Five things we learned from Pivac's first game in charge
Wayne Pivac got his stint as Wales coach off to a winning start and matchday captain Justin Tipuric asked Leigh Halfpenny to kick for the posts towards the end of the game, with Wales only seven points in front, suggesting that beginning in such a positive manner mattered to coaches and players.
It might have been an uncapped game against the Barbarians where the opposing coach – understandably – got the lion’s share of the adoration from the crowd, but there were still some key takeaways for Wales fans.
The future is bright
Taking over from Warren Gatland, Wales’ most successful coach of the professional era, after a 12-year reign, might be seen as the proverbial poisoned chalice for Pivac.
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After all, expectations of fans are now much higher, both in terms of performances and results. But there was more than enough on show here to reassure Wales’ fans that their expectations might be met, with Pivac’s new charges working to stretch their opponent’s defence at every opportunity.
More than that, this team demonstrated how successful the previous regime was at establishing depth. Wales’ injury problems haven’t got much better, with Jonathan Davies, new man Willis Halaholo, and Rhys Patchell all being added to the long-term injury list in recent weeks. But Jarrod Evans gave a better account of himself at flyhalf than the last time he wore a Wales jersey, Tomos Williams looked like a starting scrumhalf, Aaron Wainwright suggested he has a future at an international standard No8 as well as a blindside, and Ollie Griffiths stepped up when Aaron Shingler went off injured. There is plenty for Pivac to work with.
Backs, meet the new forwards
It was a feature of Pivac’s Scarlets side that the forwards looked more than comfortable on the ball and, while Wales have been improving in that area for some time, this was a statement about the role the forwards will play going forward.
Wyn Jones’ gorgeous pass to set up Josh Adams’ second try will have opened the eyes of those who thought he was only selected for his scrummaging, while Ken Owens, Justin Tipuric, and Wainwright all regularly appeared in the wide channels, with Owens picking up his second try from there.
Of course, Alun-Wyn Jones has spent more time out wide of late, Cory Hill has soft hands, and, although, Jake Ball’s efforts have been heavily focused on the grunt work lately, anyone who has seen him in Scarlets colours will know he can make the final pass with the best of them. Add those second rows to the absent Taulupe Faletau, Rob Evans, and James Davies and then factor the work with the forwards it looks like Pivac has already done – it might not be the backs that have the crowd purring under the new regime.
Welsh talent ID in England is nothing new but with a new seam of gifted players plying their trade over the border, the battle to wear red or white shows no signs of letting up
– writes @OwainJTJones https://t.co/RF6PplTb9R
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 23, 2019
Josh Adams is the real deal
Speaking of the backs, there was also some talent on display there, led by the irrepressible Adams. Nobody tops the try-scoring charts at a Rugby World Cup without being a pretty handy player but he confirmed again that he is one of the best in the world. His brace here would have seen set a new record for Wales, had the game been capped.
This wasn’t the type of game to show his other strengths, like workrate in defence and ability in the air, but it confirmed that he is probably one of the first names on the team-sheet.
He wasn’t alone in impressing on the wing either, with Johnny McNicholl making an impressive first start for Wales. With serious pace, a fabulous range of passing, and total assuredness in defence, it seems likely we will see much more of McNicholl. Wales have George North and Liam Williams to come back into the squad, as well as the promising talents of Hallam Amos, Ashton Hewitt, and Owen Lane. The back three is looking tidy.
That's likely to be the first of many for Johnny McNichollpic.twitter.com/dmhFovrHGU
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 30, 2019
It’s a good thing Wales backrow options to spare
Wales’ depth across the back row is well-known. Even with Taulupe Faletau, Ellis Jenkins, and Josh Navidi injured, Pivac could afford to overlook James Davies and Ross Moriarty, while Dan Lydiate didn’t even get a call-up and Thomas Young was unavailable. That looks to be a good thing because Pivac’s Wales side, just like his previous teams, are going to be reliant on breakdown operators to generate quick ball and effect turnovers.
