Pivac can’t be risk-averse now, he needs to beat Scots
Ididn’t expect Wayne Pivac to go as strong as he did in his selection for last night’s game in Paris, but looking at the strength of the French side it was just as well he did. Stade de France is no place to pussy-foot around and he was obviously looking to get some momentum at the start of what is going to be a hectic eight weeks of international rugby.
Win your first game in a series and you set the right tone. I’m sure that came into his thinking. He also needed to get some game time into some of his senior players ahead of the clash against Scotland this weekend. That is the biggest game of the Autumn Test window given it rounds off the Six Nations.
There will be points and pounds at stake at Parc Y Scarlets, so the idea of trying to create both momentum and continuity was sound. The one slight deviation was the selection of Louis Rees-Zammit on the replacements bench. I think there would have been a public outcry if the player recently voted Young Player of the Year in the Gallagher Premiership hadn’t been given his chance to shine on the international stage.
I can’t wait to see him unleashed from the start at that level. It could be the beginning of something very special, but let’s not put too much pressure on the young man just yet.
When you think about the impact made by one of the last teenage wings Wales brought through, George North, if he can reach similar heights wouldn’t that be something. It’s great to see George available for these games following his recent red card and he still has so much to offer.
With six wins in seven games against the Scots, including four tries, he is likely to be one of the first names on the team sheet this weekend. And if he does get picked he will become the latest Welshman to reach 100 caps for his country and the British & Irish Lions. Not too shabby for a 28-year-old who will next month be able to celebrate a decade of international rugby.
With George, Josh Adams and now Louis among his wing options, plus Liam Williams when he is back to full fitness, the Welsh coaching team has some incredible talent to pick from. I’d just like to see these players brought more into the game.
The sooner they get the ball in their hands, and the more often it reaches them, the more likely we are to score tries. We’ve been a bit risk-averse under Wayne Pivac and maybe it is time to utilise Stephen Jones’ attacking nous more into the Welsh approach.
When I played for Wales with Stephen it was like having a coach on the pitch. He could analyse situations, see things that others weren’t aware of and give the players around him the confidence to take the game to the opposition.
Pressure, tactics and field position are obviously important, especially at international level, and when Wales last played England the two sides kicked the ball almost 80 times during the match. Take a look at Pat Lam’s high-flying Bristol side and they probably don’t kick the ball 80 times in a month!
Their fearless brand of rugby earned them a major title last weekend and while it can be a bit harum-scarum at times, it has delivered some great results and thrills the fans. Welsh fans
“Wales have been a bit risk-averse under Pivac. Utilise Stephen Jones’ attacking nous in the approach”
love to see a bit of excitement, although they do also enjoy winning.
Games against Scotland tend to be a bit more open than most. They were always my favourite team to play against. Nine tries in eight successive wins was a nice return, but in a number of those games it went right down to the wire.
I think it will be the same on Saturday. There is enough star dust in this Scottish side to cause problems for any team in the world. The national side has drawn confidence from the performances of the two professional teams in Scotland, Glasgow Warriors and Edinburgh, and their ever-improving fortunes and consistency in both the PRO14 and Europe have given their national coaches a deeper pool of talent from which to select.
The Warriors came down to play the Ospreys yesterday and I just noticed in the preview notes that they are ahead of them in the overall playing record. That is some turnaround from the early days of the PRO14 when the Ospreys were the standard bearers and winning four titles.
I love the way the Warriors play the game. It is high-octane, quick-paced and all-action and has largely dictated the style in the national camp in recent years. They will come to Llanelli to play and, providing Finn Russell doesn’t have his passing radar on intercept mode, will look to get the ball into the wide open channels.
More importantly, they are sitting above Wales in the Six Nations table and Pivac’s side need to win to overtake them to finish in at least fourth place.
After the Grand Slam heroics of last season that would be a mediocre return in a season when three of the games were at home. I know the whole tournament has been turned upside down by Covid-19, but it only left Wales with one game to play before lockdown.
Ending on a high will be vitally important for the Welsh coaching team and will be important as we prepare to meet Ireland and England in the next few weeks. I just hope they are able to get up to speed as quickly as possible and can give Alun Wyn Jones the perfect result if, as we all hope, he becomes the leading cap holder in world rugby on 149.
What a player, what a man! Knowing him as I do, he won’t want any fuss made about his latest landmark, but I think everyone in Wales will be celebrating having such a great, iconic sportsman as our national team captain.