Scarlet fever
Gatland’s men secure bonus point victory to rout sorry Scots as NatWest Six Nations gets off to a flier
So much for the resurrection of Scotland and the demise of Wales.
As crushing as this capitulation was for Gregor Townsend, it was a source of sweet, sweet joy – not to mention, vindication – for Warren Gatland, who can only be thinking of a fourth NatWest Six Nations crown on the back of this emphatic statement.
In West Wales, they will long claim that they wore Welsh shirts but bled Scarlet blood and cast Llanelli magic. Yet, despite every one of the 34 points emanating from the soaring region, it would take a brave and stupid person to deny Gatland another famous moment in his Welsh odyssey.
Can there be a more rousing manner in which to celebrate your 10th anniversary in a job? Looking at the Kiwi’s reaction as the whistle blew on this bonus-point thumping, it was hard to envisage there could be.
Granted, his first match in charge, in February 2008, was on the ecstatic side of satisfying as Wales won at Twickenham on their way to a grand slam, but here was a Scotland team, who had put 50 points on Australia in their last outing, being shut out until the 79th minute. Nobody saw that coming.
Could anyone have foreseen Wales scoring 34 unanswered points and taking the maximum five-point return with four tries? Gatland did, for one.
He perfected a nonchalant air in the post-match press conference and claimed that, simply from seeing his men train, he expected a comfortable afternoon. “I told the [WRU chief executive Martin Phillips] on Friday that I thought we’d win by 20,” Gatland said.
Yet even the New Zealander – who is one of Leigh Halfpenny’s most avid fans – must have been surprised by the full-back showing the rebirth of his attacking brilliance after such a long drought to score two tries in his remarkable 24-point tally.
Except this was about so much more than one man, one Scarlet – or even 10 Scarlets, for matter. At an estimate, there were nine first-teamers missing with injury, eight of whom are British and Irish Lions, but Wales shrugged of the setbacks quite ridiculously.
They will head to Twickenham with confidence and conviction restored. Eddie Jones has been warned.
The English coach will undoubtedly take notice of Rhys Patchell – yes, another employee at the soaring Llanelli region – who delivered one of the most composed Six Nations debuts by a No 10 one would ever hope to witness.
However, the entire Wales backline was inspired, particularly wing Steff Evans who almost single-handedly made up for the absence of Liam Williams and George North. The backs were only outshone by man-of-thematch Aaron Shingler on the blindside.
For years, the Welsh public has despaired at the lack of a cutting edge. They look knee-deep in blades now.
For Townsend, this was a painful reality check. Those heroics at Murrayfield are all very well, but Scotland remain basket cases on the road.
They must build again and somehow work out how to make that next step. They came in with so promise, so much belief, but the portents were written for them very early on.
In the sixth minute, scrum-half Gareth Davies read the intentions of his opposite number, Ali Price, and picked off a pass, which could most kindly be described as “speculative”, to sprint towards the River Taff and gobbled up the remaining 70 yards with ease to score his 10th try in 28 caps.
Halfpenny, after 38 internationals and five years without a try, then reminded us of his allround quality, diving over himself, after Patchell’s pinpoint pass.
For the rest of the half, it was mostly Scotland, apart from an extraordinary brief cameo from Samson Lee, whose flick-on pass will surely earn a reprimand from the front-row union. They had all the possession but little to no idea of how to convert it into anything of substance as they went from side to side. It was lateral suicide and the Dragons ran in with their tails up.
Within seven minutes of the break two Halfpenny penalties had taken the lead to 20 points and, with the Scots increasingly frustrated with Pascale Gauzere’s officiating, that was essentially it.
Whatever could go wrong for Scotland was doing exactly that. Townsend threw on Greig Laidlaw for the hapless Price, desperate for a platform, but the veteran could not change the tone.
The Welsh defence was in its comfort zone, spearheaded by a mighty physical backrow effort from Shingler, Ross Moriarty and Josh Navidi.
To think a year before in Murrayfield, the likes of Hamish Watson had an open-field day in the loose as they motivated a first Scotland victory in a decade over their Welsh rivals.
That seemed so long ago on the hour mark as “Wales, Wales, Wales” burst out around the Principality Stadium.
Patchell came into his own. The 24-year-old’s clever grubber forced Tommy Seymour to go out on his fivemetre line and, from the line-out, Wales worked the ball almost effortlessly across the line before a Steff Evans flick-pass put in Halfpenny again.
With the four-try bonus point in sight, Gatland brought on some more muscle in the shape of lock Bradley Davies and Wyn Jones, the Scarlets loosehead, who must wonder what he has to do to score. He went over twice, and on the second occasion almost certainly touched down, but the TMO could not find a clear angle.
No matter, Evans added the extras, and though there was a suspicion of a forward pass that was not about to threaten the ecstasy in the Welsh capital. And neither was Pete Horne’s consolation.
It is now 16 years and counting for the Scots in Cardiff.
‘I told WRU chief executive Martin Phillips on Friday that I thought we would win by 20’
Scores 5-0 Davies try; 7-0 Halfpenny con; 12-0 Halfpenny try; 14-0 Halfpenny con; 17-0 Halfpenny pen; 20-0 Halfpenny pen; 25-0 Halfpenny try; 27-0 Halfpenny con; 32-0 Evans try; 34-0 Halfpenny con; 34-5 Horne try; 34-7 Russell con. Referee P Gauzere (France)