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Wales team against France

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Topic: Wales team against France
Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Subject: Wales team against France
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:06pm

Wales: Liam Williams; Alex Cuthbert, Owen Watkin, Jonathan Davies, Josh Adams; Dan Biggar, Tomos Williams; Gareth Thomas, Ryan Elias, Tomas Francis, Will Rowlands, Adam Beard, Seb Davies, Josh Navidi, Taulupe Faletau.

Replacements: Dewi Lake, Wyn Jones, Dillon Lewis, Ross Moriarty, Jac Morgan, Kieran Hardy, Gareth Anscombe, Louis Rees-Zammit.


Well Tompkins, who is not my favourite centre, plays his best game for Wales and the disappears from the squad. Unless he's injured thats a huge call. Foxy will have his work cut out as he has played less rubgy in the past month than Navidi. I remain totally baffled by the omission of Cawdor.




Replies:
Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:22pm
1 dragon in the 23 what a waste of money they are


Posted By: Fscarlet
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:24pm
No second row cover on the bench could be a big mistake. 


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:36pm
Originally posted by Fscarlet Fscarlet wrote:

No second row cover on the bench could be a big mistake. 

Guess the thinking is they have Seb at 6. 


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:39pm
Seb at 6 worth a go, lot of pressure on naividi to step up after 1 game


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:44pm
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Seb at 6 worth a go, lot of pressure on naividi to step up after 1 game

Yes I like the look of Seb - he could become a bigger version of Aaron. I think Navidi's selection is a clear indicator that they don't rate our breakdown work to date. Basham gone from great Welsh hope to nowhere. Funny old game. Glad to see Gareth Thomas getting a start - both Wyn & Francis just do not carry enough for modern day props. 


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:44pm
Classic Wales. The second a player is 'fit' he's thrown into the toughest of games. Totally desperate.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 2:45pm
Bet Cawdor wishes he was in Durban.Confused


Posted By: Sir Duckling Tuft
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 3:23pm
Ok where to start. Thomas deserves a go at prop fair enough, Francis I hope is fit. 12 Tompkins has concussion so foxy edges out willis, close but fair call. Cawdors ommission is crazy. The back row is the real conundrum. Hes used 8 flankers in 3 tests, he seems confused over his best trio. Ok faletau is a nailed on whenever hes fit. The 6 and 7 jerseys are up for grabs.  Basham came and went with a bang, as did ellis jenkins in the autumn. Now Morgan is the next big thing. Meanwhile hes decided to test out seb as a 6 again, not sure why he never gets a go at lock. He's a good mobile player, decent lineout option too. Navidi is world class but hes barely played so a big gamble, hope it pays off.

Btw I dont think france are the best team in the world yet , the most talented probably. Theyre not some unbeatable untouchable side. The scots got hammered late on but pushed them a lot, they won in paris just 11 months ago too. England beat them at twickers with a pretty average solid pack performance scrapping for every ball. Ireland gave them trouble second half with 3 quick tries. Theyre irrepressible in attack not so clever on the back foot. in short theyre class but beatable


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sir duckling tuft


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 3:31pm
Originally posted by Sir Duckling Tuft Sir Duckling Tuft wrote:

Ok where to start. Thomas deserves a go at prop fair enough, Francis I hope is fit. 12 Tompkins has concussion so foxy edges out willis, close but fair call. Cawdors ommission is crazy. The back row is the real conundrum. Hes used 8 flankers in 3 tests, he seems confused over his best trio. Ok faletau is a nailed on whenever hes fit. The 6 and 7 jerseys are up for grabs.  Basham came and went with a bang, as did ellis jenkins in the autumn. Now Morgan is the next big thing. Meanwhile hes decided to test out seb as a 6 again, not sure why he never gets a go at lock. He's a good mobile player, decent lineout option too. Navidi is world class but hes barely played so a big gamble, hope it pays off.

Btw I dont think france are the best team in the world yet , the most talented probably. Theyre not some unbeatable untouchable side. The scots got hammered late on but pushed them a lot, they won in paris just 11 months ago too. England beat them at twickers with a pretty average solid pack performance scrapping for every ball. Ireland gave them trouble second half with 3 quick tries. Theyre irrepressible in attack not so clever on the back foot. in short theyre class but beatable

Decent summation. France are not the finished article yet but to stand a chance against them you have to have a really tough hard carrying front 5 and be superbly competitive at the breakdown. We, of course, gave them a real fright in Paris last season & with better thinking from our half backs should have won it. They have improved, we have not so its a tall order. 


Posted By: ap sior
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 3:58pm
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by Sir Duckling Tuft Sir Duckling Tuft wrote:

Ok where to start. Thomas deserves a go at prop fair enough, Francis I hope is fit. 12 Tompkins has concussion so foxy edges out willis, close but fair call. Cawdors ommission is crazy. The back row is the real conundrum. Hes used 8 flankers in 3 tests, he seems confused over his best trio. Ok faletau is a nailed on whenever hes fit. The 6 and 7 jerseys are up for grabs.  Basham came and went with a bang, as did ellis jenkins in the autumn. Now Morgan is the next big thing. Meanwhile hes decided to test out seb as a 6 again, not sure why he never gets a go at lock. He's a good mobile player, decent lineout option too. Navidi is world class but hes barely played so a big gamble, hope it pays off.

Btw I dont think france are the best team in the world yet , the most talented probably. Theyre not some unbeatable untouchable side. The scots got hammered late on but pushed them a lot, they won in paris just 11 months ago too. England beat them at twickers with a pretty average solid pack performance scrapping for every ball. Ireland gave them trouble second half with 3 quick tries. Theyre irrepressible in attack not so clever on the back foot. in short theyre class but beatable

Decent summation. France are not the finished article yet but to stand a chance against them you have to have a really tough hard carrying front 5 and be superbly competitive at the breakdown. We, of course, gave them a real fright in Paris last season & with better thinking from our half backs should have won it. They have improved, we have not so its a tall order. 

And a better refereeing performance. Sanjay did not deserve a YC, and Wyn was nearly over the line. LRZ just failed to get over in the corner, so it should have come back for a YC and a penalty try.


Posted By: Cofi
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:14pm
So Gareth Thomas is supposed to carry for how many metres exactly?
 O and to win the scrums, o and to lifft to a dodgy line out , o and to clear out the rucks - all on his first start in a Welsh shirt all against a rampant French team with their tails up. No pressure there then Gar boy!!



Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:20pm
Gonna put the boat out here and suggest that whatever team we pick won’t make much difference 🤷‍♂️ 

I would like to see: 

Jac Morgan start
Hardy start
JD at 12
Rees Zammit back on wing (for Cuthbert - who does 3 outstanding things and then makes 2 mistakes) 

Think Navidi might start just because we need the experience to deal with DuPont round the ruck 


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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:23pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Gonna put the boat out here and suggest that whatever team we pick won’t make much difference 🤷‍♂️ 

I would like to see: 

Jac Morgan start
Hardy start
JD at 12
Rees Zammit back on wing (for Cuthbert - who does 3 outstanding things and then makes 2 mistakes) 

Think Navidi might start just because we need the experience to deal with DuPont round the ruck 

Well you got one of your wishes with the other 3 on the bench. 


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:28pm
Oh shi* I forgot it’s a Friday game so team out today

Wales: 

L Williams; Cuthbert, Watkin, J Davies, Adams; Biggar (capt), T Williams; G Thomas, Elias, Francis, Rowlands, Beard, S Davies, Navidi, Faletau.

Replacements: Lake, W Jones, D Lewis, Moriarty, J Morgan, Hardy, Anscombe, Rees-Zammit.



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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: gaffer
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:41pm
Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.

