How Wales defied the doubters to become champions
➤ Emerging talent and wise heads have blended effectively to vindicate Pivac’s methods after troubling start to tenure
Defence
The addition of Gethin Jenkins to the Wales coaching staff, a disciple of Shaun Edwards from his time as a player, added a real physical element back into the Wales defence, shutting down opponents in the red zone in particular by conceding an average of only 2.12 points per opposition entry into their 22. It was hard not to smile when Wayne Pivac revealed Jenkins had been furious about the state of Wales’s defence… when they were 27-0 up against Italy.
Throughout this Six Nations Wales were more comfortable playing without the ball, trusting their defence, and as a result their tackle count shot up while their success rate continued to hover around the 90 per cent mark. The top three players for successful tackles in the whole Six Nations came from Wales – Justin Tipuric (86), Taulupe Faletau (77) and Alun Wyn Jones (75). In short, Wales rediscovered the defensive bite that had made them champions in the past.
Patience
Pivac did not panic last year when criticism continued to build regarding where this Wales side were going under their new head coach.
Managing injuries and suspensions last autumn, Pivac took a gamble by handing out new caps at a time when Wales were attempting to adapt to his more attacking blueprint. We saw glimpses of that attacking ambition in this Six Nations, especially against Italy and also with Liam Williams’s well-worked try against Scotland at Murrayfield.
Wales finished this campaign scoring double the number of tries on average they were producing per game in the autumn, despite having to change their starting scrum-half on three occasions. That is a sign that Pivac’s methods are starting to sink in, as they did at Scarlets, who went to win a Pro14 title after a difficult start.
New guns firing
We all know about Louis Rees-zammit by now, with his searing pace down the touchline giving Wales an extra element to their attack to complement the industry and finishing ability of Josh Adams. But Reeszammit was not the only newcomer from last autumn who has now nailed down a spot in the Wales match-day squad. Callum Sheedy’s different approach at No10 to Dan Biggar gives Wales two ways to attack, with Sheedy adding more width, and his starter-replacement tandem with Biggar worked well.
James Botham and Kieran Hardy both have big futures and, with the power and footwork of Willis Halaholo, the depth is building nicely.
A bit of fortune
“It’s the nature of all international games. Some calls go with you, some against,” assistant coach Stephen Jones said ahead of facing England. But even the most ardent Wales supporter will surely admit that it helps if you can start your campaign playing against two teams who both have players sent off, even if the decisions were spot on.
Any suggestions that this was going to be a fluke title win were wiped out with the comprehensive way in which Wales put England to the sword in that final quarter in Cardiff. And you had to laugh when Alun Wyn Jones was asked whether he should have stepped in following Adams’s controversial opening try awarded by Pascal Gauzere against England. “I get enough stick for speaking to refs as it is, I’m not going to get into it for the opposition.”
Veterans’ experience
Wales in the autumn handed out new caps to Sam Parry at hooker and Shane Lewis-hughes and Botham in the back row, as they made do without the presence of Ken Owens and Josh Navidi. Having both players back in this Six Nations was transformative, and there is a decent argument that both should start for the British and Irish Lions this summer. Owens rectified a creaky line-out along with Adam Beard, while Navidi’s physicality at the breakdown got the best out of Tipuric and Faletau.
You cannot underestimate how helpful Wales’s experience was, with Alun Wyn Jones in particular going for a fourth Grand Slam. Everyone bar Rees-zammit from the starting XV who faced France had won a Grand Slam before.