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Season Preview - Who Will Be Wales' Best Team


Season Preview

By Andrew Collins
August 1 2014

Wales’ four regional sides have all been busy this summer; for some, the forthcoming season holds promise, while for others, the unknown...

 

The title “Wales’ Best Team” probably doesn’t hold the prestige it once did - in fact it probably draws comparisons with “Fastest Man in Fat Club” or “Crufts’ Best Chiwahwah in Show” – but it will arguably be the most interesting battle for many years.

While The Cardiff Blues have enjoyed relative success in their summer squad rebuilding process, the Ospreys and Scarlets are facing uncertainty and enter the new season looking weaker than they finished the last.

Summer Summaries

Cardiff Blues

Have brought in Gareth Anscombe to replace Leigh Halfpenny while also provide cover to, and challenge, Rhys Patchell’s at stand-off. They’ve also landed Jared Hoeata in a like-for-like trade for the outgoing Bradley Davies, while other notable signings include Wales international trio Tavis Knoyle, Craig Mitchell and Josh Turnbull, Bristol’s Welsh winger George Watkins and Fijian number 8 Manoa Vosawai. Fans should also be interested to see how Geraint Walsh gets on; the full back come centre has been one of Pontypridd’s most consistent players over the past few years by all accounts. He was crowned Principality Premiership Player of the Year and also picked up try of the season for his solo effort against Llandovery.

Despite all these signings however, most Blues fans are most excited by the arrival of New Zealand Head Coach Mark Hammett. It’s fair to say that the region failed ever really find a replacement for Dai Young following his departure. Joint-coaches Justin Burnell and Gareth Baber’s reign provoked arguably the least enjoyable rugby only to be followed by Phil Davies near 2-year era of settling for mediocrity. With Hammett in charge, Blues’ fans would argue the future looks brighter than it has for some time. The Kiwi coach has already won fans’ hearts and minds with his early media appearances, while his decision to retain The Chief and Paul John also resonated loudly with the Arms Park faithful.

 

Newport Gwent Dragons

The Dragons, like the Blues, will be going into the 14-15 season with a sense of real optimism. They can stand quite proud knowing they are almost single handily fighting the tide of players playing abroad; having held on to superstar number 8 Faletau, they went on to sign Wales’ hugely talented forgotten man, Lee Bryne, ex-Dragon Aled Brew, ex-Cardiff Blue Andy Powell and highly-experienced lock Ian Gough. On top of bringing those Welsh boys back home, they have also today announced the smart acquisition of South African prop Juan ‘Brok’ Harris.

The Dragons once again finished as Wales’ worst region, despite starting the season in emphatic form. They’ve been very honest in their own assessments of that disappointment and seem determined not suffer the same embarrassment this year. Their recruitment policy has seen them mocked for the average age of their squad – Bryne being 34 and Gough 37 – but if Lyn Jones can get the best out of his squad, they will certainly be fighting for a play-off spot come the end of the season.

 

Ospreys

Without any doubt, the Ospreys have been Wales’ standout side for the past 5 years. The Cardiff Blues were on a par with them for a brief period, but other than that, they have been head and shoulders above their peers. However, this year could see the end of their reign.

They have been hit hardest by the regions’ self-imposed £3.5 million salary cap and have this year bid farewell to superstar stalwarts Richard Hibbard, Ian Evans and Ryan Jones. Useful squad players Tom Isaacs and Matthew Morgan have also departed. However once piece of good news which has emerged during writing this article, is it appears they have secured future of Adam Jones.

For the first time in many years, their recruitment list doesn’t really inspire any fear. Martin Roberts and Cai Griffiths return to Welsh rugby after stints in England, while fans will be interested to see how South African lock Rynier Bernardo and Fijian back Josh Matavesi bed into their squad.

The Ospreys have never tolerated losing, and in Steve Tandy they have a coach who will breathe confidence and bring the best out of his players. They have a hugely talented academy with an excellent track record. That said, you can’t underestimate the loss the aforementioned leavers and they will have done exceptionally well if they can retain their mantle at the top of Welsh rugby.

 

Scarlets

The Scarlets’, a little like Cardiff, have lost a few players but managed to replace near-enough like-for-like. While the talismanic Jonathan Davies has left for Clermont, they have managed to secure the return of Regan King who goes the opposite way. Tongan back row Chris Hala’ufia has joined from London Irish, to replace Josh Turnbull who joins the Blues. They’ve also recruited two wingers in the form of Harry Robinson and Tagicakibau, although for a side with a number of top quality back three players, this seems like an odd transfer policy.

All the above doesn’t really seem so bad for the West Walians, but their pre-season took a huge hit as Head Coach Simon Easterby announced he was leaving to take up a role as Ireland forwards coach. New Zealander Wayne Pivac had already joined the region to become Easterby’s assistant, but it looks as though he will immediately step up to replace the Irishman. How smooth that transition will be is anyone’s guess.

 

 

 

Looking at the squads, it’s fair to say that this is unlikely to be a vintage year for any of the Welsh regions. Not one of our four sides would be confident of finishing in the top four of England, France or even our own Pro 12 league.