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What's going on?


Posted By: ap sior
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:47pm
Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.

In that case, Beard and Rowlands will have to go for the full 80 minutes.


Posted By: gaffer
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 4:49pm
Originally posted by ap sior ap sior wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.

In that case, Beard and Rowlands will have to go for the full 80 minutes.
Last 20 could be very ugly. 

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What's going on?


Posted By: Why
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 5:13pm
Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.


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She asks why i still can't answer. I guess its in the blood.


Posted By: Sir Duckling Tuft
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 5:18pm
Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

yes dropping edwards for byron hayward was probably his worst ever selectionConfused
Crikey Id have rather paid them both just to stop edwards from joining france, that merger was the ultimate perfect marriage of opposites. The flair, talent and power of france allied to the almost demented intensity and organisation of our boy shaun. 


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sir duckling tuft


Posted By: Coch
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 5:46pm
Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Originally posted by ap sior ap sior wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.

In that case, Beard and Rowlands will have to go for the full 80 minutes.
Last 20 could be very ugly. 

 Very true ,this does not bode well...




Posted By: ap sior
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 5:50pm
Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

To be fair to Pivac, I'm sure that Edwards had agreed to join Wigan post 2019 RWC long before Pivac was in charge. I also seem to recall that it was after the Grand Slam in 2019 that Edwards announced that he didn't know what he'd be doing post RWC. By that time Pivac had announcced his coaching team. 

It was then that the WRU offered Edwards a 2 year contact in line with what they had offered the others. Edwards rejected it and walked away.

There was a bit of a spat between Pivac and Edwatrds after that when Piuvac suggested that Edwards went to France for more money.

That's my memory of events ! Feel free to correct me on any points.


Posted By: ladram
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 6:21pm
pivac never has and never will pick players on form.


Posted By: hoppy
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 6:44pm
Think front five will have to carry more and get over the gainline more
Wales will have to play for 80 minutes rather than 40 minutes 
Hearing there are plenty of tickets left for this game 



Posted By: Sir Duckling Tuft
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 6:48pm
Originally posted by ap sior ap sior wrote:

Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

To be fair to Pivac, I'm sure that Edwards had agreed to join Wigan post 2019 RWC long before Pivac was in charge. I also seem to recall that it was after the Grand Slam in 2019 that Edwards announced that he didn't know what he'd be doing post RWC. By that time Pivac had announcced his coaching team. 

It was then that the WRU offered Edwards a 2 year contact in line with what they had offered the others. Edwards rejected it and walked away.

There was a bit of a spat between Pivac and Edwatrds after that when Piuvac suggested that Edwards went to France for more money.

That's my memory of events ! Feel free to correct me on any points.

I remember that fiasco , gosh the wru and pivac made something so simple sound so impossibly complex, they should have gone all out to keep edwards


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sir duckling tuft


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 7:10pm
Originally posted by Sir Duckling Tuft Sir Duckling Tuft wrote:

Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

yes dropping edwards for byron hayward was probably his worst ever selectionConfused
Crikey Id have rather paid them both just to stop edwards from joining france, that merger was the ultimate perfect marriage of opposites. The flair, talent and power of france allied to the almost demented intensity and organisation of our boy shaun. 

To be fair, statistically there isn't much difference in the amount of points either team is conceding. Last year France and Wales conceded the same amount of points. this year Wales have conceded 18 more points, putting them in 4th position points against. Whereas France are sitting in 3rd position points against. 

I think a lot of people seem reluctant to factor in that this Wales side really isn't that great. 


Posted By: Sir Duckling Tuft
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 7:36pm
Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Originally posted by Sir Duckling Tuft Sir Duckling Tuft wrote:

Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

yes dropping edwards for byron hayward was probably his worst ever selectionConfused
Crikey Id have rather paid them both just to stop edwards from joining france, that merger was the ultimate perfect marriage of opposites. The flair, talent and power of france allied to the almost demented intensity and organisation of our boy shaun. 

To be fair, statistically there isn't much difference in the amount of points either team is conceding. Last year France and Wales conceded the same amount of points. this year Wales have conceded 18 more points, putting them in 4th position points against. Whereas France are sitting in 3rd position points against. 

I think a lot of people seem reluctant to factor in that this Wales side really isn't that great. 

Its not the best welsh squad, there are many reasons... It lacks depth and has been hit my endless injuries too, throw in some odd selections and you have a squad under performing..Plus the lack of top talent flooding through the regions/academies in recent yrs and were stagnating atm ..oh and covid didnt / doesnt help


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sir duckling tuft


Posted By: SA14
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 9:56pm
Originally posted by Sir Duckling Tuft Sir Duckling Tuft wrote:

Originally posted by ap sior ap sior wrote:

Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

To be fair to Pivac, I'm sure that Edwards had agreed to join Wigan post 2019 RWC long before Pivac was in charge. I also seem to recall that it was after the Grand Slam in 2019 that Edwards announced that he didn't know what he'd be doing post RWC. By that time Pivac had announcced his coaching team. 

It was then that the WRU offered Edwards a 2 year contact in line with what they had offered the others. Edwards rejected it and walked away.

There was a bit of a spat between Pivac and Edwatrds after that when Piuvac suggested that Edwards went to France for more money.

That's my memory of events ! Feel free to correct me on any points.

I remember that fiasco , gosh the wru and pivac made something so simple sound so impossibly complex, they should have gone all out to keep edwards

How do you know he would have stayed?


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:01pm
Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

I think a lot of people seem reluctant to factor in that this Wales side really isn't that great. 

Underrated point. This squad just isn’t a squad that’s going to win two big games away from home.

Tipuric
Ken
AWJ
North 
Faletau (back now)

potentially makes it so..?

Yes they’re all 30+ but they’re all world class on their day and fundamentally Pivac used Faletau and Tipuric as key footballing forwards in his game plan. 

By the sounds of it this is why he’s trying out Seb Davis at this level. Having him and Faletau means he can have a Rottweiler like Navidi or Morgan at 7 to get stuck in on the ground 


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Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:08pm
Originally posted by SA14 SA14 wrote:



How do you know he would have stayed?

He said he would have if they’d offered a 4 year deal. Wanted long term stability for his family.

I don’t actually blame him or the WRU or Pivac. 

Pivac could have easily been a flop and then we would have had to have had 4 years of him or you’d have a weird position where Edwards was more secure in his job than the head coach.

In retrospect, the WRU should’ve gambled on Pivac for 4 years anyway but if Billy Burns hadn’t missed touch and Zander Faegerson cleared out Wyn Jones a bit better there’d be 4x more of us on here saying “sack Pivac he’s a fraud” right now 


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Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:11pm
Originally posted by ap sior ap sior wrote:

Originally posted by Why Why wrote:

Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

Back row selection is baffling - France will overwhelm the breakdown. I really don’t think Pivac has a clue about what he wants or where Wales are going. To expect Seb to cover 4/5 after 60 minutes of being battered at 6 is madness. This seems a panicked, damage limitation selection. Totally incoherent in terms of playing style. He hopes he’s going to get lucky. A fraud.
But harsh to call him a fraud he been dealt some real poo cards but his biggest mistake was not insisting on Edward’s to stay.

To be fair to Pivac, I'm sure that Edwards had agreed to join Wigan post 2019 RWC long before Pivac was in charge. I also seem to recall that it was after the Grand Slam in 2019 that Edwards announced that he didn't know what he'd be doing post RWC. By that time Pivac had announcced his coaching team. 

It was then that the WRU offered Edwards a 2 year contact in line with what they had offered the others. Edwards rejected it and walked away.

There was a bit of a spat between Pivac and Edwatrds after that when Piuvac suggested that Edwards went to France for more money.

