Dan’s the man to turn Wales into contenders
THE 2021 Six Nations will be an interesting study in contrasting styles and it will be fascinating to see how the contest plays out. In 2020 it was hard to get too much of a feel of how the international game is panning out because we were coming straight off the back of a World Cup which is a natural end cycle for so many teams, player and coaches. Then we had all the chaos of Covid.
There was a long period without international rugby before the teams returned to action with limited preparation time for the finale to the 2020 Six Nations and the Autumn Nations Cup.
While it was clearly great to have rugby back, the standard overall was poor and it was difficult to get a true gauge of where each team was at with the bigger picture in mind.
I think we will find that out in the 2021 Six Nations. Each team will hopefully get the chance to play regular games and will all be in camp for a long time because of Covid.
What fascinates me is the different approaches we are likely to see. The biggest contrast is between England and Wales. Wales had a shocking first year under Wayne Pivac and we are yet to see the expansive approach Wayne wants in action. In fact, I’d argue we’re still unsure exactly what that approach is.
We do know, though, that the basic premise is a lot more focused on attack, on spreading the ball wide and benefitting from turnovers, and offloading in the tackle. Wales under Pivac want to use the ball.
England are seemingly at the other end of the spectrum. They seem to be happy to play without the ball, kick a lot, and hunt the opposition down by forcing them into making mistakes. They do that with supreme physicality, smashing the breakdown, and taking no prisoners in the tackle.
England kick the ball a lot, turn teams around, and smash them back.
Teams surrender to England in that area because they have so much power. They often have George Ford, Owen Farrell and Henry Slade all on the field at the same time – basically three fly-halves to kick the leather off the ball and pin teams back.
Wales want to play with width. We do box-kick a lot and there is a clash of styles there which will hopefully make things interesting. The question is, which is the better option? We want to see exciting rugby and see teams spread the ball wide from first phase or on the counterattack. England haven’t necessarily got it right, but it is proving successful for them now and it is up to the likes of Wayne and Scotland’s Gregor Townsend to prove there is more than one way to skin a cat.
“Lydiate is fit and hungry and devastating in defence. Pivac has to give him due reward”
Scotland are closer to Wales when it comes to their tactics. Ireland play very similarly to England. The interesting one is France who are devastating with the ball but have married that with Shaun Edwards’ majestic defence. They are my bet to push England all the way for the title.
My fear, though, is that the way international rugby is now, England’s more pragmatic approach is the one more likely to lead to Six Nations glory. That opens up a lot of wider questions about whether it is good for the game. Will people turn away from rugby if the product is no good to watch?
There is certainly a danger of that but it is at this point where I wonder if Wayne has to become a bit more pragmatic. He has his coaching ideals and is sticking to them, but will the approach he had success with at the Scarlets ever work at international level? It hasn’t yet. I hope it does, for the good of the game as much as anything, but I have my doubts. Perhaps that is why he has picked experienced players in form like Dan Lydiate.
Wales’ squad does not have many surprises. Rhys Webb was a big omission, but that’s not to say he won’t feature in the Six Nations at all. I mentioned last week that the form players in Wales over the Christmas period, and for most of the season, have been the old guys. Dan has been absolutely destroying everyone and smashing the tackle stats. Jamie Roberts has been superb for the Dragons too and was unlucky to miss out.
Dan being selected didn’t really surprise me, but on the flip side we know Wayne is looking to the next World Cup. Is Dan going to be playing at the next World Cup? He’d have to look after himself exceptionally well to be ready for that.
With Dan you get what it says on the tin. He tackles everything which comes his way. From 2008 onwards and throughout the Warren Gatland era he was one of Wales’ best players.
The game has changed a lot since then, but the breakdown is still a hugely important factor. We’re seeing far, far more turnovers now whether that’s from players in the jackal position stealing the ball or winning penalties for their team. Dan is a big part of why the Ospreys have earned a lot of breakdown penalties in recent games. He makes the tackle nice and early and low.
With Wales he will have the likes of Justin Tipuric alongside him to get on the ball. I think Dan fits the bill with the way the referees are looking at the breakdown. It would not surprise me at all if he starts the first game and it will change the dynamic of the way Wales play. Hopefully he’ll win more turnovers.
Perhaps he is the missing link – and maybe Pivac has realised since the Autumn Nations Cup the need for brawn as well as brain.
The other man I was pleased to see back in the squad was Josh Navidi, but it wouldn’t be fair at all to throw him straight back in after his nasty concussion. He’s been very unlucky with injuries.
Being in the Welsh set-up is great. I’m sure at some point he will play, but especially at the highest level you need to be very careful with players and also realise Josh is just coming back and will be looking for form. There is no point calling Dan in as a form player if he’s not going to play.
Dan is a no-nonsense rugby player who trains hard and just gets on with it. He’s not going to be going round as a guiding light for the youngsters because that’s not the way he is. When Josh is fully fit and with a run of form he is world class, but Dan has lots of games under his belt at the moment. He’s fit and hungry and devastating in defence. You’ve got to give him his due rewards. He could easily be one of the best players in the Six Nations.