Winners and losers as big Euro questions get answered
WITH the General Election approaching, the fate of Wales four regions exiting or remaining in Europe became a little clearer at the weekend.
With the Heineken Champions and Challenge cups taking centre stage, we look at Welsh rugby’s winners and losers from a busy weekend...
WINNERS
LOUIS REES-ZAMMIT
He’s already being likened to Gloucester’s former favourite son Jonny May.
And judging by his jet-propelled boots, Cardiff-born 18-year-old Louis Rees-Zammit - nicknamed ‘Speedy’ by his coach Johan Ackermann - would give the England wing a run for his money over a 100-yard dash.
The giant strides he’s made at Kingsholm this year are only matched by the ground-munching pace that seems to leave opposing defenders looking like snails nursing a hernia.
On Sunday, he kept the Cherry & Whites’ flickering hopes of reaching the Champions Cup knockout stages alive and in the process added another mark in the club’s record books in their 26-17 win over Connacht.
His match-winning touchdown at a time when the west country side trailing the PRO14 outfit 10-7 made Rees-Zammit Gloucester’s youngest try-scorer in Champions Cup history at 18 years old and 309 days.
It showcased the serious gas the Welsh teenager has when he latched onto Danny Cipriani’s pass to sprint away from the covering defence and dab down under the posts.
His pace also served him well when he got back to make a try-saving tackle on Eoghan Masterson when Connacht were pushing for a try to get back into the contest in the final 10 minutes. ROBIN MCBRYDE
The former hooker looks to have got a right result swapping being Wales’ forwards coach under Warren Gatland to be assistant boss at Leinster under Stuart Lancaster and Leo Cullen.
It could be argued McBryde has an equal array of forward riches at his disposal as he did when overseeing the Welsh pack for the last 13 years after being first appointed by Gareth Jenkins.
And on Saturday they crushed Gallagher Premiership high-flyers Northampton Saints 43-16 at Franklin’s Gardens in front of the Channel 4 TV cameras with the luxury of keeping the likes of Tadhg Furlong and Rob Kearney on the bench.
It was a statement of intent from the Dubliners they are hell bent on bettering their final defeat at the hands of Saracens in the final at Newcastle St James’ Park last season. For McBryde and his Leinster pack, which the Saints failed to match physically, will have even greater resources as the season progresses given hooker Sean Cronin and back-rowers Dan Leavy and Jack Conan are on the injured list.
TOBY FRICKER
Ioan Lloyd and Callum Sheedy have been hogging much of the Welsh spotlight for their performances at Bristol Bears this season.
But there’s another qualified to wear the three feathers going about his business at Ashton Gate, who could well have bagged the bonus point try at the weekend that gives the Bears a potential home quarter and semi-final in the European Challenge Cup.
Stade Francais may be bottom of the Top 14 but they were denying Bristol a bonus-point win at the weekend until former Ebbw Vale wing Fricker, whose father hails from Builth Wells, came up with the goods with the clock buried deep into the red.
His fine finish in the corner was his third European try in as many games.
A win in Paris in the return next weekend would guarantee qualification and keep the west country club in pole position to earn home advantage in the last eight and semi-finals should they progress to the final four.
JOSH ADAMS AND JARROD EVANS
Adams’ second regional match in Wales is certainly more memorable than his only ever appearance for the Scarlets way back in May, 2014, when the wing wizard was on the losing side in an Anglo-Welsh Cup clash with the Cardiff Blues.
More than five and a half years on he marked his debut for Cardiff Blues with a hat-trick of tries as they rocketed to a sensational victory over Pau in the European Challenge Cup.
The bonus point success kept them three points behind leaders Leicester Tigers, who had demolished Calvisano, at the top of Pool Five. Evans was also a key man piling up 22 points from two tries and six conversions and generally pulling more strings than a time served puppeteer.
LOSERS
MERTHYR RFC
These are testing times for The Ironmen.
A home defeat in the Welsh Premiership have been a rare as hen’s teeth during their march to three successive titles.
But their rivals are now spotting Dale McIntosh’s men are not the force they once were and are now biting back, even on trips to The
Wern.
At the weekend, it was the turn of Llanelli to stun the champions in their own backyard through a late converted Gareth Havard try.
‘Mr Biggar, Mr Biggar!’ Referee has enough of Dan Biggar’s outbursts in middle of match.
DAN BIGGAR
Critics of the Welsh No.10 should take a long hard look at the former Osprey churning out consistently high levels of performances at Northampton Saints.
The 30-year-old is different gravy under the gameplan adopted by Chris Boyd at Franklin’s Gardens and you just hope Welsh coach Wayne Pivac gives the 79-times capped star a similar stage to display his wares.
Despite Saints’ 43-16 defeat to Leinster on Saturday, Biggar hardly put a foot wrong. Pity it wasn’t the same story for the top part of his body as he received a stern telling off from referee Alexandre Ruiz for his conduct.
The frustrated official was unhappy with Biggar’s vocal outbursts during the first half of the match as the fired-up Welshman threw everything into his performance.
He was vociferous when Rhys Ruddock crossed for his try, believing the Leinster back-rower might not have grounded the ball when clearly he had. He was then warned to control his temper as annoyed official Ruiz could bee seen summoning Biggar, shouting “Dan, Dan, Dan!”
But the Welshman continued to ignore him, forcing the ref to try a more formal approach, shouting: “Mr Biggar, Mr Biggar!”
When Biggar finally got the message and approached Ruiz amid jeers from the crowd, he was told: “The refereeing today is our job. Listen to me please.”
Biggar replied: “Of course, of course.”
He was then told: “You need to control. You need to control or next time it’s a penalty against you.” BRIDGEND RFC
The Ravens escaped relegation last season from the Welsh Premiership by the skin of their teeth with an against-all-odds victory at Pontypridd on the final day of the season.
As the festive season approaches it will need another re-run of ‘The Great Escape’ if they are to dig their way out of trouble this term.
In losing 24-5 at home to RGC 1404, it was their seventh defeat and leaves them six points adrift at the bottom of the Premiership table. Ironically, it was the man who helped to keep them up last season, Matt Silva, who was mastermind of the RGC team that inflicted further pain on the Brewery Filed outfit.
The only thing missing for Silva on his return was a bonus-point.
Bridgend travel to fellow strugglers Ebbw Vale this weekend for a game that could decide which team stays up this season and who goes down.