That's my memory of events ! Feel free to correct me on any points.
Correct.Edwards then reneged on Wigan ( he’s never actually held a Head Coach job) which I recall really miffed their Chairman. He was later offered the 2 year job by the WRU which offended his ego. He messed us around and his looming presence undermined the new coaching group. He was just trouble. I am sick of all this conjecture on Edwards. He’s moved on with a big Euro pay wedge and we need to move on from talking about him. It’s pointless. 


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:12pm
Pivac wAs hopeless in his last year here he has been hopeless in 2 of his 3 years with wales, red cards have saved him. Plus the team is constantly leaked to the media days before it’s officialy named is he briefing the media in return for an easy ride? He does seem to be a bit of a blabber mouth merchant tbh , edwards looks he made the right decision in moving to france tbh


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:22pm
It would have been good, after Stevo had a bit of experience in Japan, then Sean Edwards stays on with Pivac to come in. 

It would have been better continuity.

Fundamentally this welsh side would be in a different place because they wouldn’t have had that disastrous first season with Heyward 


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Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 09 March 2022 at 11:30pm
True but i can’t see edwards and pivac working. One is a hard nosed ultra professional, one is bit of a likely lad who likes a beer and a laugh. Not a good mix imo


Posted By: ladram
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 5:32am
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

It would have been good, after Stevo had a bit of experience in Japan, then Sean Edwards stays on with Pivac to come in. 

It would have been better continuity.

Fundamentally this welsh side would be in a different place because they wouldn’t have had that disastrous first season with Heyward 
I remain to be convinced that stevo brings anything special to the table.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 7:21am
Edwards is a top coach with a winning mentality. Players respect him for his achievements firstly & his dedication to the team winning mentality. He is also a very straight but very fair communicator. Pivac, for me, has none of these characteristics. He appears to talk too freely about individual players which I don't think is acceptable. 

If France win the 2023 World Cup Edwards will be a valuable commodity. I wouldn't bet against him returning to Cardiff as head coach replacing Pivac with Kevin Sinfield as his defence coach. Bring in Bomb as forwards coach & you start to have the makings of a decent coaching ticket. 


Posted By: Wil Chips
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 8:19am
A mix of slightly odd reasonings seems to follow each team’s announcement…

Failed HIA selected in Francis.. Non failed HIA’s not selected in Tompkins ( who could understandably be left out after playing 80 mins 6 days earlier, but the management couldn’t really say that when they pick Biggar of course).

Midfield selected is ‘ solid’ rather than offering any attacking flair, Halaholo clearly isn’t in the frame either.

Gareth Thomas is the right call, albeit If there was a game to pick Wyn over him this would be it.

Back row is a tombola really. 8 players in 4 games. I haven’t got a scooby on whether it will work,, but it’s where France have been outstanding in Alldritt and Woki.

I share the view that we might struggle with France’s all round attacking game, and by picking a team to try and combat their strengths I think we’ve consigned ourselves to defeat.


Posted By: Cofi
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 8:51am
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Edwards is a top coach with a winning mentality. Players respect him for his achievements firstly & his dedication to the team winning mentality. He is also a very straight but very fair communicator. Pivac, for me, has none of these characteristics. He appears to talk too freely about individual players which I don't think is acceptable. 

If France win the 2023 World Cup Edwards will be a valuable commodity. I wouldn't bet against him returning to Cardiff as head coach replacing Pivac with Kevin Sinfield as his defence coach. Bring in Bomb as forwards coach & you start to have the makings of a decent coaching ticket. 

I really hate the way Pivac talks about individual players
 I really don't like the way he chops and changes his teams, I dislike the way he panders to WOL to create clickbait, I 'm beginning to think he's not really a very nice man ,my opinion if him of course doesn't matter but if his personality manifests itself as one who has little respect for his players then rhat will always  make him a  mediocre coach. 


Posted By: Gate12
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 9:22am
Whilst I appreciate that international rugby is predominantly about winning the next game with half an eye on the future the changes in the team from game to game must be leaving the players confused where they sit in the coaches eyes, if it was a form thing fair enough, but it's clearly not, it's all very muddled.

The age profile of the starting teams is interesting, France only have 1 player 30 or over (a prop) whereas Wales have 7, 6 of which are backs or back row. France have 5 players under 25, Wales have none.

Agree with other views that it looks like we're trying to contain France which 99% of the time won't work, they're too clinical and dynamic. They'll kick plenty and move Wales around and when they do choose to go they're hard to live with, not ideal for an aging team to play against.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 9:27am
Originally posted by Gate12 Gate12 wrote:

Whilst I appreciate that international rugby is predominantly about winning the next game with half an eye on the future the changes in the team from game to game must be leaving the players confused where they sit in the coaches eyes, if it was a form thing fair enough, but it's clearly not, it's all very muddled.

The age profile of the starting teams is interesting, France only have 1 player 30 or over (a prop) whereas Wales have 7, 6 of which are backs or back row. France have 5 players under 25, Wales have none.

Agree with other views that it looks like we're trying to contain France which 99% of the time won't work, they're too clinical and dynamic. They'll kick plenty and move Wales around and when they do choose to go they're hard to live with, not ideal for an aging team to play against.

Added to the age profile which you have pointed out Pivac insists that his cavalry would make  a huge difference - he is referring to AWJ 35, Ken 35 & Halfpenny 33. The only player who is not available that would add to that team is North. 


Posted By: Gate12
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 9:55am
And North would be replacing the youngest player in the team in Watkins!


Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 10:28am
I recall all the outrage when North was tried at centre by Pivac and now it’s  generally considered as a good coaching decision. Pivac does try new combinations and shows some open mindedness which is commendable. Let’s face it we have a very small chance of winning so let’s try Davies at 6 and how well it works as we need to develop depth especially up front. I am sure Saturday morning will be abuzz especially from our friends at Wales on line ! 🤨


Posted By: Gate12
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 10:40am
North first played centre for Wales in 2014.


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 10:48am
Wales are limping to the next world cup and we don’t seem to have a settled game plan or selection policy. Also we are going to need replace a huge number of the squad in the next 2 years , pivac is leaving a shambles for who ever follows him


Posted By: Mugwuffin
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 11:15am
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

True but i can’t see edwards and pivac working. One is a hard nosed ultra professional, one is bit of a likely lad who likes a beer and a laugh. Not a good mix imo
Sean Edwards doesn’t like a beer and a laugh?


Posted By: ladram
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 11:27am
Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

I recall all the outrage when North was tried at centre by Pivac and now it’s  generally considered as a good coaching decision. Pivac does try new combinations and shows some open mindedness which is commendable. Let’s face it we have a very small chance of winning so let’s try Davies at 6 and how well it works as we need to develop depth especially up front. I am sure Saturday morning will be abuzz especially from our friends at Wales on line ! 🤨
Great time to experiment against the form team in the world Confused


Posted By: Wil Chips
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 11:34am
Originally posted by Gate12 Gate12 wrote:

Whilst I appreciate that international rugby is predominantly about winning the next game with half an eye on the future the changes in the team from game to game must be leaving the players confused where they sit in the coaches eyes, if it was a form thing fair enough, but it's clearly not, it's all very muddled.

The age profile of the starting teams is interesting, France only have 1 player 30 or over (a prop) whereas Wales have 7, 6 of which are backs or back row. France have 5 players under 25, Wales have none.

Agree with other views that it looks like we're trying to contain France which 99% of the time won't work, they're too clinical and dynamic. They'll kick plenty and move Wales around and when they do choose to go they're hard to live with, not ideal for an aging team to play against.



The muddled selection isn't really so much of a concern for me, the granular appreciation of selection/non selection of a player to the media however is....and it can fuel discontent in my view.

