Warnock words give heart to Blues
CARDIFF Blues fly home from Spain today to the acclamation of Welsh rugby in general and the capital’s newly-promoted Premier League football club in particular.
Danny Wilson had taken his outsiders to Bilbao for Friday night’s European Challenge Cup final with some encouraging words from Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock ringing in his ears: “You can do it.”
“Neil came in to see us just before we left,’’ Wilson said after a break in the Blues’ celebrations which had gone on until 5am yesterday. “They expressed their belief in our ability to get the job done and wished us all the best.
“To have two sides in Cardiff playing at the top of end of their respective sports is a great thing for the city.’’
Just as Warnock’s team
defied huge odds to win promotion, so the Blues have done likewise, staging the most unlikely comeback in any Challenge Cup final to beat Gloucester 31-30 thanks to Gareth Anscombe’s last-minute penalty.
They made it what’s more despite the preseason financial crisis that engulfed the Arms Park and prompted Wilson’s refusal to renew his contract as a protest.
Springbok lock Franco van der Merwe’s off-loading last summer before he could stay long enough to play a match for the Blues brought one of the best coaches in the game to the conclusion that his future lay elsewhere.
“To be honest it was a dark and difficult time,’’ Wilson said. “I didn’t want to walk out on all the players. You make a stand in what you believe in but you also have a responsibility.
“The season was about to start. We all had to stick together and see it through to the end. As a result the whole squad has become really tight. We set Champions’ Cup qualification as our goal and achieved it.
“But if you’d said when the season began that we would finish it winning a very large piece of silverware I’m not sure I’d have believed you. The players have been outstanding.’’
Having delivered Welsh rugby only its second European success in 22 years, with the Blues reclaiming a trophy they won against Toulon in Marseilles in 2010, Wilson will join Dai Young’s coaching staff at Wasps next month.
He has been consistent in saying he has ‘no regrets’ about leaving. “This is a lovely way to go but nothing has changed from my position,’’ he said. “I’m very comfortable with my decision and I look forward to the next challenge.’’