Keelan shows he’s got all the tools to become a real star

YOU learn a lot about rugby players in adversity. How they react can tell you much about their character and whether they are made of the right stuff.

Keelan Giles faced that test against Stade Francais on Sunday, and, for me, he came through it quite impressively. Don’t get me wrong: there were a number of aspects of his game that he would have been frustrated with when he travelled home afterwards.

Rightly or wrongly, the referee adjudged him to have made a forward pass before Dan Biggar crossed for what would have been a superb Ospreys try early on. There were also question marks over his positioning for the Stade touchdown that came from that beautifully flighted kick from Jules Plisson.

He didn’t read the situation quickly enough, but then his teammates could have helped him by elongating the defensive line a bit more. The teenager is also still adapting to the physicality of these big games and Stade clearly looked to test him in that respect.

But what really caught my eye was his refusal to go missing in action on a day when it sometimes seemed written in the stars that the Ospreys were not going to win.

For a 19-year-old with barely a dozen senior games under his belt, that takes some doing.

Even experienced players occasionally shy away from the ball after a couple of less-than-perfect moments on a rugby pitch. Confidence can drain and the mentality can then be that it’s better to lie low in the hope that nobody will notice.

But Giles didn’t do any of that. He kept trying to get involved and not only did he tackle well, he also chased tirelessly and did all he could to close Stade attackers down.

That all suggested to me he has a winning attitude which is going to take him a long way in the game.

As I say, there were creases in his game on the day which can’t be ignored. But sometimes it can pay to look beyond the obvious and on this occasion I saw a young player who declined to bow out of Europe without a fight.

On a dark day for the Ospreys, that must be worth something.

THERE is no getting away from e comparisons between the Welsh regions and the Irish provinces after a European weekend that saw those involved enjoy diametrically opposed fortunes.

Across the Irish Sea, Leinster spanked Wasps in Dublin in the Champions Cup and Munster walloped Toulouse at Thomond Park in the same competiton.

Meanwhile, in the second-tier Challenge Cup Cardiff Blues imploded after a bright opening 50 minutes against Gloucester at Kingsholm and the Ospreys hopelessly lost their way despite a glut of territory and possession against Stade Francais.

Those results seem to accurately reflect where the two countries are at right now.

The Irish national team were able to beat New Zealand by playing them at their own game, while they defeated England by playing relentless pressure rugby.

Neither Leinster nor Munster played especially dazzling rugby, but in Champions Cup quarter finals there aren’t too many opportunities to play like that. Instead, the challenge is to find a way to win.

The two Irish provinces know how to do that. They simply take the chances on offer and relentlessly build their scores until the opposition are effectively out of the game. Teams are forced into submission by a brand of ‘low-mistakey’ that is ruthlessly effective.

Ultimately, it comes down to game-management.

Leinster and Munster have been in these positions before and know how to react, how to gradually accumulate points and how to get over the finishing line. Their players have a confidence about them that their Welsh counterparts don’t always seem to possess. They know how to kill off a game.

Cardiff Blues actually played well for 50 minutes before their defence took a holiday with predictable results against a Gloucester team boasting the likes of Billy Twelvetrees, Johnny May and Charlie Sharples.

The Ospreys’ problem was that they didn’t make good use of the ball they won. Two chances went begging in the early stages, and Steve Tandy’s team became frustrated. Dan Biggar had one of those days when everything seemed to annoy him, while Sam Davies was clearly exasperated at times, too.

It was an opportunity missed, and all at the Liberty will feel it deeply.