I suppose Gatland was to other extreme, team sheet would be pinned to the board at lunchtime. You're either in or out.



Posted By: NobbySosban
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 11:35am
There are a limited number of Test matches before RWC23, so it's probably sensible to mix things up a little rather than focus on the Best Side, game in, game out. 

Some of the experimentation has been forced by injuries to the Old Guard, and some of it seems to be giving chances to quality players who have not yet nailed down their place of even position - Seb Davies & Owen Watkin fall into this bracket, for me, and they have a chance (maybe a final chance) to impress ahead of 3 summer Tests v the Boks & a final rehearsal in the '23 6Ns.

Gareth Thomas given a chance to start also seems like RWC23 prep to me, starting LH against tournament favourites..

It's often said that, like Faletau, Navidi adds enormously to the team, so can understand why they've parachuted them both straight back in - Basham stood out for his carrying, but not for his ruck work, so he's (publicly) been sent away to work on this.

Watkin & Fox look the wrong way round, but Jon is vital to D organisation, so perhaps they'll switch positions in attack, or play Left & Right.

Friday evening in Cardiff, even with the roof open, should give our lads a boost - shame the stadium won't be full, by all accounts.

Will watch with interest, rather than expectation.


Posted By: Gate12
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 12:02pm
Originally posted by Wil Chips Wil Chips wrote:

Originally posted by Gate12 Gate12 wrote:

Whilst I appreciate that international rugby is predominantly about winning the next game with half an eye on the future the changes in the team from game to game must be leaving the players confused where they sit in the coaches eyes, if it was a form thing fair enough, but it's clearly not, it's all very muddled.

The age profile of the starting teams is interesting, France only have 1 player 30 or over (a prop) whereas Wales have 7, 6 of which are backs or back row. France have 5 players under 25, Wales have none.

Agree with other views that it looks like we're trying to contain France which 99% of the time won't work, they're too clinical and dynamic. They'll kick plenty and move Wales around and when they do choose to go they're hard to live with, not ideal for an aging team to play against.



The muddled selection isn't really so much of a concern for me, the granular appreciation of selection/non selection of a player to the media however is....and it can fuel discontent in my view.

I suppose Gatland was to other extreme, team sheet would be pinned to the board at lunchtime. You're either in or out.


I think it's all of it really, the muddled selection, justification for it (which is rarely consistent) and differing game plans. At least with Gatland everyone knew their role and if someone was coming in by and large they'd play a similar role.

It feels like Wales are pinning their hopes on a WC team of Sanjay, Adams, North, TBC, LRZ, Biggar, Tomos, Faletau, Tipuric, Navidi, AWJ, Beard, Wyn, Ken, Francis and instead of playing similar players when they're injured to have a consistent way of playing they're just trying all sorts and seeing what happens.

When you look at Ireland and France the selections make sense, it'll be Aki/Henshaw or Moefana/Danty as targets, Doris/Conan as big carriers at 8, Penaud/Lowe as wings that can get over the gainline, really good second kicking options in the back 3 like Lowe and Jaminet whereas Wales go from Halaholo to Foxy to Tomkins, Wainwright to Moriaty to Faletau, Jmac to Cuthbert to LRZ.


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:01pm
Originally posted by Mugwuffin Mugwuffin wrote:

Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

True but i can’t see edwards and pivac working. One is a hard nosed ultra professional, one is bit of a likely lad who likes a beer and a laugh. Not a good mix imo
Sean Edwards doesn’t like a beer and a laugh?
not as much as plvac who has managed to rack up two drink driving bans. Edwards is the ultimate winner pivac isn’t. Plus edwards doesn’t go bad mouthig players to his pals in the media. He is simply not my type of fella so maybe i am biased


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:06pm
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Originally posted by Mugwuffin Mugwuffin wrote:

[QUOTE=RR1972]True but i can’t see edwards and pivac working. One is a hard nosed ultra professional, one is bit of a likely lad who likes a beer and a laugh. Not a good mix imo
Sean Edwards doesn’t like a beer and a laugh?
not as much as plvac who has managed to rack up two drink driving bans. Edwards is the ultimate winner pivac isn’t. Plus edwards doesn’t go bad mouthig players to his pals in the media. He is simply not my type of fella so maybe i am biased[/QUOT

Count me with you on that RR so we'll be biased together. Edwards makes players better, Pivac makes them confused. 


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:07pm
I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac. I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:17pm
Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.

He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 


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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:20pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.

He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

Because of the years of recent success people think Wales have a right to always win. When in fact, like you say, we are underdogs when it comes to resources. When you are a smaller nation, it is incredibly hard to have stable success, you will have generations of great talent followed by a lull, which I feel is now.


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:26pm
Originally posted by Gate12 Gate12 wrote:


The age profile of the starting teams is interesting, France only have 1 player 30 or over (a prop) whereas Wales have 7, 6 of which are backs or back row. France have 5 players under 25, Wales have none.

That is interesting. Think it’s partially because France have so many players available they’ve purposely chosen younger squad to get to 2023 - even though other older players might be good enough they’ve enough quality younger players to step up. 

Wales are in the position of being desperate to hold onto the Gatland era crop because, well, they’re still the best players. 

You could very well have a Bench in 2023 with 6 or 7 Lions in Wyn, Ken, TH, AWJ, Moriarty/Navidi/Tips/Faletau, Cawdor, Biggar, LRZ/Cuthbert.

But ofc most of them could still be starters too.


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Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:27pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.

He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

I agree with you regarding Seb Dyniol. Firstly he is a bigger unit than both Lawes & Beirne. He is their equal at lineout time. Thats really where the comparison ends - Lawes is a destructive tackler who has recently added a carrying game. Beirne as we all know is wonderful over the ball and good in the loose. Seb, for me, has the best hands of them all & reminds me a lot of Aaron at his best but, very importantly, 10 kgs heavier so can be considered a genuine 2nd row giving that dual role ability so important when it comes to World Cup squads which are limited. I am looking forward to see how he goes. 


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 1:50pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win. I just don’t think Davies is a 6. Yeah okay let’s just use the resources as an excuse. Why didn’t we use those excuses when we were winning grand slams with Gatland and Co? The WRU took the cheap option with Pivac and that’s a fact, instead of investing in the future with a world class coach they invested in that hotel and hoped Pivac would come good. He won the six nations last year but we were lucky and that just bought him time.


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 2:43pm
Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win.

We’ve gone backwards at the rate I’d expect if we lost 4/5 Lions through injury. In the sense that Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, George North and Faletau are not available. 

Key areas were struggling are lineout, breakdown and carrying - especially in the centres. I see all 4 of them improving those areas considerably.



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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 3:04pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win.

We’ve gone backwards at the rate I’d expect if we lost 4/5 Lions through injury. In the sense that Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, George North and Faletau are not available. 

Key areas were struggling are lineout, breakdown and carrying - especially in the centres. I see all 4 of them improving those areas considerably.


Don't think anyone would realistically disagree with your summary above; the huge worry is the age profile of the players mentioned & the lack of planning since Pivac arrived in getting replacements identified and introduced. 


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 3:48pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win.


We’ve gone backwards at the rate I’d expect if we lost 4/5 Lions through injury. In the sense that Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, George North and Faletau are not available. 

Key areas were struggling are lineout, breakdown and carrying - especially in the centres. I see all 4 of them improving those areas considerably.


