Wainwright reminds me of Sam, admits McBryde
ROBIN McBryde says back rower Aaron Wainwright reminds him of Sam Warburton, and even suggested he could be better than the former Wales captain.
Warburton enjoyed a stellar career, earning 74 caps, as well as setting a record for most Test matches as captain of Wales with 49. He also led the Lions to a series win over Australia in 2013 and a draw against the All Blacks in 2017.
Just five years ago, Wainwright, who is expected to start against Georgia on Monday, was on the books of Cardiff City’s football academy and two years ago he was playing rugby in the Welsh Championship.
He earned his Wales debut on the tour of Argentina last summer but has quickly become an established player in a highly competitive position. Ironically, Warburton himself picked Wainwright in his first-choice Wales XV before the Rugby World Cup.
And forwards coach McBryde, who is familiar with both players, said the 21-year-old had similar traits to the former Wales skipper.
“He’s still learning the game”, explained McBryde when asked about Wainwright. “He’s in fantastic condition. He’s put some good weight on and he’s able to maintain that weight with all the running that we’ve done.
“His skill work is still on the up and his set piece work as well.
“He’s definitely going to be around for a number of years. He’s got the potential to just keep growing.
“I don’t like to compare players, but he is very reminiscent of a young Sam Warburton.The way he carries the ball, both in attack and defence, he’s very effective, very physical. He enjoys that side of the game.”
He then smiled: “He could be better than Sam, though!
“He’s one of many youngsters who will be in the red shirt for years to come and the national team will be stronger because of it.”
It’s high praise from the Wales coach, who worked with Warburton throughout his entire international career.
McBryde, though, will have had little time in recent weeks to ponder player comparisons.
His main focus of late will have been on resurrecting a Welsh scrum that has creaked since the inception of new engagement laws.
Tight-head prop Tomas Francis insisted last week that he and his frontrow squadron had mastered the new interpretations and there were signs of improvement in the final warm-up game in Dublin.
But Wales face the ultimate test on Monday in Toyota City against a Georgian side who, under the guidance of former England prop Graham Rowntree, pride themselves on their scrummaging.
“It was mixed [during the warmups],” McBryde said when assessing Wales’ scrum during the preparation campaign.
#“There was a lot of correspondence going back and forth with Alain Rollan [World Rugby referee chief ].
“There’s been an introduction of a new emphasis on the scrum commands in particular. I felt we didn’t fall on the right side of some of the decisions.
“But the correspondence with Alain Rolland has been constant. Because of that we’re in a better place.
“Hopefully, all those little hiccups will be out of the way and we can be on the same page as everybody.”