‘The players are all back next week and I’ll have to start selecting… back row is definitely somewhere we have genuine pressure’
– Dean Ryan tells @OwainJTJones about the welcome selection headaches he faces at unfancied @dragonsrugby https://t.co/3g11Efiux7— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 29, 2019
It was noticeable how much Scarlets struggled in his last season, with most of the flankers injured, to implement their high-speed game. Wales’ impressive existing depth in this area, allied to the emergence of talent like Griffiths, Taine Basham, and Shane Lewis-Hughes, and the appointment of breakdown operator Sam Warburton to the backroom staff means it is considerably less likely to be an issue for Pivac’s Wales team.
Defence could be an area of concern
An uncapped match against the Barbarians is not exactly the time to show off one’s defensive credentials. That said, those who are used to Sean Edwards’ miserly “against” columns might have been a little surprised at the number of tries Wales leaked.
Wayne Pivac has been on a steep learning curve this week with Wales https://t.co/t8jvUWWw61
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) November 30, 2019
Balancing a free-wheeling, high-scoring attack with a rock-solid defence is the holy grail of rugby and it’s a target Pivac and defence coach Byron Hayward had some success with overseeing the Scarlets. International rugby is a different proposition, however, with far less time in camp and a higher calibre of opposition. It will be interesting to see if Wales can successfully add attacking flair without compromising the defence that was the bedrock of their success for 12 years.
Comments on RugbyPass
This looks like a damage limitation exercise for Wales, keeping back some of their more effective players for the last 20/25 minutes to try and counter England’s fresh legs so the Red Roses don’t rack up a big score.
1 Go to commentsVery unlikely the Bulls will beat Leinster in Dublin. It would be different in Pretoria.
1 Go to commentsI think it is a dangerous path to go down to ban a player for the same period that a player they injured takes to recover. Players would be afraid to tackle anyone. I once tackled my best friend at school in a practice match and sprained his ankle. I paid for it by having to play fly-half instead of full-back for the rest of that season’s fixtures.
5 Go to commentsJust such a genuine good bloke…and probably the best all round player in his generation. Good guys do come first sometimes and he handled the W.Cup loss with great attitude.
2 Go to commentsWord in France is that he’s on the radar of a few Top14 clubs.
2 Go to commentsGet blocking Travis, this guy has styles and he’s gonna make a swift impact…!
1 Go to commentsWhat remorse? She claimed that her dangerous tackle wasn’t worthy of a red! She should be compensating the injured player for loss of earnings at the minimum. Her ban should include the recovery time of the injured player as well as the paltry 3 match ban.
5 Go to commentsArdie is a legend. Finished and klaar. Two things: “Yeah, yeah, I have had a few conversations with Razor just around feedback on my game and what I am doing well, what I need to improve on or work-ons. It’s kind of been minimal, mate, but it’s all that I need over here in terms of how to be better, how to get better and what I am doing well.” I hope he’s downplaying it - and that it’s not that “minimal”. The amount of communication and behind the scenes preparation the Bok coaches put into players - Rassie and co would be all over Ardie and being clear on what is expected of him. This stands out for me as something teams should really be looking at in terms of the boks success from a coaching point of view. And was surprised by the comment - “minimal”. In terms of the “debate” around Ireland and South Africa. Nice one Ardie. Indeed. There’s no debate.
2 Go to commentsThere’s a bit of depth there but realistically Australian players have a long way to go to now catch up. The game is moving on fast and Australia are falling behind. Australian sides still don’t priories the breakdown like they should, it’s a non-negotiable if you want to compete on the international stage. That goes for forwards and backs. The Australian team could have a back row that could make a difference but the problem is they don’t have a tight five that can do the business. Tupou is limited in defence, overweight and unfit and the locks are a long way from international standard. Frost is soft and Salakai-Loto is too small so that means they need a Valentini at 8 who has to do the hard graft so limits the effectiveness of the backrow. Schmidt really needs to get a hard working, tough tight 5 if he wants to get this team firing.