Ken - 35, AWJ - 36, Tipuric - 33 this year, George - 30 this year.
We can’t pin our national game on players who are and the very end of their careers. Other than North who could potentially be around for the 2027 World Cup. Pivac is picking players to try and win the next game because he’s on borrowed time. Picking Foxy at 12 over Scott Williams and Halaholo is crazy. Our breakdown is non existent, we have no ball carriers who fight the tackle other than Faletau, Elias and Lake. Our lineout is hit and miss at best.
He’s brought in Thomas as a ball carrier, fair enough but where is Leon Brown who’s another good carrier? He’s picked Lewis for his breakdown work but he’s not going to get that many chances when you have Willemse and Woki wiping him out. Where is the second row cover? Seb is going to get a tough time at 6 and then expect him to go in the row. Why isn’t Ratti being given a chance? He’s a lump and since he’s moved to 8 he’s become a much better player. Bring him on in the last 20 minutes against a tired French pack instead of Moriarty who just puts his head down. We need to develop depth and we aren’t doing it when players aren’t being given a chance to step up. I would rather blood someone like Ioan Lloyd at 15 than keep picking Liam Williams who’s a liability and keeps getting unnecessary cards.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:02pm
Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win.


We’ve gone backwards at the rate I’d expect if we lost 4/5 Lions through injury. In the sense that Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, George North and Faletau are not available. 

Key areas were struggling are lineout, breakdown and carrying - especially in the centres. I see all 4 of them improving those areas considerably.


Ken - 35, AWJ - 36, Tipuric - 33 this year, George - 30 this year.
We can’t pin our national game on players who are and the very end of their careers. Other than North who could potentially be around for the 2027 World Cup. Pivac is picking players to try and win the next game because he’s on borrowed time. Picking Foxy at 12 over Scott Williams and Halaholo is crazy. Our breakdown is non existent, we have no ball carriers who fight the tackle other than Faletau, Elias and Lake. Our lineout is hit and miss at best.
He’s brought in Thomas as a ball carrier, fair enough but where is Leon Brown who’s another good carrier? He’s picked Lewis for his breakdown work but he’s not going to get that many chances when you have Willemse and Woki wiping him out. Where is the second row cover? Seb is going to get a tough time at 6 and then expect him to go in the row. Why isn’t Ratti being given a chance? He’s a lump and since he’s moved to 8 he’s become a much better player. Bring him on in the last 20 minutes against a tired French pack instead of Moriarty who just puts his head down. We need to develop depth and we aren’t doing it when players aren’t being given a chance to step up. I would rather blood someone like Ioan Lloyd at 15 than keep picking Liam Williams who’s a liability and keeps getting unnecessary cards.

You make many very valid points. I too would have blooded Ratti who looks like the kind of hard carrying forward we are so short of. Why not try him alongside Faletau at 6? I certainly would have selected Ioan Lloyd for this squad and given him some time at 10/12. Of course Scott is the best 12 in Wales at the moment by a country mile & by his own admission he is not back to his very best so it doesn't say a lot for Pivac's selection process. Gareth Thomas, Leon Brown, Seb Davies & Ratti have the physicality & carrying power needed to play at this level but how many caps have they had since Pivac took over.? If they have question marks over Brown's scrummaging why have they not employed a top coach like Adam Jones to improve him?  

It just seems like we are sleep walking ( apologies of I have stolen that expression) into rugby oblivion at the moment. Dyniol suggests that maybe we should be satisfied with 4th based on playing resources - when have the Wales of Gareth Edwards, Barry John, Bennett, Dawes, JPR, Gerald, JJ, Mervyn, Pontypool front row et al ever been satisfied with anything other than winning.


Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:29pm
I love the long term generosity of spirit shown to our national coach 🤨and from Scarlets supporters at his last club  😉 I applaud the Seb attempt and hope it’s successful.I don’t know what will happen. We must develop a range of options in the squad and he’s trying to do it, just like the ‘he’s having a laugh’ style  criticism of North being played at centre a year or so back. 

We have a small playing base and must show innovation. Let’s constructively critique post game. 


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:38pm
Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

I love the long term generosity of spirit shown to our national coach 🤨and from Scarlets supporters 😉 I applaud the Seb attempt and hope it’s successful.I don’t know what will happen. We must develop a range of options in the squad and he’s trying to do it, just like the ‘he’s having a laugh’ style  criticism of North being played at centre a year or so back. 

We have a small playing base and must show innovation. Let’s constructively critique post game. 

Generosity of spirit reesy - this is International professional rugby not Greast British Menu. You may recall that some posters were not very happy about the final year of Pivac & Stevo when he left the Scarlets. Nothing that has happened since suggests to me that Pivac is not out of his depth. As has already been pointed out the idea of playing North at 13 was hardly ground breaking innovation ffs Gatland had already been talking about it for years. 

What would have been innovative would have been to identify that Foxy could not go on forever & start planning accordingly instead of being forced to try something because the talent is not there. With a small playing base you should at the very least select players on form. Of course I wish the team well but I do not hold out much hope. 


Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:43pm
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

I love the long term generosity of spirit shown to our national coach 🤨and from Scarlets supporters 😉 I applaud the Seb attempt and hope it’s successful.I don’t know what will happen. We must develop a range of options in the squad and he’s trying to do it, just like the ‘he’s having a laugh’ style  criticism of North being played at centre a year or so back. 

We have a small playing base and must show innovation. Let’s constructively critique post game. 

Generosity of spirit reesy - this is International professional rugby not Greast British Menu. You may recall that some posters were not very happy about the final year of Pivac & Stevo when he left the Scarlets. Nothing that has happened since suggests to me that Pivac is not out of his depth. As has already been pointed out the idea of playing North at 13 was hardly ground breaking innovation ffs Gatland had already been talking about it for years. 

What would have been innovative would have been to identify that Foxy could not go on forever & start planning accordingly instead of being forced to try something because the talent is not there. With a small playing base you should at the very least select players on form. Of course I wish the team well but I do not hold out much hope. 
Your a blinking hard man to please GPR ! 😉 let’s see how it unfolds as we all expect a French win. ( did you mean great Greasy British menu ? 😂 it’s my sort of breakfast anyway! )


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:46pm
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:

I just think Pivac is out of his depth in International rugby, other than one trophy with the Scarlets what has he won? The whole coaching staff seem like they don’t know what’s going on. 

Seb Davies isn’t this Hybrid second/back row player Pivac thinks he is. Beirne/Lawes are Seb is nowhere near their level. Other than a lineout threat that’s all he brings. Poor selection by Pivac.

I’d bite the bullet and sack him after the 6 nations and give Scott Robertson a blank check and tell him to name his price. At least you’re getting a serial winner at club level who is going places both domestic and international level.


He has won a 6Nations title and that’s given him license this year to experiment. 

How do you know that about Seb Davies? He’s not the same player as Lawes/Itoje but I don’t think Pivac will ask him to play like that? Beirne is unique, not convinced Pivac is trying to make Davies a Beirne either. 

I think it’s worth remembering that France, England and Ireland SHOULD always be better than Wales purely on a resources basis. If we come 4th it’s par for the course, not a howling season. 

License to experiment? We have gone backwards at a rate of knots since last year. The six nations win last year we were very fortunate but a nevertheless the players came from behind in those games to win.


We’ve gone backwards at the rate I’d expect if we lost 4/5 Lions through injury. In the sense that Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric, George North and Faletau are not available. 

Key areas were struggling are lineout, breakdown and carrying - especially in the centres. I see all 4 of them improving those areas considerably.


