Davies: Why coming home was the best choice I made
WALES centre Jonathan Davies has opened up on the frustrating times he went through during his stay with Clermont Auvergne.
He spent two years at the French club, playing in the 2015 Champions Cup final against Leigh Halfpenny’s Toulon at Twickenham.
But while he enjoyed the experience, it wasn’t helping his international career.
As he explains on the House of Rugby podcast, life is not so challenging logistically now he is back with the Scarlets.
“I loved my time in Clermont. The support was always amazing,” he said.
“But at the time, I probably felt like I wasn’t playing my best for Clermont or for Wales.
“In the Six Nations and autumn international period – where I’d be travelling back and forth for fallow weeks to play for the club and then back to play for Wales – I was just all over the shop.
“I probably didn’t give the best account of myself in my time in Clermont, which is frustrating.
“When I was out of contract, the decision I made to come back was to be at the best place to improve my international career and that was being back in Wales.
“If I wasn’t an international, I may have stayed out in Clermont.
“But for me, playing for my country was the most important thing.
“It was ‘Right, where’s the best place for me to be to do that?’, and it was back in Wales.
“At the time I loved it in France. I will always have fond memories.
“But it wasn’t helping my international career because you were just in two places. I struggled to juggle it.
“It is difficult juggling your club and your country when you’re playing in a different country.”
The 32-year-old continued: “I remember the travel in France was always difficult.
“You’d have six-hour bus journeys, you’d have to try to get a flight from Clermont to the UK which would be probably Geneva via Amsterdam or something like that.
“It’d be absolute carnage. It just took it out of you.
“When you’re back in camp with Wales then, you can’t just expect to be eased back in on a Monday.
“You’re straight back into it having played a Top 14 game.
“It is testing but you know what you’re signing up for.
“That’s probably the reason I chose to come back. It was the best place to be looked after, and in a good place for Test match rugby.”
Davies missed out on the 2015 World Cup after rupturing his cruciate knee ligament while playing for Clermont against Montpellier.
He rejoined the Scarlets on a WRU dual contract for the start of the 2016-17 season.
The vastly experienced 85-cap centre is a certainty for Wales’s Six Nations squad.