But in a period unlike any before, of enormous instability and whilst battling our own governing body, all four regions must be given immense credit for the way they have shaped squads that will, hopefully, do their fans proud and ensure we do not become the laughing stock of European rugby – or at least no ON the pitch. Each team has suffered massively from the financial restraints being put on them from the WRU and will have their own story of lost players to France and England in recent years and whatever they achieve this season, they must be celebrated for doing it in the face of such adversity from the union.

So big deal that those outside of Wales underplay how much the title of “Wales’ Best Team” means to us. The fact is it will always be a source of great pride to whichever team holds the crown, and a great source of envy to the other three. And while the familiar household names on our regional team sheets continues to decrease in the short term, we will enjoy watching the names of the future get one over our rivals. The fight for that crown, no matter how tarnished, should be the best we’ve had in years.

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Season Preview - Who Will Be Wales' Best Team
Discussion started by theArmsPark.co.uk , 01/08/2014 16:07
theArmsPark.co.uk
01/08/2014 16:07
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cardiffsteve
01/08/2014 18:27
My big concern (apart from whole the war with union thing) is the fact that Hammett doesnt truck up for another fortnight.

And when he arrives, he needs to get to an understanding quickly with John and McIntosh. If he cant, then theres huge potential for a clusterfuck.

I also wonder what he's going to make of the squad. We've got a few John and McIntosh signings piled on Phil Davies's signings, piled on a few additions from the academy, piled on the players we had anyway.

Its a huge squad.

Probably bigger than it needs to be. He'll need to decide which players he needs and which are surplus. I wouldnt be too surprised of one or two recent additions have moved on by Christmas.

Potentially its a decent squad. But I think it'll take time to gel. And we still look to lack depth if injuries start to build.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2014:08:01:19:00:19 by cardiffsteve.

ATTR
01/08/2014 18:53
There are so many unknowns about this season. We should be more competitive, as should Newport. Llanelli always seem to push above their weight and the Ospreys too.

I hope, and believe, we will be in the mix but I'd not be surprised to find us in the bottom two of the Welsh sides. Of course, if that happened and we finished 4th in the GP12 I'd be reasonably happy.

As long as we are competitive it will be a step in the right direction though.

Sadly we are coming from such a low base (thanks Roger!) we have to forget being at the top table for a while.

wales606
01/08/2014 21:58
I think the Ospreys could be in big trouble,

They have relied so heavily on their forwards, while they haven't really developed any backs to replace the likes of Shane and Tommy Bowe.

Biggar is a huge asset and will keep them in decent shape, but losing Hibbard, Evans, Ryan Jones and potentially Adam Jones (added to the loss of Paul James a couple of seasons ago) will leave them a shadow of their former selves in the front 5. AWJ will have a lot of work to do to drag them through - if he gets injured then they could completely fold up front.

In the backs they really lack any super talent. 9 & 10 will work well, but Beck is flaky and injury prone (although probably the most creative player they have), Bishop is nothing special and although they have a couple of decent wingers they won't get enough ball.


Scarlets are a bit unpredictable, I think their form could well fluctuate with that of Rhys Preistland. Without JD2 their to make things happen their attacking game will rely heavily on their very shaky number 10. No big signings in the pack probably means much of the same we have seen from recent Scarlets packs - parity against most while capable of being demolished by the pig french and english packs.


Dragons started last season so well, I wonder what Lyn Jones has got planned for this season. They have a solid squad and have added some very good players in Brew and Byrne, but they need to have the belief they did at the start of last season if their pack is going to compete.


As for the Blues, we could end up with the strongest forward pack in Wales, depending on how good Hoeta and Turnball play and how fit Craig Mitchell stays. If Knoyle proves competent at SH then that will be a first since Rees left. A lot will come down to how well the coaches organised the attack and defence - we saw enough towards the end of last season to suggest optimism, but I don't want to get too optimistic based on the tragedies of the last 3 or 4 seasons

ATTR
02/08/2014 08:13
Quote:
wales606

...As for the Blues, we could end up with the strongest forward pack in Wales...

That is an amazing comment and it possibly could be true. Who would have thought it would be possible to even think it after the last few seasons?

cardiffsteve
02/08/2014 10:00
Quote:
wales606


As for the Blues, we could end up with the strongest forward pack in Wales, depending on how good Hoeta and Turnball play and how fit Craig Mitchell stays. If Knoyle proves competent at SH then that will be a first since Rees left. A lot will come down to how well the coaches organised the attack and defence - we saw enough towards the end of last season to suggest optimism, but I don't want to get too optimistic based on the tragedies of the last 3 or 4 seasons

I think one thing we need to bear in mind about Hoeata - he isnt a very big player. He's similar to Paul Tito - aggressive but really not that big for a second row.

So, I think we might actually see him divide his time between 6 and 4. He isnt really a straight swap for Bradley Davies. He's more like a late replacement for Paterson IMO.

NGD have recruited quite well up front. Bringing in Boris Stankovitch as a player/scrum guru looks a good idea. I wish we'd do something similar.