3 Go to commentsSorry Morgan you must have been the “go to for a quote” ex player this week. Its rnd 6 and there is plenty of time to cement a starting 15 and finishing 8 so I have no such concerns.
2 Go to commentsGreat read. I wish you had done this article on the ROAR.
2 Go to commentsThe current AB coaching team is basically the Crusaders so it smacks of wanting their familiar leaders around. This is not a good look for the future of the ABs or the younger players in Super working their way up the player ladder. Razor is touted as innovative, forward looking but his early moves look like insecurity and insular, provincial thinking. He is the AB's coach not the Golden Oldies.
10 Go to commentsSimple reason for wanting him back. Robertson wants him as captain. Otherwise he wouldn’t be bothering chasing him. Not enough reason to come back just to mentor.
10 Go to commentsI had not considered this topic like this at all, brilliant read. I had been looking at his record at the Waratahs and thought it odd the Crusaders appointed him, then couple that with all that experience and talent departing and boom. They’ve got some great talent developing though, and in all honesty I don’t think anyone would be over confident taking them on in a playoff match, no matter how poor the first half of their season was. I think they can pull a game out of their ass when it counts.
2 Go to commentsNot a bad list but not Porecki and not Donaldson. Not because they are Tahs, or Ex Tahs, they are just not good enough. Edmed should be ahead. Far more potential. Wilson should be 8 and Valentini 6. Wilson needs to be told by his father and his coach, stop bloody running in to brick wall defence. You’re not playing under the genius Thorn any more. He’s a fantastic angle runner. The young new 8 from the Brumbies looks really good too. The Lonegrans are just too small for international rugby as is Paisami, as is Hamish Stewart at 12. Both great at Super Rugby level. Stewart could have been a great 10 if not for Brad Thorn. Uru should be there and so should Tupou. Tupou just needs good Australian coaching which he hasn’t been getting. I don’t think Schmidt will excite him.
3 Go to commentsIf he wants to come back then he should. He will be a major asset to the younger locks and could easily be played as an impact player off the bench coming on in the last 30. He is fit, strong and capable and has all the experience to make up for any loss in physical prowess. He could also be brought back with a view to coaching within the structures one day. Duane Vermeulen played until he was 37 or 38. He is now a roaming coach within the South African coaching structures. He was valuable in the last world cup and has been a major influence on Jasper Wiese and other young players which has helped and accelerated their development and growth. Whitelock could do the exact same thing for NZ
10 Go to commentsBrett Excellent words… finally someone (other than DC) has noted that Hanigan is very hard and very good at doing what Backrow should do… his performance via the Drua sauna was quite daunting for those on the other side… very high tackle count… carries with good end result… constant threat to make a good 20-25 meters with those long legs… providing his mass effectively to crunching the Drua pack… Finally he is returning to quality form… way to much injury time over the last 2 years… smart-strong-competent in his skills… caught every lineout throw aimed at him and delivered clean pass to whoever was down below… and he worked hard for the whole 80 minutes… Ned has to be in the top 5 for backrow honors… He knows what is required as he has been there before…
20 Go to commentsI think Sam Whitelock should not touch a return with a bargepole. He went out on a high, playing in the RWC Final. He would be coming back into a team that will be weaker than last years, and might even be struggling to win games, especially against the Boks. Stay in France, enjoy another year with Pau, playing alongside his brother.
10 Go to commentsRyan Coxon has been very impressive considering he was signed by WF as injury cover whilst Uru has been a standout for QR, surprised neither of those mentioned
3 Go to commentsIt’s the massive value he brings with regard team culture/values, preparation, etc. Can’t buy that. I’m hoping to see the young locks get their chance in the big games though.
10 Go to comments