Comments on: Best of the Weekend: Wasps & Saracens leave it late to make semis

By: brighty

brighty — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 14:07:52 +0000

Ah, thanks Jamie. A season in the English second tier beckons then.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:29:23 +0000

Santiago, completely agree re what the 7s had turned into. They’ve completely changed it this year though – it’s now a ‘food festival’, with fancy dressed completely banned. Someone actually died last year after falling from one of the upper tiers into the one below, so I think the RFU’s hand was forced somewhat.

By: Jamie

Jamie — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:18:58 +0000

Brighty, I’m pretty sure Jordan Williams has signed for Bristol.

By: brighty

brighty — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:11:26 +0000

As a Cardiff fan I had mixed feelings about seeing Hamilton go but he was finding it hard as our backrow is very, very strong. Warburton, Ellis Jenkins and Navidi as a group smashed Llanelli. Turnbull is an option but has moved to 2nd row now, partly because of our backrow strength. Then add in Vosawai and we’ve signed Nick Williams (will probably force Vosawai out due to non-welsh limits) and we’re looking very exciting for next year. I am delighted Hamilton is doing well out of his move.

By: brighty

brighty — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:08:12 +0000

Agree Santiago. I’m not a fan of the sevens game anyway, but last time I went to a tournament nobody was watching the rugby. They were dancing, singing, puking, etc. All fun no doubt, just seemed like the rugby was unnecessary. They’d have been better off in a club.

By: brighty

brighty — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:02:38 +0000

Jordan Williams – a very odd one. Arrived in a blaze, proper dropped off now to the point where he’s unlikely to get a pro contract. Talk of him dropping down to Welsh Prem or something like Cornish Pirates. No idea what happened there.

Obviously Sam Davies is having a heck of a season at the Ospreys and may be considered to be the 3rd choice 10 in Wales now depending on “Gatland’s Law” (snigger).

Dixon has played a few times for Dragons and is making excellent progress. Nicky Thomas nearly made the world cup squad but was injured, doing well for the Ospreys. Other names stand out as guys who’ve made regional level impact recently – Ashley Evans, Owen Jenkins.

Out of that squad then there are, to my memory, 8 or 9 boys making an impact with their regions, 2 or 3 of them are close to 1st teamers. 3 have more than 1 Welsh cap and 3 others are knocking hard on the door. A pretty good production line.

I know Gats is viewed as conservative but in terms of opportunities for young boys he’s pretty good, it just doesn’t seem like it sometimes because the perennials still make most of the starting sheets unless injury forces his hand and the perennials are such household names that the odd new starter is barely noticed in among the Halfpenny, Roberts, Cuthbert names. Current team regulars like Samson Lee and Williams were hardly around the squad in the middle of the last world cup cycle.

By: Santiago

Santiago — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 13:00:53 +0000

Brighty, thanks for that article, very interesting esp. Luke Hamilton…there seems to be a pattern of players moving clubs quite a bit their relatively young ages.

I used to enjoy the sevens at Twickenham before the fancy dress and ‘mainstream’ attendance, when it was a tenner at the gate, the bar open early and you could essentially pick your seat / move around the lower stand. Kenyan corner was always quite fun for a bit of atmosphere. Never been since it turned into something that resembles a music festival for early twenty somethings from Clapham dressed in various forms of revealing fancy dress asking each other whether Twickenham station accepts Oyster.

By: Pablito

Pablito — Thu, 14 Apr 2016 10:29:13 +0000

Interesting article – that was the year before the one I was referring to but clearly the players are making it through.

in theory the 2013 team should be a step above, seeing as they made it to the final, beating SA along the way. This was the team – not sure how they are doing . I remember Jordan Williams and Ashley Evans as being very dangerous runners

Jordan Williams (Scarlets/Llanelli); Ashley Evans (Ospreys/Bridgend), Steffan Hughes (Scarlets/Llanelli), Jack Dixon (Dragons), Hallam Amos (Dragons/Newport); Sam Davies (Ospreys/Swansea), Rhodri Williams (Scarlets/Llandovery); Gareth Thomas (Scarlets/Carmarthen Quins), Elliot Dee (Dragons/Bedwas), Nicky Thomas (Ospreys/Swansea), Carwyn Jones (Scarlets/Carmarthen), Rhodri Hughes (Ospreys/Swansea), Jack Jones (Ospreys/Rovigo), Ieuan Jones (Dragons/Newport), Ellis Jenkins (capt, Blues/Cardiff).

Replacements: Ethan Lewis (Blues/Cardiff), Thomas Davies (Blues/Cardiff), Dan Suter (Ospreys/Bridgend), James Benjamin (Dragons/Bedwas), Daniel Thomas (Scarlets/Llanelli), Joshua Davies (Dragons/Bedwas), Owen Jenkins (Blues/Pontypridd), Thomas Pascoe (Blues/Pontypridd).

PS – personally you wouldn’t catch me dead in fancy dress but I don#t mind laughing at those who do like dressing up

By: brighty

brighty — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 16:57:24 +0000

Looks like James Davis is more or less announcing his Olympics spot?

https://twitter.com/cubbyboi/status/719999208925896707

By: brighty

brighty — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 15:59:03 +0000

That’s a contentious issue in Wales right now! Are we “blocking” U20s talent?

Good article here : http://www.walesonline.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-news/what-became-young-wales-rugby-10704405

Samson Lee was also in that U20s side – in fact from the article the situation is actually pretty good as others from that side are Corey Allan (would be much more capped if fit), Matthew Morgan (will likely see more caps now returned to Wales), Eli Walker (injury hell), Rob Evans (well capped), and a few of the others were in the WC training squad. Part of the problem is definitely the strength we have in some areas e.g. 2nd and backrow is very hard to break into.

At regional level most of that U20s side play very regularly, esp. as the Wales boys are off so often.

I’m a curmudgeon – fancy dress is shite.

By: Pablito

Pablito — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 15:06:06 +0000

I’d imagine that the pull of a possible Olympic medal is quite a strong one.

Personally don’t have a problem with 7s so long as it remains filed under ‘fun’ rather than ‘serious’ . And who doesn’t enjoy a fancy-dress booze up from time to time?

I’m not one for watching it on TV though – without the atmosphere of the stadium, it quickly becomes a touch tedious.

Now that you mention Jenkins and the U20s world cup, I remember watching him play and thinking what a prospect he was. He was great at the breakdown vs England in the final.

Interesting to note that of the England under 20s team, Nowell, Watson, Slade, Cowan-Dickie and Clifford have all gained full England caps and Hill and Devoto are on the edges of doing so.

Other than Hallam Amos (and Ross Moriarty who was playing for the other side), I can’t think that any of the Welsh team have gone on to earn caps

Do you think that’s due to a failure to bring talent through (possibly because Wales have a very good, settled team) or due to a paucity of opportunity at top club level?

By: brighty

brighty — Wed, 13 Apr 2016 12:04:08 +0000

Cardiff are currently playing with Ellis Jenkins at 7 and Warburton at 6 – Jenkins is playing so well that he’s forced his way into the team – partly his quality, partly because Warburton makes a very good 6 anyway. Jenkins is a former Wales U20 captain – captain of the first side to defeat a NZ U20s side in a world cup. He’ll be a big player for Wales in the future. When Cardiff recently played Llanelli our back row blew theirs away – Jenkins dominated Davis (and I do think Davis is an excellent player).

Hope Davis doesn’t turn down a Welsh tour shot to go to the Olympics. I hate 7s. Just a fancy dress booze up with some basketball rugby as far as I can see.