Analysis: There's so much more to Dan Biggar than negative press
Dan Biggar is a man who knows something about being pigeon-holed: having made his debut for Wales twelve years ago, he has racked up 82 appearances in red and earned a reputation as one of the most defensively solid but unthrilling fly-halves in the game.
But a player who makes his international debut at 19 and continues for so long rarely stays the same throughout his career and Biggar has evolved over the years.
His move away from what he referred to as “the goldfish bowl” in Wales to Northampton Saints, just in time to work with Kiwi coach Chris Boyd, has demonstrated that there are far more strings to his bow than people have usually credited him with (although it is worth noting that he usually played with a little more flair for Ospreys than Wales).
The rock solid No10
There is probably one thing that comes to mind when you think about Biggar’s playing style and that’s his kicking. He has been one of the best goal-kickers in the world for a few years now, stepping up in 2015 in the absence of Leigh Halfpenny and not dropping below 85% for Wales since. This one, in particular, lives long in the memory.
Having already kicked 20 points from a possible 20 in the crucial group game, and with the scores tied with 74 minutes on the clock, Biggar stepped up just inside halfway and nailed the kick that saw Wales qualify from that infamous RWC 2015 “pool of death” despite a torrent of injuries. His nervelessness became the face of Wales’ campaign.
But it’s not just goal-kicking where Biggar excels, however iconic that kick has become. His up and unders are also highly respected as a lethal threat, especially as he so frequently chases — and takes — them himself. For those who watched Wales regularly under Warren Gatland, they became a common sight.
This one here, another example from the 2015 RWC, for Wales against South Africa, is a classic example.
He gets there before anyone else and takes the ball safely, allowing him to pass to the chasing Gareth Davies, who scores. In a matter of seconds, Wales have gone from just inside the halfway line to over the try line.
For years, you knew what you were getting with Dan Biggar in a Wales jersey. He would put in a huge defensive shift and keep your opponents under pressure around the field with his kicking game while being a constant threat of punishment to any disciplinary errors in the wrong half.
Recently, however, we’ve seen a new side to him.
The flash No10
As noted above, Biggar tended to show a little more flair for Ospreys than for Wales. Here, in a crucial derby game against Cardiff Blues in 2015, he dummies then shows off his running threat, exchanging passes with his scrum half and continuing before finally being stopped.
It was his move to Saints and meeting with Boyd, however, that seems to have truly unleashed his inner baller. This pass against Benetton Treviso in the Heineken Cup had some fans asking, “that Dan Biggar?” and others drooling for days.
The execution is perfect and shows just how confident he is at Northampton, away from the constant scrutiny that wearing the No10 jersey in Wales leads to. He has brought that confidence into his Wales form as well, throwing an even more outrageous pass against Italy to set up Josh Adams.
The ball-playing pivot
The license that Wales players are being given to play under new coach Wayne Pivac seems to suit this new version of Biggar, as he has been part of quite a few eye-catching moves this Six Nations — and not in the way he was under Gatland.
Here, he works a lovely one-two with captain and former Ospreys teammate Alun-Wyn Jones. He gets the ball to Jones and waits on his shoulder to take the return offload. Tomos Williams, who originally passed the ball to Biggar, has held his run in order to be on Biggar’s shoulder as he breaks through, and from there the try is almost guaranteed.
These one-two moves appear to be a feature of Pivac’s approach with Wales because a very similar move follows not long after. Biggar passes inside to Justin Tipuric, takes the return pass, and offloads to the chasing Dillon Lewis. This time the move doesn’t come off but we can presumably expect to see more of this move in the future, with Biggar featuring again.
Sometimes, of course, being the pivot in a team with this type of high-risk attack just boils down to taking the opportunity that quick ball provides and Biggar is also capable of doing exactly that and, in this case, providing the ball himself.
He sees the ball has come loose and dives to grab it, passing to Nick Tompkins as he does so, and allowing him to take full advantage of the way Italy’s defence is caught off guard.
A full package fly half?
There was one move in Wales’ game against France where Biggar combined both the old and the new, starting the sequence by claiming Romain Ntamack’s long kick and launching his own up and under, chasing it, catching it, and releasing Hadleigh Parkes with a perfect pass.
Parkes takes contact, Ross Moriarty steps up at scrum half, and Biggar takes the ball before pivoting and passing down to Wyn Jones. It’s another move that doesn’t quite come off but a clear signal of intent from Biggar, Pivac, and Wales.
That said, like Wales, Biggar seems to have struggled to maintain the strengths of his former international game while executing what Pivac wants for the future. Time and again against both Ireland and France, he made basic mistakes of a type he rarely did before: kicking poorly, dropping the ball, missing touch, being dummied in defence.
His frustration at the combination of uncharacteristic errors and difficulties implementing the game plan is probably why his attitude towards referee Matthew Carley was so noticeably poor during the France game. Like many ultra-competitive fly halves, Biggar has often struggled in the past to contain his annoyance at refereeing decisions that he believes have gone against him but the game against France was his worst in some time, leading to a video by filmmaker and animator Graham Love parodying his behaviour to go viral.
Dan Biggar is Birdman #WALvFRA #6Nations pic.twitter.com/WwkaFMv5vx
— Graham Love (@glove931) February 22, 2020
Of course, ultra-competitive fly-halves like Biggar also tend to bounce back from disappointments, as the man himself seemed to be doing for Saints in the Six Nations break weekend before a nasty-looking knee injury forced him off the pitch after only 20 minutes.
