>> Shane: My Welsh team of the decade
So glorious George North made it into the World Rugby Team of the Decade! No argument there from me. I’ve seen first hand what damage he can do on a rugby field. He has been one of the most potent attacking threats in the world game ever since he made his debut as a ridiculously talented, and very large, 18-yearold in November 2010.
I was on the other wing that day and it was like the little and large show. I’m 5ft 7ins tall, so he was almost a foot taller than me. It only took him five minutes to announced his arrival on the international stage with the first of two tries against the Springboks.
Had we won the game it would have ranked as one of the greatest debuts of all-time, but the Boks hit back in the second half to run out 27-25 victors. There was no stopping him from there on and it is little surprise he is one of the game’s centurion cap holders with 98 caps for Wales and three for the British & Irish Lions.
His haul of 43 tries over the course of those 102 games – and don’t forget he is still only 28 – have made him the second highest try scorer in the past decade behind Julian Savea. No wonder he got the nod to join some of the best players of all-time in the team of the decade.
So, it got me thinking about what would be the best Welsh team of the past decade? If George is the first name down on the team sheet, who else would join him?
I managed to make 19 appearances, and score seven tries, in the decade before hanging up my boots. But that’s not going to be good enough to get me anywhere near the other wing position.
As it’s nearly Christmas, let’s have a bit of fun and play the selection game. Here are my thoughts on the best Welsh team from 20102019.
FULL BACK
CANDIDATES: Lee Byrne, Leigh Halfpenny, Liam Williams
Three Lions full-backs and three exceptional players. All three could play on the wing as well and all had comparable skills under the high ball. I don’t think I’ve ever seen a bigger left boot than Lee’s or a better goalkicker than Leigh. Then there is Liam – tough as teak and willing to attack from anywhere. This is a real headache. VERDICT: Leigh Halfpenny (Mr Consistency over the decade)
WINGS
CANDIDATES: Josh Adams, Alex Cuthbert, George North, Liam Williams
George has to get in on the right wing given his try and cap count for the decade, so the question is who plays on the left? Liam played there quite a lot when he wasn’t at full-back. He’s mad as a box of frogs and that’s why everyone loves him. Alex had a golden two years with a 2012 Grand Slam and those two tries in the title decider against England a year later. Josh is the new kid on the block and is developing into a deadly finisher, but it’s probably a bit soon for him to get into this team. He’ll have to make do with a Lions place in the summer.
VERDICT: George North & Liam Williams
CENTRES
CANDIDATES: Jonathan Davies, James Hook, Hadleigh Parkes, Jamie Roberts, Scott Williams
Davies and Roberts went together like Morecambe and Wise, bacon and eggs and Laurel and Hardy. As a pair of centres they played together more than any other in the history of the Six Nations and were a special duo. But from an individual talent perspective, Hookey is right up there with the best, Scott scored one of the greatest Welsh tries in the 2012 Grand Slam season at Twickenham and Hadleigh was a colossus in the 2019 Grand Slam campaign and at the World Cup. VERDICT: Jonathan Davies & Jamie Roberts
OUTSIDE-HALVES
CANDIDATES: Gareth Anscombe, Dan Biggar, Stephen Jones, Rhys Priestland How do you fill a void as big as the one left by Stephen Jones? Simple, look west and pick out Rhys Priestland and then Dan Biggar to fill the No.10 shirt. Rhys was one of the stars of the 2011 World Cup campaign and the 2012 Grand Slam. Dan Biggar’s highly competitive instinct played a huge part in the success of the Welsh teams in which he played, including the 2013 Six Nations title and 2019 Grand Slam. He’s still going strong as well! Gareth Anscombe brought slightly different skills to the pitch after transferring from
New Zealand and was a crucial figure in the 2019 Grand Slam. VERDICT: Dan Biggar
SCRUM HALVES
CANDIDATES: Gareth Davies, Mike Phillips, Rhys Webb, Tomos Williams
I can hear Mike Phillips shouting ‘it has to be me’! What a player he was for Wales and the Lions and he deserves to be ranked among the best of all-time.
He won so many games for Wales and the Ospreys. Then along came Webby and Gareth – two different style No.9s – and Tomos has now joined the battle. Instead of a ninth forward approach, they brought speed and cunning to the party. The choice here will dictate the style of game you want to play.
