In days gone by, Max Boyce used to praise the outside-half factory in West Wales.
For years we used to churn out world-class number 10s but for some reason this is no longer the case, and the factory which created the likes of Barry John, Phil Bennett and Jonathan Davies has been replaced by one which manufactures top-class back-rowers. When Jac Morgan was ruled out of the Six Nations it looked like a big blow but the recent performances of Tommy Reffell proves Wales are well-stocked in the back-row.
It seems that as one drops down with injury another one pops up in his place. It’s a case of cometh the hour cometh the man. I don’t wish to offend anyone by leaving anyone out but they do seem to drop out of the trees at times.
At one time we had the likes of Sam Warburton, Dan Lydiate and Justin Tipuric while Josh Navidi appeared when we needed him back in 2017. We also had Ellis Jenkins who was also an excellent leader, while Taine Basham has had his moments.
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At the Rugby World Cup Morgan was superb at openside and as a co-captain. To illustrate the strength in depth we have in the back-row we also have the outstanding Tommy Reffell, and it also looks like Alex Mann is destined to become a fine player.
When you think that Aaron Wainwright was only supposed to be keeping Taulupe Faletau's jersey warm but has played so well he was player of the match in the opening round defeat to Scotland it proves Wales are in a good place as far as the back-row is concerned.
But the outside half position, unfortunately, isn’t so crammed with talent. Whether you like it or not accurate kicking is an important aspect of a successful teams strategy and, don’t forget, the chase is just as important as the kick.
Remember back to last year. Our kicking was so inaccurate that it led to Freddie Steward being awarded player of the match, and it made him look like a world beater this year too.
Ioan Lloyd is an immensely talented player who plays on instinct but, from time to time, you’re going to have to accept that he is going to make mistakes and errors of judgement. While he may be able to get away with it at club level, making the odd mistake at international level can be the difference between winning and losing, as we saw last Saturday.
It took a moment of indecision in front of the posts which led to an England try. The indecision creeps into the rest of the team because they have to provide an appropriate response that they’re not expecting.
If the rest of the team are not singing from the same song sheet it can prove to be disastrous, and it doesn’t do anyone any favours. Take the lineout for instance.
If we’re winning our share of the lineout ball and the lineout is functioning as it ought to then everyone is happy. If we aren’t then it poses the question of what is going wrong?’
Last week our lineout was atrocious in the first half. The improvement when Elliot Dee came at the start of the second half was so obvious that he was justifiably selected to start against England.
Parts of the hooker’s skillset are purely individual but they also involve their contribution to a group skill such as the lineout where the jumpers and the rest of the team benefit from their accurate throwing in. Consequently, they are all able to perform their respective roles.
But Gatland usually has a 55 to 60-minute substitution strategy for the front row, and you can almost set your watch by it. The lineout functioned well up until that point but after the substitutions it wasn’t so good.
The first part of Gatland’s decision to start with Dee was obvious. The second part to deviate from his usual strategy, by keeping Dee on for significantly longer before he was substituted, wasn’t taken and the lineout suffered as a consequence.
This was Gatland’s error of judgement. It was one of the reasons behind our loss to England.
While I’m on the 55 to 60-minute substitution business, the scrum was also doing well up until then. For a similar reason he should have left Keiron Assiratti on the field until later in the game.
After all, Cai Evans wasn’t brought on until the 81st minute! I mentioned earlier about the fine margins which are needed to win or lose games at international level. We’ve lost both games by very small margins, and we have been very competitive.
I’ve been particularly impressed by our discipline. The penalty count is quite low when you consider that it is a very inexperienced team. Under the circumstances, we could have easily been going to Dublin with two wins under our belt.
I see that Gatland is asking for patience from the Welsh supporters which is all well and good but unfortunately Welsh supporters can be just as unforgiving as their New Zealand counterparts.
