On this show, Howley could try Tipuric at 10
IT MIGHT not be the competition they want to be in, but the Welsh regions made a fantastic start to the Challenge Cup this weekend.
Friday night was probably as good as it gets for Welsh rugby with Ospreys and Cardiff Blues both beating English opposition and Newport Gwent Dragons getting the better of former European champions.
What was so pleasing was the brand of rugby they produced and that brought a festival of tries for the wingers with Wales hopefuls Tom James, Alex Cuthbert, Hallam Amos and Keelan Giles all getting on the scoresheets.
It was great to see teams answer some big questions: Could Blues bounce back? Could Dragons go the distance? And could Ospreys take the Challenge Cup seriously. The answer to every question was a resounding ‘Yes’.
Cardiff Blues were simply out-muscled by Ospreys a week earlier but they stood up manfully to overpower Bristol at Ashton Gate.
It was great to see James and Cuthbert score but their front-five must take all the credit. Rhys Gill showed again he is such a good scrummager that Rob Howley must consider him for the autumn series when he names his squad next week.
The Dragons had a battle on their hands against Brive, who actually turned up for this European game, so Dragons showed a lot of guts and produced their best in the final quarter with four top tries.
As for the Ospreys, it was pretty much one-way traffic against Newcastle and they will not have learned much. It is clear they have bigger ambitions but you can only play what’s in front of you and they showed just why they should be among the favourites to win this cup.
It was a great run out for so many of the Wales boys, Rhys Webb and Dan Biggar got their partnership back together but Dan could face competition for the No.10 jersey from Justin Tipuric!
I’ve always said he could probably play any position behind the front five and he showed it with that try, catching a re-started, storming clear and then kicking ahead to score. It was a try I would have been raving about had I got it, but for a forward to show those skills is something else.