New giant Beard to be real winner
In the second Test he supplied a pass a centre would have been happy to put his name to.
The signs were promising. Wales used him off the bench against Scotland at the start of this month, but needed extra bulk for the game with Australia and so handed the shirt to Beard. Straight away he didn’t look out of place against Adam Coleman and Izack Rodda, notwithstanding that Coleman was terrific on the day.
A steady effort against Tonga was followed by a big game in the finale against South Africa that saw Beard stay on the field for 68 minutes and distinguish himself, helping Wales to a memorable 20-11 victory.
What a run it is, then.
Brett Sinkinson started his Wales career with nine straight wins, while Peter Rogers went one better in the same era under Graham Henry by being part of victorious sides in his first 10 internationals.
So, we know Beard hasn’t yet gone where no Welsh player has gone before.
But he has Rogers and Sinkinson in his sights heading into the Six Nations.
THE BIG MAN’S STRENGTHS
IT was a sink-or-swim situation for Beard this autumn.
There again, Warren Gatland trusted him to cope with the challenges he faced.
By the end of the South Africa match, the product of Neath Port Talbot College was starting to resemble the genuine article – halting myrtlegreen ball-carriers with uncompromising defence, then holding them up with impressive strength; pushing his weight at scrums and soaring high at line-outs; counter-rucking and making a mark at mauls.
He made 32 tackles over the four games and didn’t miss a single one.
And he seemed to relish the greater physicality of Test rugby, with his charges forward last weekend denting the Springbok defence on more than one occasion.
THE ETZEBETH CHALLENGE
LET Beard explain how it felt to be opposing the South African colossus who is viewed as one of the world’s leading second-rows.
“You want to play against such players to test yourself,” he said.
“I enjoyed the challenge and it was good to pick up that kind of experience against high-quality opposition.
“He’s been up there for the past five or so years and has 70-odd caps yet is still quite a young man. The opposition was as good as I’ve come across, but I really enjoyed it.”
WHAT GATLAND SAYS
ANNOUNCING his side to face Australia, who had two veritable lighthouses at lock in Coleman and Rodda, Gatland explained why he had turned to the Osprey.
“Well, you can’t coach someone to be 6ft 10in and 20st – that helps for a start,” said the head coach.
“Look, he is a player for the future who has some real skills. He’s a good line-out forward and he’s going to get better and better.”
GROUNDED... AND LOYAL TO THE OSPREYS
BEARD isn’t the type to get carried away. This week, he was asked about how whether his mind would be on the Six Nations and the World Cup, rather than on playing for the Ospreys at home to Zebre in the Guinness PRO14 tonight, a week after the Welsh region were completely destroyed 52-7 by Leinster in Dublin.
His reply? “Definitely not. It’s a big period for us with the Ospreys. We’ll play this game, then go into Europe and then there are the Welsh derbies.
“Those matches are the main focus at the minute.
“We have to bring that positivity back to the Ospreys. The players will be disappointed, but it’s about focusing on us now, going into the Zebre match.”
Pinned down on his thoughts about the autumn with Wales, he said: “I was really happy to be selected.
“Going into camp I didn’t expect to play in all four games.
“But I was very happy with my individual performance and the way things went for the team – four from four was just great. It’s a great feeling.
“When you get an opportunity you have to take it, because there are other players around you champing at the bit to get that game-time.
“I’ve had regular game-time with the Ospreys and that’s put me in the limelight to get picked by Wales. So I’m thankful to the coaches and staff for helping me to progress.”
Last summer, speaking about the favourable impression Beard made during a stint with Aberavon at the start of his career, Wizards coach Jason Hyatt said: “I liked the way he did things.
“The attitude of an individual is a huge indicator of how he will do not just in rugby but in life, too. Adam was grounded and hard-working and it hasn’t surprised me a bit that he has broken into the Wales set-up.”
THE FUTURE’S BRIGHT... AND RED
BEARD is one of the reasons Wales have cause for optimism about their prospects in the years ahead, for giant second rows who can mix it and also have refined skills do not come along often.
This one also still has scope to develop as a player.
But he has won over a lot of doubters this month and the exciting thing for Wales and for the Ospreys is that he has huge development in him. The more big games he plays, the better he will become.
“Last weekend was the most physical game I’ve been involved in,” he said.
“The first 20 minutes was brutal and it really sank in when we were defending on our try-line during the period before half-time. I thought: ‘This is another level.’
“Things are done so much quicker and the exchanges are so physical.
“You don’t have time to think. You just have to perform. I’m still learning and I’m still a young man. But I’m really enjoying it.”
It’s certainly a steep learning curve. But Beard looks capable of ascending it, with everything suggesting the 6ft 8in youngster is a player who will soon be consistently hitting major heights.