Ken - 35, AWJ - 36, Tipuric - 33 this year, George - 30 this year.
We can’t pin our national game on players who are and the very end of their careers. Other than North who could potentially be around for the 2027 World Cup. Pivac is picking players to try and win the next game because he’s on borrowed time. Picking Foxy at 12 over Scott Williams and Halaholo is crazy. Our breakdown is non existent, we have no ball carriers who fight the tackle other than Faletau, Elias and Lake. Our lineout is hit and miss at best.
He’s brought in Thomas as a ball carrier, fair enough but where is Leon Brown who’s another good carrier? He’s picked Lewis for his breakdown work but he’s not going to get that many chances when you have Willemse and Woki wiping him out. Where is the second row cover? Seb is going to get a tough time at 6 and then expect him to go in the row. Why isn’t Ratti being given a chance? He’s a lump and since he’s moved to 8 he’s become a much better player. Bring him on in the last 20 minutes against a tired French pack instead of Moriarty who just puts his head down. We need to develop depth and we aren’t doing it when players aren’t being given a chance to step up. I would rather blood someone like Ioan Lloyd at 15 than keep picking Liam Williams who’s a liability and keeps getting unnecessary cards.


You make many very valid points. I too would have blooded Ratti who looks like the kind of hard carrying forward we are so short of. Why not try him alongside Faletau at 6? I certainly would have selected Ioan Lloyd for this squad and given him some time at 10/12. Of course Scott is the best 12 in Wales at the moment by a country mile & by his own admission he is not back to his very best so it doesn't say a lot for Pivac's selection process. Gareth Thomas, Leon Brown, Seb Davies & Ratti have the physicality & carrying power needed to play at this level but how many caps have they had since Pivac took over.? If they have question marks over Brown's scrummaging why have they not employed a top coach like Adam Jones to improve him?  

It just seems like we are sleep walking ( apologies of I have stolen that expression) into rugby oblivion at the moment. Dyniol suggests that maybe we should be satisfied with 4th based on playing resources - when have the Wales of Gareth Edwards, Barry John, Bennett, Dawes, JPR, Gerald, JJ, Mervyn, Pontypool front row et al ever been satisfied with anything other than winning.

I fully agree with everything you say, especially that part about not settling for 4th. We are a proud nation and I’m sure every man on that pitch tomorrow will stand and be ready for battle and certainly not settle for 4th.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 4:52pm
Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

I love the long term generosity of spirit shown to our national coach 🤨and from Scarlets supporters 😉 I applaud the Seb attempt and hope it’s successful.I don’t know what will happen. We must develop a range of options in the squad and he’s trying to do it, just like the ‘he’s having a laugh’ style  criticism of North being played at centre a year or so back. 

We have a small playing base and must show innovation. Let’s constructively critique post game. 

Generosity of spirit reesy - this is International professional rugby not Greast British Menu. You may recall that some posters were not very happy about the final year of Pivac & Stevo when he left the Scarlets. Nothing that has happened since suggests to me that Pivac is not out of his depth. As has already been pointed out the idea of playing North at 13 was hardly ground breaking innovation ffs Gatland had already been talking about it for years. 

What would have been innovative would have been to identify that Foxy could not go on forever & start planning accordingly instead of being forced to try something because the talent is not there. With a small playing base you should at the very least select players on form. Of course I wish the team well but I do not hold out much hope. 
Your a blinking hard man to please GPR ! 😉 let’s see how it unfolds as we all expect a French win. ( did you mean great Greasy British menu ? 😂 it’s my sort of breakfast anyway! )

You are right there reesy - her indoors has been telling that for years.Wink Yes we'll have  achat on Saturday post game as long as both of us promise not to gloat. Confused


Posted By: SA14
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 5:45pm
All those on social media currently [beep]ging him off will no doubt be creaming their pants if we win tomorrow. Such is the way of welsh rugby. 


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 10 March 2022 at 10:19pm
Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough


Posted By: Mr Ian
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 6:33am
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough

they did a good first half in my view, specially line out patterns...


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 7:29am
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough

The 20's conditioning looks pretty average. i would have thought the first priority for budding professional athletes would be to get fit. There aren't many excuses in today's environment. 


Posted By: Fscarlet
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 8:22am
Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough

Not surprising really when they don't have much game time with regions/clubs.


Posted By: scarletnut
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 2:18pm
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough

The 20's conditioning looks pretty average. i would have thought the first priority for budding professional athletes would be to get fit. There aren't many excuses in today's environment. 
The problem is most of them play in the semi pro Welsh Premiership whereas majority of French side played Top14 and ProD2 rugby.

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I still wake up late at night and think of what might have been when tim stimpson hit that jammy penalty1


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 2:28pm
Originally posted by scarletnut scarletnut wrote:

Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by RR1972 RR1972 wrote:

Wales under poor again just not big fit ot skillful enough

The 20's conditioning looks pretty average. i would have thought the first priority for budding professional athletes would be to get fit. There aren't many excuses in today's environment. 
The problem is most of them play in the semi pro Welsh Premiership whereas majority of French side played Top14 and ProD2 rugby.
ireland thrashed  us and beat france, their youngsters don’t play in the french pro leauge


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 2:38pm
Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:


I fully agree with everything you say, especially that part about not settling for 4th. We are a proud nation and I’m sure every man on that pitch tomorrow will stand and be ready for battle and certainly not settle for 4th.

Gatland-era (*Howley)
2008 - 1st
2009 - 4th
2010 - 4th
2011 - 4th
2012 - 1st
2013 - 1st*
2014 - 3rd
2015 - 3rd
2016 - 2nd
2017 - 5th*
2018 - 2nd
2019 - 1st

2020 - 5th
2021 - 1st
2022 - ??

Pivac out!!

No one is saying we should be happy with 4th. Just that at this level it is not uncommon for a good coach to end up finishing 4th because other teams are better.


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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 3:20pm
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Originally posted by Scrletsfan32x Scrletsfan32x wrote:


I fully agree with everything you say, especially that part about not settling for 4th. We are a proud nation and I’m sure every man on that pitch tomorrow will stand and be ready for battle and certainly not settle for 4th.

Gatland-era (*Howley)
2008 - 1st
2009 - 4th
2010 - 4th
2011 - 4th
2012 - 1st
2013 - 1st*
2014 - 3rd
2015 - 3rd
2016 - 2nd
2017 - 5th*
2018 - 2nd
2019 - 1st

2020 - 5th
2021 - 1st
2022 - ??

Pivac out!!

No one is saying we should be happy with 4th. Just that at this level it is not uncommon for a good coach to end up finishing 4th because other teams are better.

To add to that. Here are the standings prior to Gatland. 

2000- 4th
2001 - 4th
2002 - 5th
2003 - 6th 0 points lol
2004 - 4th
2005 - 1st
2006 - 5th
2007 - 5th

So we have an 8 year period there where we really were pretty poor. Yet people still think we have a god given right to just always be competing for a grand slam/title. 


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 4:06pm
Don't think anyone has suggested some god given right - all we are suggesting is that we employ a top, professional coaching team & be the best we can be. 


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 4:59pm
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Don't think anyone has suggested some god given right - all we are suggesting is that we employ a top, professional coaching team & be the best we can be. 
But if the best they can be is 4th due to the quality of players, then no need to moan is there.

Rather than when we are clearly doing alright, nothing great, nothing awful, but people are calling for the coaches head and think a new coach will result in world domination. 


Posted By: RR1972
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 5:13pm
Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Don't think anyone has suggested some god given right - all we are suggesting is that we employ a top, professional coaching team & be the best we can be. 
But if the best they can be is 4th due to the quality of players, then no need to moan is there.

Rather than when we are clearly doing alright, nothing great, nothing awful, but people are calling for the coaches head and think a new coach will result in world domination. 
there is when we hear our coach bemoaning his own players to the media or doing daft things like playing wings in the centre etc. A new coach won’t see world domination but it will see an improvement on pivac


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 8:37pm
We look very Wales like at the moment. Don't look like we are getting anywhere with the ball. A lot of one up runners with no support leading to easy to turnovers. 


