reassuring, isn't it?

Anyway, Wikipedia has it 'Following this suspension and a single game at club level, he returned to international rugby against Ireland but did not shine.' Personally, I don't think 'did not shine' even begins to describe it. I won't go into details, but Gav himself said, cheerfully "I was pretty down after the game, more depressed this morning. Suicidal. The last thing I want to do is play rugby at the moment, I feel like walking away from it - but I'll be fine when I get back out training tomorrow." Ohh that's good news then.

Good old Gar Jenks didn't select Henson for the 2007 RWC, based on unproved fitness and stuff. Good decision? Who am I to comment?! Gavin himself is pretty well publicised, and his relationship with Charlotte Church (Dosh & Pecs), their daughter Ruby Megan and his various ventures into advertising. He doesn't have much of an expressive face, in my opinion... but then I'm sure the point of those adverts wasn't for people to look at his face anyway... that would just be silly.

And now, for (possibly) the big finale, Gav's decided to get completely wrecked, go on a train journey from London to somewhere in Wales, and basically make a show of himself =) for a change.

According to a passenger, a 44-year-old schoolteacher; "They were playing a card game with forfeits, the most significant was that they had to drink one and a half bottles of beer and if they didn’t Gavin Henson clenched his fist and he hit them in the face. Another boy said afterwards he was desperate for a pee and did it on the floor. A lady started speaking to them and they became abusive.
“Then I felt I had to intervene and they began swearing at me, using the ‘f’ word, the ‘c’ word, and they called one lady a ‘fat bitch’.
“Their seats were soaked and they spat on the table. Some forfeits included holding their heads back and pouring beer down each other’s throats.”

So it's good news all round then... no harm done. Or is it?

“It’s important that people know we will deal with it internally only. We are obviously going to look into it, as we would with any incident involving any of our players," said Ospreys' irector of Rugby Kevin Hopkins. “But it’s something we will deal with privately and internally because Gavin is an employee of ours.”

Gav has since been training with the rest of the Hairspreys, so as not to set a bad example for any budding rugby players.

And, to finish, just a quick quote on the matter from one of the more likeable Hairsprey characters, Head Coach Lyn Jones. “I haven’t a clue what’s gone on to be quite frank."

It's good to know the proper people are dealing with this. He is quite simply one of the most talented centres in the world at the moment, as as soon as he is back playing for Wales and the Ospreys the better!

Rugby for today!

2007-11-16T09:27:00.000-08:00

Grav's funeral on Thursday got me thinking. Sure, he was a rugby player. Yes, he did TV broadcasting. But he was a person. A great, great person.

Aaaaaanyway. Back to the Mermaids. It's the Big One again this weekend. The big match I mean. Against Nant. The girls are all really psyched up and ready, and hopefully Nant are coming. Should be fun...

There was a tag tournament at CBRFC this week for U14 girls. Eirias, Emrys and John Brights entered, Emrys with 3 teams, and the tournament was played to a somewhat surprisingly high standard. I went along as manager of the Eirias team, and was pretty chuffed when they won every game and emerged as victors! There is a follw-up tournament in March, where the winner of that will go through to Cardiff for the national competition. The level of enjoyment and the number of participants at the day just showed how much girls' rugby is on the increase in Conwy.

Heineken Cup's not looking bad this year. Cardiff are off to a good start, and the Ospreys won, although the Scarlets and the Dragons both lost to stylish French opposition. Hopefully this weekend all the Welsh teams will win, particularly the Scarlets against Wasps!

2007-11-06T11:28:00.000-08:00

A true legend was lost on Wednesday with the death of rugby great Ray Gravell. There will never be another like him. He was a true Welsh Ambassador and a perfect gentleman. He died on Wednesday while holidaying in Spain at the age of 56, survived by his wife Mari and daughters Manon and Gwenan.

Ray's rugby playing career began, of course, at Llanelli, where he played centre for fifteen years between 1970 and 1985 - creating a post-war record of 485 appearances for the club. From 1975-1982 he won 23 Welsh caps, and played every match of the 1980 Lions' tour to South Africa. With Wales he won two Grand Slams.

After Grav's playing cays, he embarked on another challenge - into the world of television broadcasting and acting. A distinguished actor and of course beloved presenter, supporter and interviewer for S4C throughout the years, his heartfelt and passionate broadcasts will be missed by many, me included. Ray's love for the Welsh language and culture also led him to perhaps the greatest honour; that of being a Gorsedd Bard and swordbearer at the Eistedfodd for many years.

Within a few hours of the online condolence book being posted on the Scarlets website (http://www.scarlets.co.uk/) there were hundreds of posts, not just from Llanelli supporters, but Newport, Neath and even Swansea! That is a mark of the man... not just an ardent Llanelli and Scarlets fan but a genuinely passionate Welshman.

A service to celebrate his rich and wonderful life will be held at Stradey Park - his spiritual home - for the public to come and pay their respects. There is also a campaign for the new Scarlets' stadium (if it's ever approved!) to be named after Grav. I for one would be for that. He was, wthout a doubt, the greatest Scarlet of them all. Nos dda Grav.

Yma o Hyd.

