Jarrod Evans ‘grateful’ to Matt Sherratt after Wales return

Jarrod Evans is relishing his unexpected opportunity to add to his Wales cap haul after admitting he thought his Test career was over.

The 28-year-old Harlequins fly-half made eight appearances for his country between 2018 and 2021 while playing for former club Cardiff.

Evans then spent three and a half years in the international wilderness before being given a surprise recall last month by recently-appointed interim head coach Matt Sherratt, whom he previously worked under at Cardiff.

Johnny Sexton’s late drop goal snatches victory in Paris 2018

Six Nations drama as Johnny Sexton snatches victory for Ireland against France in 2018.

Johnny Sexton’s late drop goal snatches victory in Paris 2018

Six Nations drama as Johnny Sexton snatches victory for Ireland against France in 2018.

After coming on as a second-half replacement in the spirited 27-18 defeat by Ireland a fortnight ago, Evans entered the fray for his 10th cap midway through the second half against Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday to help Wales stage a late rally in which they scored three tries and reduced their deficit from 35-8 to 35-29 by close of play.

“It was definitely something which I didn’t think would happen again,” he said of his recent return. “You keep putting in the work, putting in the hours and in rugby and sport, it can all change pretty quickly, as we’ve seen.

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“Obviously, I’ve had two stints with ‘Jockey’ (Sherratt) and I’m grateful he’s brought me back in. The emotions initially were strange because I’d been out of the squad for such a long period, I didn’t think it was going to happen.

“I was just so over the moon that I could help the boys and help the team in some way. I’m just enjoying every moment in camp with all the lads.”

Wales are on a 16-game run of consecutive Test defeats stretching back to October 2023, while they have had 10 consecutive losses in the Six Nations since defeating Italy in Rome two years ago this month. Saturday’s defeat means they have lost three in a row against Scotland for the first time in the Six Nations era.

However, Evans feels the performance against Ireland and the final-quarter flourish they produced at Murrayfield should give them heart as they bid to end their demoralising barren streak in their final match of this year’s championship at home to England on Saturday.

“We’re going out there, as we did last week and this week, believing we can win,” said the stand-off, who nailed all three of his conversions against the Scots. “There’s no reason why we can’t. We were one score away against Ireland (until the Irish scored a 78th-minute penalty), we were one score away this week, so we’re not a million miles off.

“We’re back at the Principality (Stadium), and I think it’s important we just keep believing and being positive. Obviously, it wasn’t the result that we wanted against Scotland, but there was a lot of positives in our last two games, which we can improve on and take into England.”