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 9:48pm
12, 13 for Wales should be nowhere near this Welsh squad. It’s absolutely embarrassing how bad this Welsh backline is. We keep going backwards then we kick


Posted By: gaffer
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 9:57pm
A great defensive effort - to be applauded without doubt. Falatau and Biggar both outstanding. However, completely blunt and toothless in attack. "Chuck it to Shane" has become "chuck it to LRZ" - there's nothing else. No ball carriers, no variety, no intelligence.

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What's going on?


Posted By: surfing-mtber
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:03pm
Thought Hardy has a good game, quick service, didn't give Dupont an inch. Faletau absolutely immense, especially having played so little rugby. Biggar also had a great game, as others have said no back three or centre creativity.

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Joshua24:15


Posted By: greypower1
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:05pm
Originally posted by gaffer gaffer wrote:

A great defensive effort - to be applauded without doubt. Falatau and Biggar both outstanding. However, completely blunt and toothless in attack. "Chuck it to Shane" has become "chuck it to LRZ" - there's nothing else. No ball carriers, no variety, no intelligence.

And no jacklers!


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Keep the faith


Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:08pm
The Seb project was successful. Well done Wales coaches 👍 so close tonight and really rattled the French. Unlucky but we are in transition. Bigger was my mom 👍


Posted By: Legendinmybathroom
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:13pm
Can’t add anything to that, centre partnership completely blunt and one dimensional (which was easy pickings for fickou and Dante.
The forwards did really well against a very big and physical pack.
What a defensive effort by the French, what the h..l Wales we’re thinking by not tying Shaun Edwards up early we will never know.  Yet another inexplicable decision by a bunch of amateurs pretending to be a professional outfit.


Posted By: Sosban89
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:31pm
Actually thought JD had a good game minus the drop. I just think we lost too much of our own ball and had slow ball so the backs as a whole didn't get much going. Not that Welsh backs have got much going for a while. 


Posted By: Scrletsfan32x
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 10:46pm
Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Actually thought JD had a good game minus the drop. I just think we lost too much of our own ball and had slow ball so the backs as a whole didn't get much going. Not that Welsh backs have got much going for a while. 

He’s one of my all time favourite Welsh players and a legend of the game for both the Scarlets and Wales but I think the old dog is finished at the very top with Wales.
He can definitely bring the next generation through at the Scarlets and mentor them but I feel he will retire after the WC next year from all rugby.


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 11 March 2022 at 11:29pm
Scott Williams and George North will be the centre combination 2023

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https://twitter.com/exile_podcast?lang=en


Posted By: reesytheexile
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 12:10am
Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Actually thought JD had a good game minus the drop. I just think we lost too much of our own ball and had slow ball so the backs as a whole didn't get much going. Not that Welsh backs have got much going for a while. 
 

Foxy had e good strong game. Good to see that the Seb Davies option was successful. Good coaching and even Jiffy warmed to the varied Welsh attack as the game went on. Well done Pivac and co


Posted By: N14
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 7:05am
Originally posted by dyniol53 dyniol53 wrote:

Scott Williams and George North will be the centre combination 2023

Hopefully, although I think many are being harsh on Watkin mind. Thought he’s been quite solid on the whole this campaign.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 7:53am
Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Actually thought JD had a good game minus the drop. I just think we lost too much of our own ball and had slow ball so the backs as a whole didn't get much going. Not that Welsh backs have got much going for a while. 
 

Foxy had e good strong game. Good to see that the Seb Davies option was successful. Good coaching and even Jiffy warmed to the varied Welsh attack as the game went on. Well done Pivac and co

Yes reesy I thought Seb went well. He certainly didn't allow Woki to dominate the air like he usually does so that was a good selection. I thought foxy was pretty solid - he doesn't have that top end gas like he used to but his brain is still top level. Would some more game sharpness have allowed him to score - we'll never know. Faletau was awesome & Biggar had a good game. Hope Tomos Williams is ok. Thought our lineout was the best I've seen it this season so thats a plus. Our back 3 which I thought would be a strength just didn't fire a shot so that was disappointing. 

Talk of AWJ playing against Italy - hope they don't select him - a good game to give others the chance. 


Posted By: aber-fan
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 8:54am
A decent effort - many thought Wales would get blown away as France must be in the world top 3 ATM... we drew them into a real scrap, an apart from the first quarter they didn't threaten much - even Dupont was subdued for most of the game. 

Pity we let in that soft try early on... does anyone think the injury to Tomos W (he was on the ground at the time) was partly responsible for us being so short of men? Or was that irrelevant? They never managed it again.

Lineout went well, scrum OK overall (probably, Atonio should have been penalised, not Wyn)... need to be better at the breakdown... Faletau immense again, I thought Rowlands had an excellent game... 

The attack was blunt, let's face it - even from 5m lineouts, we couldn't get over... Edwards has done wonders for their defence... 

Great pity that Foxy dropped Faletau's pass - I reckon if he catches that, he scores with the little bit of room he had, and his power. I really hope that isn't the last we see of him for Wales, as it would be a cruel way to end a brilliant career.

Overall this season the results have been as one would have expected, given the number of injuries and new (or new-ish) players coming in... I'd say that Wales have played pretty well apart from the Ireland game - could have beaten both England and France with a little more luck and/or accuracy. There is absolutely no cause to call for the coaches' heads, based on what we've seen.


-------------
“You cannot reason a man out of what he never reasoned himself into.” (Jonathan Swift)


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 9:02am
Originally posted by aber-fan aber-fan wrote:

A decent effort - many thought Wales would get blown away as France must be in the world top 3 ATM... we drew them into a real scrap, an apart from the first quarter they didn't threaten much - even Dupont was subdued for most of the game. 

Pity we let in that soft try early on... does anyone think the injury to Tomos W (he was on the ground at the time) was partly responsible for us being so short of men? Or was that irrelevant? They never managed it again.

Lineout went well, scrum OK overall (probably, Atonio should have been penalised, not Wyn)... need to be better at the breakdown... Faletau immense again, I thought Rowlands had an excellent game... 

The attack was blunt, let's face it - even from 5m lineouts, we couldn't get over... Edwards has done wonders for their defence... 

Great pity that Foxy dropped Faletau's pass - I reckon if he catches that, he scores with the little bit of room he had, and his power. I really hope that isn't the last we see of him for Wales, as it would be a cruel way to end a brilliant career.

Overall this season the results have been as one would have expected, given the number of injuries and new (or new-ish) players coming in... I'd say that Wales have played pretty well apart from the Ireland game - could have beaten both England and France with a little more luck and/or accuracy. There is absolutely no cause to call for the coaches' heads, based on what we've seen.

Surely Aber us being totally toothless in attack is a huge cause for concern. Selection can be described as haphazard at best. I was left feeling that even if Foxy had scored that try France would have kicked up a few gears in response. Coaching changes won't be made so we will muddle on until France 2023. i would be absolutely amazed if any of the coaching group are retained after the World cup. 


Posted By: Gate12
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 9:24am
Originally posted by reesytheexile reesytheexile wrote:

Originally posted by Sosban89 Sosban89 wrote:

Actually thought JD had a good game minus the drop. I just think we lost too much of our own ball and had slow ball so the backs as a whole didn't get much going. Not that Welsh backs have got much going for a while. 
 

Foxy had e good strong game. Good to see that the Seb Davies option was successful. Good coaching and even Jiffy warmed to the varied Welsh attack as the game went on. Well done Pivac and co

Was it? I'm not sure what he brought really, looked like a second row with a below average workrate playing 6, which is what he is probably.

