15 for 10: Cardiff Blues - an all decade XV
15 for 10: Cardiff Blues : The Blues struggled domestically in this decade, failing to make the title playoffs at any point. But their fans have had two European Challenge Cup triumphs to celebrate in the same period and some serious stars to watch.
RugbyPass has put together a team of the decade, a mix of stardust, regional servants, and exciting youngsters.
Here’s our 15 for 10: Cardiff Blues:
Continue reading below…
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15. Leigh Halfpenny
He’s a Scarlet now but it was in the colours of the Cardiff Blues that Halfpenny played his best rugby. He was rock-solid in defence, flying in attack, and racked up 568 points with in his time there. It was no wonder he was shortlisted for IRB Player of the Year in 2013 or that Toulon came knocking shortly after.
14. Alex Cuthbert
It’s easy to forget now, with Cuthbert having become a joke to some in recent years, but the big winger was one of the most lethal finishers in the world in his earlier days at the region. Even with a noticeable loss of form towards the end, he scored 46 tries for Blues in his time there.
13. Ray Lee-Lo
The versatile Samoan centre, who won the region’s Player of the Year award for the 2016/17 season, has put in more than one hundred shifts for Blues and narrowly edges Willis Halaholo.
12. Jamie Roberts
The former winger may have left in 2013, with his final seasons disrupted by injuries and international call-ups, but his performances as the region claimed their first European trophy are more than enough to gain him a spot here.
Batten down the hatches. #Stormers #SuperRugby #JamieRoberts #Springboks #SouthAfrica pic.twitter.com/NJqhfD8Uzi
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) January 15, 2020
11. Tom James
The region’s record try-scorer, with 60 successful efforts, is an obvious choice here. A hugely popular figure in Welsh rugby, his recent openness around his mental health issue has been as inspirational as his earlier on-field performances.
10. Ceri Sweeney
There have been some talented No10s over the decade at Blues but none have really nailed down their spot as an icon. Nicky Robinson, Dan Parks, and Gareth Anscombe all had moments but Sweeney just about edges them all. Will Jarrod Evans cement his place going forward?
9. Lloyd Williams
Tomos Williams has overtaken him in the pecking order and is a thrilling talent but his older namesake is second on the list of appearances and third on the list of try scorers in their history. He is better known outside the region for an appearance on the wing and that assist in Wales’ RWC 2015 pool game against England but he has all the qualities of a good scrum-half.
1. Gethin Jenkins
A modern great of Welsh rugby, Jenkins redefined the role of loosehead prop. We are getting used to all-singing, all-dancing props like Mako Vunipola and Tadgh Furlong but Jenkins was the pace-setter with his outstanding all-round game. When he left for New Zealand, Steve Hansen said Jenkins was the player he wishes he could take with him.
What a win and what a way to finish for our young Tongan tighthead. Congrats to @bubba_andrews on the 150? pic.twitter.com/w9EQ9UPO1K
— gethin jenkins (@gethinjenkins1) May 14, 2018
2. Matthew Rees
He captained Scarlets, Wales, and Blues, was first choice in all three games on the 2009 British and Irish Lions tour, and racked up nearly 400 games over his career, despite taking time out when he was diagnosed with cancer. Rees was some player.
3. Taufa’ao Filise
Cardiff Blues have been a little light on traditional, grunt-work tight five players but instead have had a number of lovely, skillful options up front. Filise is a perfect example. Signed off for the region after 255 appearances, a regional record, in their European Rugby Challenge Cup final victory in 2018.
4. Bradley Davies
A gnarly, fight-starting, grunt work-welcoming lock in exactly the mould that Blues could do more of, Davies came through the academy to become a mainstay of the senior side. Like so many others in Welsh rugby, he left for more glamorous pastures before returning in the past few years.
5. Seb Davies
There are a number of contenders for the second lock position and some would give it to Deiniol Jones, with him having made the most appearances. However, Davies has played 63 games at the age of 23 and has put in some very memorable performances. He edges it.
6. Josh Navidi
At one point, Navidi seemed destined to go down as an outstanding regional servant who never stepped up to international level but he has since become a fixture in the Wales side too. Comfortable anywhere across the back row and never stops working, no matter how huge the odds are against him.
7. Sam Warburton
There might be some who feel like Warburton was more of a visiting professor at times, with his injuries and international duties, but the man himself was always clear about how much his home region meant to him, turning down lucrative offers elsewhere and putting in 175 appearances. Ellis Jenkins is unlucky to miss out but Warburton deserves his spot.
8. Nick Williams
His importance to the region was shown in the moving scenes before Christmas when they paid for his mother to come over from New Zealand and watch him play for the first time in Europe. The tributes from his teammates said everything about his contribution to the side over the years. He has also been hugely influential developing the regions’ impressive young back rowers.