Hadn't realised but apparently Stankovitch used to play for us too. Two matches in 1999.

ATTR
02/08/2014 11:07
cardiffsteve is correct. PT is as tall as BD but slightly heavier than JH There is an 11 KG difference between the weights of Brad and Jarrod. That's 1 stone 10 in proper money.

JH BD PT
Born: 12/12/1982 9/1/1987 9/6/78
H (M): 1.95 1.98 198
W (kg): b]108[/b] 119 110

Bluepragmatist
03/08/2014 14:29
cardiffsteve-did you mean in your 1stpost that the squad is too big beause of financial implications?
i think personally that the squad last year was too small, trying to keep within the suicidal salary cap proved to be more harmfull than good. although the quality of the squad will not become apparent until the season is underway, i do feel that it could do with at least 1 experienced front row forward-capable of playing on either side+ another winger. be that as it may, if we have a succesful team, more punters will want to pay to see them=more dosh! in short, one has to speculate in order to accumulate.

cardiffsteve
03/08/2014 14:37
Quote:
Bluepragmatist
cardiffsteve-did you mean in your 1stpost that the squad is too big beause of financial implications?
i think personally that the squad last year was too small, trying to keep within the suicidal salary cap proved to be more harmfull than good. although the quality of the squad will not become apparent until the season is underway, i do feel that it could do with at least 1 experienced front row forward-capable of playing on either side+ another winger. be that as it may, if we have a succesful team, more punters will want to pay to see them=more dosh! in short, one has to speculate in order to accumulate.

Too big in that the more players there are, surely its harder to make the whole lot gel together? If you look at the squad listed on the official website, there are 53 guys and more rumoured to be coming. There are 6 outside halves! Short of a real injury crisis, they wont all play.

ATTR
03/08/2014 15:55
Many of the squad are very much fringe players who are there for specifics. LV cup, development eye for the future.

With our Top players being with the Welsh set up so much of the time and people like Gethin being wrapped in cotton wool ( if Gatland gets his way) to keep him fresh for the 2015 RWC, a large squad is vital.

20 players have been assigned to Pontypridd. Many of those 20 will not play in any Euro games nor GP12 games unless we have big injury problems or during the AIs / 6N when we lose players to both the Wales squad and the U20 squad (and of course the vitally important 7s squad) Then some of those 20 will be needed.

Bluepragmatist
04/08/2014 12:37
ok cardiffsteve. do you know if the rumours have any names or at leat positions? i do agree though with ATTR's points.

Rich.
04/08/2014 16:13
I can see us doing well this year but also see Scarlets doing well. Their pack was very good last year and they will only be better this year. JD2 is great of course but if he stays fit then I think they will gain more from having Regan King back in return. When he was last with them Scarlets struggled to get any good ball but they did great stuff with what they had and a lot of that was due to Regan King's creativity in midfield. This year he should be getting lots of good ball from that pack and with Scott, Jordan and Liam Williams outside him they could do some real damage to a lot of teams.

Not sure with the Drags - which was the real Dragons last season - the one of the first half or the one of the 2nd half? On paper they've recruited well so could do well. Os have lost a few of their old stars but they are all coming towards the end of their careers and they have some good young uns - but that said I expect us and Scarlets to finish above themn this year,

ATTR
04/08/2014 21:12
Yes, it could be a cracker between the Welsh clubs this time round. Let's hope be get into the top Euro tier.

cardiffsteve
05/08/2014 00:57
Quote:
Bluepragmatist
ok cardiffsteve. do you know if the rumours have any names or at leat positions? i do agree though with ATTR's points.

Jevon Groves and Alex Webber. Backrower and wing. Both wales 7s players.

And I believe we're still under the NWQ player limit. And not using that would be silly.

Personally I think we probably need another four players. Im not saying we dont need to recruit.

My moan is that we seem to have a bunch of players who are way down the pecking order in their position and arent particularly young either. I dont see the point of having a guy in his late twenties who'll be fourth choice.

ATTR
05/08/2014 08:29
Quote:
cardiffsteve
Jevon Groves and Alex Webber. Backrower and wing. Both wales 7s players.
And I believe we're still under the NWQ player limit. And not using that would be silly.

Personally I think we probably need another four players. Im not saying we dont need to recruit.

My moan is that we seem to have a bunch of players who are way down the pecking order in their position and arent particularly young either. I dont see the point of having a guy in his late twenties who'll be fourth choice.

Indeed the age of fringe players is critical. A good balance is: The starting 23 (with a mix of experience); Back up (could be older reliable solid players); and your fringe guys youngsters / academy getting experience in the LV and the WP. To have a late 20 early 30 year old getting one or two bench starts per season is a waste.

Re NWQs. total agreement we should have our full allocation, as long as the right player is available.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 2014:08:05:08:31:39 by ATTR.

ATTR
05/08/2014 08:35
Alex Walker is a good example. Born 1986 his record is 3 starts and 8 subs. 2 starts in the LV and one in the RABO. At his age that is pointless. He's no challenge to either of our "international" 9s on that basis at his age.

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