Surprise returns, a ‘ridiculous’ ref
It was anything but your run of the mill weekend in Welsh rugby with talking points aplenty. On the Pro12 front it was another 50-50 split with the Ospreys and Scarlets bagging wins to continue their charge at the top end of the table while the Blues and
WINNERS
Aled Brew Not many Welshmen will be boasting a victory over reigning English and European champions Saracens this season. But Welsh internationals Luke Charteris, Aled Brew and Taulupe Faletau can.
While Faletau and Charteris remain a potent force on the international scene, Bath’s ability to revive the career of Brew after his return to regional rugby with the Dragons stalled alarmingly is the talk of the Recreation Ground.
“Aled Brew has stepped up another level which says a huge amount about the Bath coaching. It was the sort of thing, producing the best out of that type of player, is what the Exeter Chiefs do well. Now Bath are doing it too,” said respected TV analyst and pundit David Flatman on ITV’s Aviva Premiership highlights show. Jonathan Evans When former Dragons scrum-half Evans left Bath for the Parc y Scarlets earlier this year it was assumed it was for a third fiddle role in the regional band behind Gareth and Aled Davies.
But the important member of the Wales squad which inflicted the first defeat by any country on New Zealand at under-20 level, in the 2012 World Cup in South Africa, and went on to finish third has well and truly set the cat among the pigeons down west with some eye-catching displays for the region in recent weeks.
The man of the match performance of two-try Evans in the Scarlets’ 31-24 win at Zebre on the weekend looks set to give boss Wayne Pivac a selection headache for this week’s Champions Cup clash with three-times European winners Toulon.
Evans has now scored five tries in his last five league matches, pushing his case to start ahead of Wales international Gareth Davies in the south of France next Sunday. Nicky Robinson The Blues sprung a shock last week when it was announced Robinson was coming out of retirement to help his former region overcome an injury crisis.
And it was like the 34-year-old had never been away treating the Arms Park faithful to the range of passing that is sometimes horribly lacking in the Test arena.
His trademark break after coming off the bench against Ulster and neat pass to the onrushing Alex Cuthbert helped the Welsh wing cross the whitewash and add just a touch more confidence to his game after a disappointing autumn series.
It took us back to the 2009 EDF Energy Cup final when Robinson pulled the strings with the deftness of a grand master in puppetry when thumping Gloucester in the final.
He won 13 caps for Wales during his time with the Welsh region before going on to have spells with Gloucester, Wasps, Bristol and Oyonnax before calling it a day. Taulupe Faletau West Country fans have seemingly been waiting an age to see the Tongan-born Welsh No.8 in full flow across the Severn.
And they got the full package on Saturday against Aviva Premiership leaders Saracens that left granitehardened All Blacks lock Todd Blackadder, Bath’s director of rugby, purring with delight.
Despite Faletau playing just 50 minutes after his game was ended prematurely by an accidental finger in the eye, Blackadder said: “He was fantastic wasn’t he. It was like, ‘who’s this guy again?’ “He was on fire. He was our spark and inspiration at the start.” Ashley Beck With a dearth of Test centres in Wales and creative midfielders to implement their new expansive game-plan could a fit and firing Beck be the answer in the Six Nations Championship.
Fit and firing is something Welsh rugby hasn’t seen from the seven-times capped Ospreys over the last few years but on his day the 26-year-old is as creative a centre you’ll see in the regional game here.
And on Friday night, against an albeit shaky Edinburgh rearguard, Beck again showed his qualities to suggest he could well force his way into the Six Nations mix.
“Everyone knows what Ashley Beck is ike. His angles of running are good and he gives great targets for the forwards. Ashley has been so unlucky with injuries, I think he needs a run and if he can do that then I think he will have a part to play for Wales in the future,” Jonathan Davies told the Scrum V programme on Sunday night.
And Phil Davies added: “He’s a lovely passer off both hands, he’s got great feet and an appreciation of where the gaps are.
Scott Williams and Ashley played together for Wales Under-20s. If both of them get some consistent game time, I’d love to see them playing together.”