Comments on RugbyPass
We’re building a bridge but can't agree where the river is.
2 Go to commentsfirst no arms shoulder or helmet tackle into his rib cage is going to be so very painful even to watch. go back to RU mate.
2 Go to commentsBulls by 5. Plus another 50.
3 Go to commentsJohan Goosen avatar. Cute. Surely someone at RP knows how to do a google image search?
3 Go to commentsCan’t these games play a little earlier? Asking for a friend.
3 Go to commentsIt’s impressive that we can see huge stadiums with attendance in the 40 000 to 50 000 region. It shows how popular this competition is becoming. What is even more impressive is the massive growth in broadcast viewership. The URC is one of the two best leagues in the World, the other being the Top14.
7 Go to commentsChristie is not Sottish, like the majority of the Scotland team.
2 Go to commentsHold the phone, decline over-rated. Is it a one game, dead cat bounce or the real thing? Has the Penney dropped? Stay tuned.
45 Go to commentsTotally deserved win for the Crusaders Far smarter than the Chiefs who seem to be avoiding the basics when it matters Hotham showed them what was missing and Hannah seems a real find - a tad light but that can be fixed over time
8 Go to commentsGreat insight into the performance culture with Sarries and I predict Christie will be a fixture in the Scotland team now for some time to come. However, he is slightly missing his own point around Scotland “being soft” when he cites physicality examples in defence of that slight. The issue is much closer to the example he referenced around feeling off before a game but being told “it doesn’t matter, you can still play well” by Farrell. Until Scotland can get their psyche in that square, they will carry on folding under extreme pressure…
2 Go to comments> We are having to adapt, evolve and innovate more than when we were in Super Rugby where there was only really one style that everybody had to play to gain the most success. Have = able to? Interesting what that one style might be? I thought SA sides still had bad tours now, or at least bad schedule, months away? Those extra few hours flights have to be a killer though, no surprise to see their sides doing so badly at the start of the season each year. I wouldn’t enjoy that unfairness as a supporter.
7 Go to commentsThe problem for NZ, and Aus, is they ripped up the SR model and lost a massive chunk of revenue that hasn’t been replaced. Don’t forget SA clubs went North because they were left with no choice, Argy unceremoniously binned and Japan cast adrift. Now SR wasn’t perfect, far from it, but they’ve jumped into something without an effective plan, so far, to replace what they’ve lost. The biggest revenue potential now lies in Japan but it won’t be easy or quick to unlock, they are incredibly insular in culture as a nation. In the meantime, there is a serious time bomb sitting under SH rugby and if it happens then the current financial challenges will look like a picnic. IF the Boks follow their provincial teams and head north then it’s revenue meltdown. Not guaranteed to happen but the status quo is a very odd hybrid, with the Boks pointing one way and the clubs pointing the other way. And for as long as that remains then the threat is real.
45 Go to commentsI think Etene has had some good tuition, likely while at the Warriors to be a professional that helped his rugby jump, but he was certainly thrown in the deep end way too early. Should have arguably 20 less SR caps, and therefor a way better record that he does at his age, but his development would have been fast tracked by the need to satiate his signing away from league. Again, credit to him and others that he has done it so well. Easy to fall over under that pressure in the big leagues like that but he kept at it when I myself wasn’t sure he was good enough.
1 Go to commentsAwesome story. I wonder what a bigger American (SA) scene might have mean for Brex.
1 Go to comments“Johnny McNicholl and the Crusaders” save a Penney. Who has been in camp this week and showed them how to play?
8 Go to commentsSo, reports of the Crusaders’ demise / terminal decline are perhaps just - slightly - premature/exaggerated…? 🤔 Will we see a deep-dive into that by the estimable Rugbypass scribes, and maybe one or two mea culpas? Thought not.
8 Go to comments1. The Chiefs are rudderless without DMac, which enhances his AB chances 2. Chiefs pack are powderpuffs. The hard men arent there anymore 3. They had their golden title chance last yr and wont threaten this yr. Gone in second round of playoffs.
8 Go to commentsHonestly, why did you have to publish such a foolish article the day they play us? 😂
45 Go to comments> They are not standalone entities. They are linked to an amateur association which holds the FFR licence that allows the professional side to compete in the league. That’s a great rule. This looks like the chicken or egg professional scenario. How long is it going to be before the club can break even (if that is even a thing in French rugby)? If the locals aren’t into well it would be good to se them drop to amateur level (is it that far?). Hope they can reset from this level and be more practical, there will be a time when they can rebuild (if France has there setup right).
1 Go to commentsWhat about changing the ball? To something heavier and more pointed that bounces unpredictably. Not this almost round football used these days.
35 Go to comments