Pivac’s made his mind up... but what can we learn from his selection?
If the art of rugby selection were studied in college, it seems reasonable to suggest that Warren Gatland would have graduated with first-class honours.
It was his strongest suit while with Wales and the same can be said of his time with the Lions.
Not that Brian O’Driscoll would totally agree with that idea.
Or Adam Jones, for that matter. And maybe not Dwayne Peel. The truth is there are always winners and losers in team picks. The challenge for the man making the calls is to have the courage to back himself, rather than listen to the countless voices from outside telling him what he should or shouldn’t do.
But he also needs to be flexible if a call doesn’t work out.
Gatland was brilliant at it all and it will be intriguing to see how Pivac shapes up on such a key issue in this Six Nations.
There were a number of tricky decisions for him in his first Test selection. delivers verdict on the headline calls...
NORTH TAKES CENTRE STAGE
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WHERE would George North play against Italy? Would he play at all? It’s been a guessing game all week, with opinion roughly split on what Saturday had in store for the Ospreys man.
Rumours of supposed injury issues in the Wales back three further complicated the picture.
And all the while the talk was of who would figure alongside Hadleigh Parkes.
Nick Tompkins, a supposedly fit-again Owen Watkin, Josh Adams and North were all floated as possible midfield partners for the Scarlet. In a Valleys’ cafe on Tuesday, all four of those names were offered up by different people as strong centre options for Pivac, with at least one of those individuals hinting that he might have been privy to inside information.
Countless others have had their say.
As Winston Churchill almost said: “Never in the field of rugby conflict was so much said by so many about so few.”
Anyway, it turns out it’s North who’s been handed the midfield gig.
He’ll probably be the first to admit he hasn’t played the house down in the two outings he’s had at outside centre for the Ospreys recently.
There again, the Liberty Stadium region’s back division has been misfiring in so many areas it would have been difficult for anyone to make an impact. Conrad Smith, Allan Bateman and Brian O’Driscoll all rolled into one might have struggled to do so.
But North has defended well enough and done his best to take the Ospreys over the gain-line.
Pivac evidently hopes that with better quality ball, the 94-cap former Scarlet will be able to make an even bigger mark for Wales, especially in the matter of crossing the advantage line. Power matters in Test rugby and the art of selection is about achieving the right balance.
In picking the 6ft 4in, 17st 2lb North alongside Parkes, Wales will hope they have a midfield duo to put them on the front foot and allow opportunities to open up out wide for the likes of Josh Adams and Johnny McNicholl.
There is a case for believing Nick Tompkins is a shade unlucky not to be starting.
But he’s a quality option for Pivac and there’s likely to be a cap for him off the bench.
For North, it’s about proving conclusively he can shine in a midfield role.
Two years ago, Warren Gatland said: “Players like Tana Umaga and Ma’a Nonu played a lot of rugby early in their careers on the wing and became great centres. George is potentially capable of doing that.”
There are doubters, but North’s raw talent surely isn’t up for debate.
A home game with Italy provides a prime opportunity for the big man to prove a point.
NOT JUST YET FOR BOY WONDER
A DOOR to a Test cap hasn’t opened, then, for Louis Rees-Zammit.
But patience will surely earn him reward at some point.
The Gloucester wing has made a superb start to his professional career. He is quick, exciting, skilful and seems to have a nose for the opposition try line.
His form this season merited his call into the Wales squad and he has impressed the coaches and fellow players.
But at 18 he is still very much an apprentice and even Gloucester coach Johan Ackermann has acknowledged there are still areas of the game for him to work on.
That looked to be the case against Bristol last weekend when Pat Lam’s side tried to pressure him in defence.
The Six Nations is no workexperience environment, so it may help Rees-Zammit in the long run not to have received a nod just yet.
Josh Adams and Johnny McNicholl, though he will be making his own Test debut, have vastly more experience as rugby players, and both are top quality in their own right.
They will provide Wales with a cutting edge.
LRZ will have his opportunity at some point.
Time is very much on his side.
WAINWRIGHT HAS SIX APPEAL
IT’S Old Mother Hubbard in reverse for Wales at blindside flanker.
The cupboard is full to the brim. Josh Navidi, Aaron Shingler, Ross Moriarty and Wainwright can all operate at six and all of them are capable of performing outstandingly.
Navidi, of course, has been rocked