VERDICT: Mike Phillips
LOOSEHEAD
CANDIDATES: Rob Evans, Paul James, Gethin Jenkins
Just as George North was a shoo-in, so you’d have to say there is only one choice to make here. Gethin bagged two Grand Slams, won another Six Nations title and got picked for a third Lions tour in the decade. He was a freak of nature and I can still see him lapping me during a 3K fitness test. He also took the Welsh cap record up to 129. Paul was a real warrior for club and country and can feel incredibly proud of a career in which he won 66 caps. How many more might that have been but for you know who?
VERDICT: Gethin Jenkins
HOOKERS
CANDIDATES: Scott Baldwin, Huw Bennett, Richard Hibbard, Ken Owens, Matthew Rees Three more Lions Test players are in this group and I can’t think of a tougher choice in any position. What do you want from your hooker? Good set-piece skills or energy and ball carrying in the loose? You can probably get a bit of everything from any of them. Ken developed under the wing of ‘Smiler’ Rees and ‘Hibbs’ and has emerged as one of the stars of the decade. But if you want someone to win you a collision, or leave an imprint on the opposition, then the flaxenhaired warrior that is Richard Hibbard has to be your man. Do you go with the all-Wales Lions front row from the
2009 Lions tour, veer towards the line-out accuracy of Scott or take the ever-reliable Huw
Bennett?
VERDICT: Ken Owens
TIGHTHEAD PROP
CANDIDATES: Tomas Francis, Adam Jones, Samson Lee, Dillon Lewis
One figure dominated the Welsh scrum in the early part of the decade and became a cult figure – Adam Jones. As wide as he was tall, he was arguably the best tighthead in the world in his pomp and joined Ryan Jones and Gethin Jenkins in winning three Grand Slams. Samson and Tomas have vied for the No.3 jersey ever since, while Dillon is the new kid on the block VERDICT: Adam Jones
LOCKS
CANDIDATES: Jake Ball, Adam Beard, Luke Charteris, Bradley Davies, Ian Evans, Alun Wyn Jones
Only one space left to fill after reading this list – who packs down alongside the remarkable Alun Wyn? AWJ has to be among the first names on the team sheet, but who joins him? His old Ospreys sparring partner Ian Evans, the towering and amazingly athletic Luke Charteris, the bullocking Jake Ball or either of his current Ospreys teammates, Brad and Adam? Another tough choice, but one that would be vital to the team’s power and ball winning ability.
VERDICT: Alun Wyn Jones &
Luke
Charteris
BACK ROW
CANDIDATES: Taulupe Faletau, Ryan Jones, Dan Lydiate, Ross Moriarty, Jonathan Thomas, Justin Tipuric, Sam Warburton
Just reading this list makes me feel proud to be Welsh. What an incredible collection of talent for a single decade – and that’s without considering Martyn Williams, Andy Powell or Ellis Jenkins, who also played during the ten years. Getting the right blend and balance is the most important thing. There are two obvious candidates for No.8 – Ryan and Taulupe. How do you leave either of them out of the side? You could move one of them to No.6, but then that means having to do without Ross, Dan or JT. And if it comes as a straight shoot-out between Sam and Justin for the No.7 jersey who the hell do I pick? This smacks of throwing the names into a hat and picking any three from seven. VERDICT: Sam Warburton (6), Justin Tipuric (7), Taulupe Faletau (8)
Some team!
CONCUSSION
I’ve got massive sympathy for the players who have linked together in the potential legal battle over concussion. It is an issue that is going to dominate the headlines for quite some time.
I did a documentary on this very topic recently and I have to say that I was mightily relieved when I came through all the scans with a clean bill of health. Others haven’t been so lucky and rugby has a duty to ensure the game is as safe as possible moving forward.
Lots of positive strides have been made on that front, but the need for greater education at all levels of the game is obvious. The tinkering with the laws of the game have helped – the height of the tackle, no swinging arms, less rucking and less contact in training. The Head Injury Assessment (HIA) rule has also been a huge boost at the professional end of the game.
There was a time when the magic sponge was applied, there was a slap across the face and a player was told to get on with the game. Such archaic approaches are now, thankfully, a thing of the past. If in doubt, a player has to leave the field and stay away until fully recovered. The game hasn’t gone soft, it has just become wiser.