Brilliant Biggar gives Wales a major World Cup boost
Dan’s the man and Wales are No. 1! For Warren Gatland’s men to be officially named as the best side in world rugby is a magnificent achievement. I agree with those who say the rankings won’t have a big impact in Japan. Whether or not Wales go to the World Cup as No. 1 next month or not, it’s all about who will be there at the end of the tournament.
The players and Warren will play down the achievement and they are right to do so, but that doesn’t mean pundits and supporters can’t celebrate what is a remarkable milestone.
Wales have never been top of the rankings. New Zealand have been at the summit since November 2009. For Warren and the boys to topple them is fantastic and that should be celebrated.
They have got there on the back of sustained excellence over a long period of time. The last 18 months or two years have delivered a 14-match unbeaten run, a win over Australia, and a Six Nations Grand Slam and Triple Crown. Now we can add world No. 1 to that.
To be there and on the back of a victory over England as well is very pleasing, especially after the 33-19 defeat at Twickenham.
We all knew there would be a degree of rustiness to Wales’ performance in the first meeting with England and there certainly was!
If I’m honest England looked like they wanted it more and that’s not on. I can understand the guys feeling a bit off the pace so I’ll let them off and the pleasing thing was they got back into the game and gradually got to grips with their opposition.
One thing which did worry me was the line breaches in defence. We all know how good Wales have been in defence for as long as we can all remember. They’ve been brilliant.
However rusty you are in terms of rugby or fitness, the one thing which should remain the same is your defensive organisation. You might miss the odd tackle due to a lack of match action, but there shouldn’t be major breaches of the defensive system.
That’s why I was concerned to see England repeatedly breaking through into space, especially in midfield and between the 10, 12 and 13 channel. It wasn’t as if there were new players in those positions – it was Gareth Anscombe, Hadleigh Parkes and Jonathan Davies.
Hopefully it’s not a sign of things to come. Of course the main talking point from the first game was Gareth’s injury. I’m absolutely devastated for him to be missing the World Cup.
But how good was Dan after he stepped in for the second game? He was majestic. It might have been a warm-up game, but there is no such thing as a friendly when England arrive in Cardiff at a sold-out Principality Stadium.
The atmosphere was exceptional. The game wasn’t a classic, but it was a much improved display from Wales with Dan at the heart of it all.
I knew Wales were at it and would be much better from the first minute. They made a much improved start and it was immediately clear there was more intensity and commitment from the forward pack who tightened their guard defensively and made far more effective tackles.
I thought their maul defence was exceptional at times. It was summed up in the game’s final play when they turned over England ball. Ken Owens’ pumped fists, left, and that moment said it all! Neither side made much headway in attack – despite Wales trying repeatedly – but on this occasion I thought that was down to two very good and aggressive defences.
Dan was fully deserving of his man-of-the-match display and he played a key role in the only try of the game for George North. It was his quick thinking that saw him spot the option to cross-kick to Josh Adams and when the ball was recycled, he
did it again to find George.
It was great awareness and vision. Defensively Dan was fearless and he was solid under the high ball too. I loved everything about his performance. He showed the world he is a true Test match animal and it was the perfect response to the criticism he received in the build-up to the game.
I played a lot of rugby with Dan. I won the Celtic League title with the Ospreys with Dan. I was there when he first came into the Wales environment. If you doubt him, that only makes him stronger.
Dan was clearly aware of the comments JJ Williams had made about him, but he delivered the perfect response. He showed why the whole of Wales can rely on him to deliver at the World Cup.
The icing on the cake was the news that the injury that forced him to limp from the field late on wasn’t too serious. The other really pleasing thing for me was to see Leigh Halfpenny back on the Test stage, called in at the 11th hour to replace Liam Williams.
He had a very steady game, was excellent in defence, and his positioning play as ever was excellent. He will only get better from this.
Wales have now won their last 11 games at home and one of the big reasons they managed to turn the tables on England this time was that England struggled to get Elliot Daly, Anthony Watson and Joe Cokanasiga into the game. I thought Watson was excellent again – despite his yellow card – but he only had fleeting moments in which to breathe as Wales know how dangerous he can be.
I was very worried again when Wales saw Liam pull out and then James Davies, Aaron Wainwright, Jake Ball, Gareth Davies and Biggar all go off injured. Thankfully none of those problems are too serious.
Wales will spend this week at a training camp in Turkey and they can look to improve their game there with confidence flowing through the camp.
Warren will keep the players’ feet on the floor, but the squad must also be very happy. There are still two warm-up games with Ireland to come and the first of those meetings will see Warren give some of the fringe players a chance. I’d like to see Owen Lane, Jarrod Evans and Rhys Carre start.
Whatever happens, Wales are now the best rugby side in the world and no-one has ever been able to say that before. As a nation we should enjoy it. For a country of 3.1million people to be at the top of the rankings is something I didn’t think I’d ever see.
Drink it in Wales, but the best could still be yet to come.