Ospreys hero Evans won’t allow his standards to drop

DAN Evans secured a dramatic Guinness PRO14 victory for the Ospreys, then revealed how he keeps his standards sky high despite countless Wales rejections.

Another national squad has just been named and the 29 year-old again finds himself on the outside looking in, the position he has been in since winning the last of his two caps in the summer of 2009.

And once more this most resilient of players has responded positively, pouncing for the late, late try that secured the Ospreys a 22-17 bonus-point success over Connacht in Bridgend.

The full-back (pictured) finished the game having made more runs (19) and more metres (136) than anyone else on the field and also come up with the match-settling moment.

Quite some way to underline his worth, then.

Later, he came into the Brewery Field clubhouse to explain exactly what he does to stay motivated in the face of so many Wales snubs.

And it turns out it’s his passion for appearing for the Liberty region which keeps the fires burning.

He said: “Playing for the Ospreys is an achievement in itself.

“I’ve been out for a couple of weeks and it’s killed me.

“I’m hungry and I just want to keep putting in performances for the Ospreys. As long as I keep enjoying it I’m happy.

“All I can do is keep trying to make sure my performances are at the highest level I can reach.”

The key, too, for Evans is not to ponder too much on his Wales rejections, the reasons for which Rob Howley has finally explained to Evans in a recent conversation.

They hurt a heck of a lot -- they really do.

But it’s all about managing the pain.

“I suppose the rejection is sometimes a kick where it hurts,” he says.

“But I try not to dwell on it.

“Perhaps when I was younger it would have been in my mind and got me down a bit more.

“But as you get older you realise there’s not much you can do about it.

“I just have to keep performing for the Ospreys because they are the side who need me the most.”

The win was notable as the Ospreys had 20 players missing against opponents who included their four Ireland squad players in Bundee Aki, Kieran Marmion, Finlay Bealham and Quinn Roux.

“It’s always tough to lose so many experienced internationals, but as a young squad we were fantastic,” said Evans.

“We showed maturity and composure to grind out a bonus-point victory.”