Wales' tactics did put france off their game but there's no getting away from France being pretty poor all on their own, its not always just down to the pressure applied by the opposition.

Wales have got plenty of fight and have found a way to keep it close but the selections they need for that massively stunt the attacking game so either way you end up with a loss, just without the entertainment. 


Posted By: N14
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 9:26am
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by aber-fan aber-fan wrote:

A decent effort - many thought Wales would get blown away as France must be in the world top 3 ATM... we drew them into a real scrap, an apart from the first quarter they didn't threaten much - even Dupont was subdued for most of the game. 

Pity we let in that soft try early on... does anyone think the injury to Tomos W (he was on the ground at the time) was partly responsible for us being so short of men? Or was that irrelevant? They never managed it again.

Lineout went well, scrum OK overall (probably, Atonio should have been penalised, not Wyn)... need to be better at the breakdown... Faletau immense again, I thought Rowlands had an excellent game... 

The attack was blunt, let's face it - even from 5m lineouts, we couldn't get over... Edwards has done wonders for their defence... 

Great pity that Foxy dropped Faletau's pass - I reckon if he catches that, he scores with the little bit of room he had, and his power. I really hope that isn't the last we see of him for Wales, as it would be a cruel way to end a brilliant career.

Overall this season the results have been as one would have expected, given the number of injuries and new (or new-ish) players coming in... I'd say that Wales have played pretty well apart from the Ireland game - could have beaten both England and France with a little more luck and/or accuracy. There is absolutely no cause to call for the coaches' heads, based on what we've seen.

Surely Aber us being totally toothless in attack is a huge cause for concern. Selection can be described as haphazard at best. I was left feeling that even if Foxy had scored that try France would have kicked up a few gears in response. Coaching changes won't be made so we will muddle on until France 2023. i would be absolutely amazed if any of the coaching group are retained after the World cup. 

What if we go well in the World Cup? The signs of improvement are there from the Ireland game to now (although admittedly, there was only really one way we could go from the performance against Ireland!). If we can be a bit more clinical when we reach the opposition 22 we can be winning games like this. If Foxy held that pass, Wales would have won that game, which would have been a huge upset.
Also, we're really in the middle of transition on the field, with some of the older guys slowly disappearing and younger players having to step up. It will take time for some of them to find their feet.

I'm far from convinced that Pivac and co are the right people for the job - and I'll admit, I found it difficult to see a way forward after the Ireland game - but I'm not quite ready to give up on them yet.


Posted By: GPR - Rochester
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 9:38am
Originally posted by N14 N14 wrote:

Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

Originally posted by aber-fan aber-fan wrote:

A decent effort - many thought Wales would get blown away as France must be in the world top 3 ATM... we drew them into a real scrap, an apart from the first quarter they didn't threaten much - even Dupont was subdued for most of the game. 

Pity we let in that soft try early on... does anyone think the injury to Tomos W (he was on the ground at the time) was partly responsible for us being so short of men? Or was that irrelevant? They never managed it again.

Lineout went well, scrum OK overall (probably, Atonio should have been penalised, not Wyn)... need to be better at the breakdown... Faletau immense again, I thought Rowlands had an excellent game... 

The attack was blunt, let's face it - even from 5m lineouts, we couldn't get over... Edwards has done wonders for their defence... 

Great pity that Foxy dropped Faletau's pass - I reckon if he catches that, he scores with the little bit of room he had, and his power. I really hope that isn't the last we see of him for Wales, as it would be a cruel way to end a brilliant career.

Overall this season the results have been as one would have expected, given the number of injuries and new (or new-ish) players coming in... I'd say that Wales have played pretty well apart from the Ireland game - could have beaten both England and France with a little more luck and/or accuracy. There is absolutely no cause to call for the coaches' heads, based on what we've seen.

Surely Aber us being totally toothless in attack is a huge cause for concern. Selection can be described as haphazard at best. I was left feeling that even if Foxy had scored that try France would have kicked up a few gears in response. Coaching changes won't be made so we will muddle on until France 2023. i would be absolutely amazed if any of the coaching group are retained after the World cup. 

What if we go well in the World Cup? The signs of improvement are there from the Ireland game to now (although admittedly, there was only really one way we could go from the performance against Ireland!). If we can be a bit more clinical when we reach the opposition 22 we can be winning games like this. If Foxy held that pass, Wales would have won that game, which would have been a huge upset.
Also, we're really in the middle of transition on the field, with some of the older guys slowly disappearing and younger players having to step up. It will take time for some of them to find their feet.

I'm far from convinced that Pivac and co are the right people for the job - and I'll admit, I found it difficult to see a way forward after the Ireland game - but I'm not quite ready to give up on them yet.

What do you class as doing well? Quarters, semis. It should be a given, bearing in mind the seeding, that we get to the quarters so I guess doing well is semis minimum. Do you agree? 


Posted By: dr_martinov
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 9:55am
Foxy will be seeing that fumble in his dreams for a few nights to come.

Whilst Biggar had an excellent game, we're relying too much on him and his creativity will almost always be off his boot. Unless we become some sort of masters in cross field kickery, once again I just am not seeing line breaks let alone tries at present. Some of this is on the forwards as well as Biggar can play the territory game so we simply have to have more success from 5 m lineouts to get 5 points or we will not beat the top sides. In the recent past we have relied upon opportunistic plays from players like Cawdor and so his absence now means we're largely toothless.

Wales are definitely improving and we should have won yesterday so credit to the team for being in that position. The French defence was very good as well, can't be understated.

Foxy was great without the ball in hand (probably not the best choice of words!) as well, think without him Wales would have conceded another try at some point. If you watch he is always organising the line and is great positionally plus his tackle technique is absolutely top level. 


Posted By: Eastern outpost
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 10:08am
When the pressure is on, especially when fatigue sets in, you revert to your “normal” habits.

Many posters on here have criticised big earners for slacking in Scarlets matches.

How much better would their performances have been if they’d applied themselves more fully outside the international arena? The result may well have been different last night had they done so. Why does it take until the penultimate match of the championship for Sanjay to put in a more as we remember him type of performance? To concentrate and play at a level where someone can leave the pitch at the end with no regrets is what we ask and should be the minimum aim. 

Pre-match, a french friend reckoned it was a banana skin for France. During the match, after the first 10/15 mins, he reckoned France were dozing and at about 70%. He was a relieved man at the end.

Never knew Gregory Aldritt’s dad was a Scot. Something useful from last night’s commentary.

Here’s hoping for their Grand Chelem with a large win next weeek.


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In a world where you can be anything – Be Kind.


Posted By: Mogwen
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 10:19am
Picking the likes of ken, awj and tipuric will be a backwards step. I think we have found able deputies in rowlands, ryan and basham/morgan. Why rely on 33 year olds coming back to fitness when we should be looking at the next generation.

Beard will be lucky to be there he has been poor. Has offered nothing going forward and it was Seb who stole the lineouts with rowlands. Same with the centers. We had a better pairing in SA and yet they are not even considered. I would like to see a few changes for the italy game

15 jonny mac
14 cuthbert
13 jonny w
12 scott
11 LRZ
10 priestland
9 cawdor
1 wyn
2 lake
3 brown
4 seb
5 rowlands
6 moriaty
7 morgan
8 faletau

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The only true wisdom is in knowing you know nothing.


Posted By: dyniol53
Date Posted: 12 March 2022 at 10:20am
Originally posted by GPR - Rochester GPR - Rochester wrote:

What do you class as doing well? Quarters, semis. It should be a given, bearing in mind the seeding, that we get to the quarters so I guess doing well is semis minimum. Do you agree? 

The goal should be to win the 3rd 4th placed playoff. 


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