West is Best - Ray Gravell 1951-2007

Musings =)

2007-10-13T04:50:00.000-07:00

You'd think, when we manage to draw with a referee biased against us, we'd be able to win with a referee from our own club. Not to say they're biased or anything. But no. Unfortunately... the Nant Conwy factor strikes again. (If the mens team are the Nant Conwy Bulls, what do we call the girls?...)

First ten minutes was a bit of an unmitigated disaster to be honest, Nant decided they couldn't play against us with 12, it had to be 10. And so we had to field a weak side with new players. The coach who I shall not name for this week at least, decided it would be a good time to have contested scrums, even though it was illegal from her point of view because several of their and our players were under age. And then, after we won all our own and their scrums, decided to not have contested scrums anymore! Hmmm.
But yeah... I'm not making excuses, some of the Bay's play (mostly defence) was poor, particularly at the back and on the wings. A little like a few international teams I can think of. But even though Nant insisted on messing with the rules and teams and referees etc, we still managed to fight (literally) back into the game and only lost by an unluckily missed conversion.
And the same in the other match. Although we played slightly better, the previous defeat was still in the back of our minds. Well, it would be, seeing as we had only 5 minutes to prepare for the next game. Another 2 point loss against Waterloo this time, in most of the various people I talked to's eyes, a much friendlier and happier team. But that's just specultaion...
Sandbach were, quite simply, on another level. Their centre, I only know her as Harriet, was immense. Probably the best player I have ever played against, or seen at this age level come to think of it. She plays for England though. But still, nobody's perfect =P
We lost that match by quite a few points, but, once again, the team were really nice, friendly, and actually sporting. Something, I'm sad to say, we don't see too much of in North Wales.
In the clubhouse after, it was nice to see the Waterloo, Sandbach and Colwyn Bay supporters and players mixing. Then Nant Conwy left. And I made a speech. I'm sure they'll be gutted when they hear they missed that.

.Moving on... England are in the semi final. Against my dad's favourite team France! I'm sorry to say (Joely) that I shall be wearing my France jacket this weekend. And also my South Africa shirt. And they better not lose.
England actually have a fair chance against France. If the forwards perform to their potential and Wilkinson puts them in good positions they have as much chance as anybody of beating France. Of course, this is the France that just beat the All Blacks, but did they think that was the final? Can they back that up with 2 more strong performances? We shall have to wait and see.

And I'm happy to see the Llanelli Scarlets are back in the game. Even without all their international stars back, they played brilliant stuff against Ulster and Leinster, beating both of them. And they beat the Ospreys. Life doesn't get any better than this.

Allez les Bleus! Nkosi sikelel' iAfrika!

Mermaids!

2007-10-02T11:46:00.000-07:00

Picture: CB U18s with Waterloo U18s (12-12) Colwyn Bay U17 Mermaids are back in business, with their first home games of the season this Sunday (7th October) with games against longterm rivals Nant Conwy, Waterloo and Sandbach. First kick off at 1.30 - smack bang when I want to watch my beloved South Africa... my substitute for Wales!

Anyone who wants to see a seriously violent and hard fought game shold watch the Nant game. Several old scores to settle against them. Yeah, so head down to Colwyn Bay RFC, Brookfield Drive, Rhos on Sea and come support the Mermaids!

Match reports will of course be available on this... and the website http://www.colwynbayrugby.co.uk/, so keep checking!

Shanks a lot

2007-10-01T15:10:00.001-07:00

<<<

After the disgusting treatment of Gareth Jenkins by the so-called WRU and general Welsh Public, it was nice to see at least one player sticking up for the now former coach, and speaking sense.

Blues centre Tom Shanklin - one of the few Welsh players that really shone in the tournament - has said categorically that Jenkins can't be blamed entirely for the nations defeat at the hands of Fiji and subsequent exit from the World Cup..

"It was a poor display by the team. Gareth Jenkins can't do anything once the game starts from a coaching perspective, it's down to the players," he said. "The players have got to take a lot of responsibility for the performance."

As a long term fan of both Shanklin and Gareth Jenkins, it meant a lot to see someone speaking out. Let's not forget Jenkins is one of the most successful Welsh coaches of all time. Albeit not with the national side, but with Llanelli and then the Scarlets. He brought so many great teams to victory, and I don't get how people are not remembering all that.

'Rugby is a gentleman's game, played by gentlemen.'

Kick Off

2007-09-29T12:55:00.000-07:00

Well... not exactly the best day to start a rugby blog, as Wales get knocked out of the World Cup =(
m absolutely gutted to be honest, but I bet no one is more gutted than the team themselves - and by 'team' I mean everyone, the players, coaches, physios, managers, and everyone who contributed to getting them that far. Obviously we wanted the Red Dragons to get out of the pool... but at the end of the day what were the odds of them winning the next game against South Africa?

Aaaaaaanyway, let's get back to the Colwyn Bay Mermaids. For those of you who haven't heard of us yet... we're a group of girls (and now women) who all play rugby in North West Wales. And yes, we were North Wales Champions at U14 and U17 level last year. And we aim to keep it that way this year =)

Basically this blog is going to have a load of rugby stuff on it, from the Mermaids to Marseille and back again - so sit back, relax and for rucks sake keep reading.

'Sure, "Scrum" is a weird name, but "Assault and Battery" was already taken.'