Wales coach opens up on personal pain and betting shame and legend Davies insists he must now be given another challenge in pro rugby

JONATHAN DAVIES is urging rugby to give Rob Howley a second chance when his ban for betting on the sport ends this month.

Howley, who starred for Wales and the Lions before going on to coach both, spoke movingly yesterday about how blaming himself for the death of his sister led him to gamble on matches in contravention of strict rugby regulations.

“It was all about escaping from my dark thoughts,” he said. “It was never about the money. Never. It gave me an escape. A reason to forget.”

Howley’s nine-month ban – for placing 363 bets on matches, including Wales games – ends on June 16 and he is eager to get back involved in the sport.

Davies (right), who partnered the scrum-half at halfback for club and country, insists he has served his time and deserves another shot.

“Everyone likes a flutter, but when you get involved in sport you can’t do it,” said the crosscode legend turned BBC pundit. “Rob was caught and he knows how stupid he was.

“But he’s definitely learned his lesson and I hope he can put it behind him and be given an opportunity. With the calibre of his CV I’d think he would be. His work ethic is second to none.”

Howley, 49, lost the chance to become Italy’s head coach when he was busted on the eve of the World Cup last September and sent home.

Wasps, the club where he won a European Cup, reached out to him before Christmas about returning to work with Dai Young, but his former

Wales pal has since left and been replaced.

Still, the approach gave Howley much-needed reassurance that there can be a future for him in the game.

Whether any club in the UK can spend on recruitment is another matter, given the pandemic which has brought the sport to its knees financially.

A report yesterday revealed that Wales’ four professional teams face a fight for survival with funding from the Welsh Rugby Union set to drop from £26million to under £3m over the next year.

Howley, one of rugby’s most likeable characters, will always regret letting down family and work colleagues, particularly his then Wales boss Warren Gatland.

Before the investigation into his betting even began, Howley had taken responsibility for his actions and started three months of therapy with a

clinical psychologist. Slowly they made sense of what happened in his personal life to derail his career and with the support of friends and colleagues he says he is no longer “battling demons”.

“When the chips are down you find out who your friends are,” added Davies. “Rob has certainly found that out. That’s a hard lesson sometimes.

“I think there’s a lot of love and appreciation of him in the WRU and they’ve got a big say in the Regions now. I don’t know where or when he’ll return, but he’s paid the price and deserves a second chance.”