Webb farce not my fault, says Gatland
Warren Gatland feels he has been hung out to dry in the saga that will leave rhys Webb unavailable for Wales next year.
The scrum- half has agreed to join Toulon next season, jeopardising his World Cup hopes under the WrU’s new selection policy which excludes overseasbased players with fewer than 60 caps. The Ospreys no 9 has played 28 Tests. Webb signed his bigmoney contract before the policy was announced last Monday, when Gatland was left to face the public backlash.
‘I got pushed out there and it was almost like it was my policy,’ he said ‘We haven’t heard one word from the regions and I’d like to hear from them. There was a lot of criticism of myself over this and that was unfair. I had a good chat with rhys on Saturday. This policy has been agreed by the regions and WrU. I feel for rhys.’
Despite the doubts over his Test future, Webb was named yesterday in Wales’s 36-man squad for the autumn internationals.
Centre Jamie roberts, however, was omitted as Gatland opted for a change in style by selecting four fly-halves to experiment with a dual- playmaker tactic. That meant a recall for Bath no 10 rhys Priestland, who has not played for Wales since last June.
‘We’ve got some players with good attacking ability,’ said Gatland, who took a similar approach on the Lions tour by selecting Johnny Sexton and Owen Farrell at 10 and 12.
‘The way the game is going, you need to be able to play-make, offload and keep the ball in play for longer periods. rhys looks calm and relaxed at the moment and is playing with a lot of confidence. That was what we had in 2011, a rhys Priestland who did so well at the World Cup.
‘He’s the type of player who plays better when he has that selfbelief and confidence. reading social media and negative reports had a negative impact on him in the past. It was one of the reasons he decided to leave Wales. He has been rejuvenated there.’
Hadleigh Parkes has been selected ahead of team-mate Scott Williams despite not becoming available until the final Test against South africa. The 30-year- old centre was born in new Zealand and will qualify for Wales on December 1 through the three-year residency rule.
Gatland said: ‘We have selected five uncapped players and six who made their debuts in the summer, so it is a big opportunity.
‘I’m really excited about this squad as we kick off the two-year countdown to the World Cup. We see this series as an opportunity to expose players to the Test environment and build our game.
‘The important message for those players who have missed out is that the door isn’t closed.’ WALES SQUAD to face Australia (Nov 11), Georgia (Nov 18), NZ (Nov 25) and SA (Dec 2).
Backs: A Davies, G Davies (both Scarlets), Webb, Biggar (both Ospreys), Patchell (Scarlets), Priestland (Bath), O Williams (Gloucester), J Davies (Scarlets), Morgan (Dragons), Parkes (Scarlets), Watkin (Ospreys), Amos (Dragons), Cuthbert (Cardiff Blues), Evans, Halfpenny (both Scarlets), L Williams (Saracens).
Forwards: Evans, W Jones (both Scarlets), Smith (Ospreys), Brown (Dragons), Francis (Exeter), Lee (Scarlets), Dacey (Cardiff Blues), Dee (Dragons), Owens, Ball (both Scarlets), Beard (Ospreys), S Davies (Cardiff Blues), Hill (Dragons), AW Jones (capt), Cross (both Ospreys), Faletau (Bath), Lydiate (Ospreys), Navidi (Cardiff Blues),