Despite the trouble Biggar has had pulling the different sides of his game together in Wales’ new approach, an injury would be a significant blow to Pivac with two games left of the tournament and both Gareth Anscombe and Rhys Patchell already unavailable with injuries.
Comments on RugbyPass
Pick Swinton at your peril A liability just like JWH from the Roosters Skelton ??? went missing at RWC
14 Go to commentsLike tennis, who have a ranking system, and I believe rugby too, just measure over each period preceding a world cup event who was the longest number one and that would be it. In tennis the number one player frequently is not the grand slam winner. I love and adore the All Blacks since the days of Ian Kirkpatrick when I was a kid in SA. And still do because they are the masters of running rugby and are gentleman on and off the field - in general. And in my opinion they have been the majority of the time the best rugby team in the world.
15 Go to commentsHaving overseas possessions in 2024 is absurd. These Frenchies should have to give the New Caledonians their freedom.
21 Go to commentsBell injured his foot didn’t he? Bring Tupou in he’ll deliver when it counts. Agree mostly but I would switch in the Reds number 8 Harry Wilson for Swinton and move Rob Valentini to 6 instead. Wilson is a clever player who reads the play, you can’t outmuscle the AB’s and Springboks, if you have any chance it’s by playing clever. Same goes for Paisami, he’s a little guy who doesn’t really trouble the likes of De Allende and Jordie Barrett. I’d rather play Carter Gordon at 12 and put Michael Lynagh’s boy at 10. That way you get a BMT type goalkicker at 10 and a playmaker at 12. Anyways, just my two cents as a Bok supporter.
14 Go to commentsThanks Brett, love your articles which are alway pertinent. It’s a difficult topic trying to have a panel adjudicating consistently penalties for red card issues. Many of the mitigating reasons raised are judged subjectively, hence the different outcomes. How to take away subjective opinions?
4 Go to commentsYes Sir! Surprising, just like Fraser would also have escaped sanction if he was a few inches lower, even if it was by accident that he missed! Has there really been talk about those sanctions or is this just sensational journalism? I stopped reading, so might have missed any notations.
4 Go to commentsAI is only as good as the information put in, the nuances of the sport, what you see out the corner of the eye, how you sum up in a split second the situation, yes the AI is a tool but will not help win games, more likely contribute to a loss, Rugby Players are not robots, all AI can do if offer a solution not the solution. AI will effect many sports, help train better golfers etc.
45 Go to commentsIt couldn’t have been Ryan Crotty. He wasn’t selected in either World Cup side - they chose Money Bill instead. And Money Bill only cared about himself, and that manager he had, not the team.
26 Go to commentsYawn 🥱 nobody would give a hoot about this new trophy. End of the day we just have to beat Ireland and NZ this year then they can finally shut up 🤐
15 Go to commentsTalking bout Ryan Crotty? Heard Crotty say in a interview once that SBW doesen't care about the team . He went on to say that whenever they lost a big game, SBW would be happy as if nothing happened, according to him someone who cares would look down.. Personally I think Crotty is in the wrong, not for feeling gutted but for expecting others 2 be like him… I have been a bad loser forever as it matters so much to me but good on you SBW for being able to see the bigger picture….
26 Go to commentsThis sounds like a WWE idea so Americans can also get excited about rugby, RUGBY NEEDS A INTERNATIONAL CALENDER .. The rugby Championship and Six Nations can be held at same time, top 3 of six nations and top 3 of Rugby championship (6 nations should include Georgia AND another qualifying country while Fiji, Japan and Samoa/Tonga qualifier should make out 6 Southern teams).. Scrap June internationals and year end tours. Have a Elite top six Cup and the Bottom 6 in a secondary comp….
15 Go to commentsThe rugby championship would be even stronger with Fiji in it… I know it doesen’t fit the long term plans of NZ or Aus but you are robbing a whole nation of being able to see their best players play for Fiji…. Every second player in NZ and AUS teams has Fijian surnames… shame on you!!! World rugby won’t step in either as France and England has now also joined in…. I guess where money is involved it will always be the poor countries missing out….
84 Go to commentsNo surprise there. How hard can it be to pick a ball off the ground and chuck it to a mate? 😂
2 Go to commentsSometimes people just like a moan mate!
4 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
15 Go to comments9 Brumbies! What a joke! The best performing team in Oz! Ditch Skelton for Swain or Neville. Ryan Lonergan ahead of McDermott any day! Best selection bolter is Toole … amazing player
14 Go to commentsI like this, but ultimately rugby already has enough trophies. Trying to make more games “consequential" might prove to be a fools errand, although this is a less bad idea than some others. Minor quibble with the title of the article; it isn’t very meaningful to say the boks are the unofficial world champions when it would be functionally impossible for the Raeburn trophy not to be held by the world champions. There’s a period of a few months every 4 years when there is no “unofficial” world champion, and the Raeburn trophy is held by the actual world champions.
15 Go to commentsIts a great idea but one that I dont think will have a lot of traction. It will depend on the prestige that they each hold but if you can do that it would be great. When Japan beat the Boks (my team) I was absolutely devestated but I wont deny the great game they played that day. We were outclassed and it was one of the best games of rugby I have seen. Using an idea like this you might just give the the underdog teams more of an opportunity to beat the big teams and I can absolutely see it being a brilliant display of rugby. They beat us because they planned for that game. It was a great moment for Japan. This way we can remove the 4 year wait and give teams something to aim for outside of World Cup years.
15 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
15 Go to commentsDon’t think that headline is accurate. It’s great to see Aus doing better but I’m not sure they’ve shown much threat to the top of the table. They shouldn’t be inflating wins against the lousy Highlanders and Crusaders either.
3 Go to comments