I’ll tackle any threat from rookie Sam, says Roberts
Jamie Roberts has spent years at university to qualify as a doctor but in the last few weeks his studies have been of an entirely different nature. the Wales centre has been analysing the opposition players he is likely to face in the World Cup, particularly those among his Pool a rivals.
He is expected to start at twickenham on saturday in the showdown against england and says he is fully aware of the threats posed by england’s midfield, with brad barritt and sam burgess expected to line up against him.
‘You only have to look at the guys who missed out, like Luther burrell and billy twelvetrees,’ Roberts told Sportsmail. ‘sam burgess, Jonathan Joseph, brad barritt and Henry slade all have attributes to their game and we have to analyse their strengths and weaknesses. Whoever we face, they will be bloody good players.’
Roberts is certainly aware of burgess’s qualities but makes it clear that Wales will seek to exploit his lack of experience in the 15-man game.
‘sam is certainly a big fella,’ said Roberts (right) who is 6ft 4in and weighs more than 17st. ‘From my own game, i know deep lines will attract defenders and england can use that if they pick him.
‘He’s achieved at the highest level in rugby league and his big hits will draw defenders. He’s a switched-on lad who’s quite inexperienced at rugby union and if he plays against us we will look at that.’
as well as studying the opposition, Roberts has been fine- tuning Wales’ midfield combination in the absence of injury casualty Jonathan Davies. He is likely to team up with scott Williams in Wales’ centre pairing and they have been revising their combinations in attack and defence.
‘We chop and change constantly between second and third receiver,’ said inside centre Roberts. ‘the numbers on your back only really count for phase one. i’m constantly thinking on the pitch — what is George good at, what is alex good at, what is scott good at. the root of all evil is poor communication. i know their qualities and we have to make the calls to bring them out at the right times.
‘it’s the same defensively. You have a wider channel and more space to cover at 13, but scott reads the game really well. the way we defend, we’re hard off the line and we like to get into the opposition’s passing lanes so that, when they look up to play, those wide options are cut off. if they do decide to play there, we give them what for, hit them behind the gain line and force the chance of a turnover.’
Roberts and Williams are both survivors from the 2011 World Cup. their campaign ended in heartbreak when Wales lost 9-8 to France in the semifinal, after sam Warburton was sent off, and the bitterness is still a potent medicine in the Welsh ranks.
‘it’s a day that will probably haunt me till the day i die,’ said Roberts. ‘it was gutting. You don’t get many opportunities like that in your career. We lost a World Cup semi-final by one point. it was a match we should have won, irrespective of the red card, and it doesn’t get any more brutal in rugby terms. When you’re over the centre of that bell curve in your rugby career, you start to realise those chances don’t come around too often. that’s why this World Cup is so important.’ after the World Cup, Roberts is going to Cambridge University to start a master’s in medical science. He is preparing for life at Queens’ College, whose alumni include stephen Fry and oliver Cromwell, and will stay in student halls. He has already emailed a request for a double bed but will have to settle for an extra-long single. He will immerse himself in the student life and will play in December’s Varsity match at twickenham, where Cambridge have lost five years in a row to oxford. then he will relocate to Wandsworth in south west London to join up with Harlequins at the end of the year, with plans to complete his studies on a part-time basis.
‘it’s going to be interesting moving back into halls at 28,’ said Roberts. ‘it was an amazing experience at Cardiff when i was 18, fresh out of school, and lived in halls. i’m sure it will be a little different now — i’m going to feel like National Lampoon’s Van Wilder, that guy who never left uni!
‘if i’m going to attack the last third of my career with the same enthusiasm, i think now is the perfect time to step away from it for a few months.
‘the way i play the game, my body has taken a battering over the last six or seven years.
‘i don’t want to be one of these guys who keeps playing and slowly fades away — i want to kick on even if i’m in my thirties.’
Under Armour athlete and Welsh international rugby player Jamie Roberts was speaking at the launch of the brand’s new Armour campaign. For more information on Earn Your Armour, please visit earnyourarmour.co.uk