Rugby Pod verdict on Wales axing Carre, rumour about Alun Wyn Jones
The Rugby Pod has given its verdict on the unceremonious dumping of Rhys Carre from the Wales squad, while also suggesting that men’s record caps holder Alun Wyn Jones was unhappy about making himself unavailable for the upcoming Rugby World Cup in France.
It has been a brutal 2023 all around for the sport in Wales and the negative focus has now shifted back onto Waren Gatland’s team with the finals now just 13 and a half weeks away from the opener in Bordeaux versus Fiji on September 10.
Gatland named a 54-strong training squad on May 1 that has since been reduced to 50. The legendary Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb all announced their retirements from Test rugby and then came last Thursday’s jolt, prop Carre being released on the back of a blunt statement that alleged he failed to meet individual performance targets set at the end of the recent Guinness Six Nations.
Wales finished fifth in that tournament, winning just once in five outings, and the negativity that has surrounded the second coming of Gatland in charge hasn’t relented with training now underway for France 2023.
The WRU statement on Carre attracted a lot of social media feedback and Rugby Pod duo Andy Goode and Jim Hamilton, the respective ex-England and Scotland players, have now joined the debate – with the comments of Goode especially intriguing given the negative attention his weight generated during his playing days.
Another name scratched from Wales' World Cup training squad. #RWC2023 #Wales https://t.co/TdWBn8hchx
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) June 1, 2023
“It’s awful the reasoning they put out behind the statement because he [Carre] is a player who has spoken honestly about his weight battles,” began Goode on the final Rugby Pod of the 2022/23 season. “I think (Wayne) Pivac did it to him (first), ‘He has got to shift 12 kilos of timber’.
“Just outing someone like that, there has been a backlash about it on social media and Dai Young, who was his coach at Cardiff when Pivac said some stuff about him, said, ‘Well, he plays 70 minutes and his fitness scores at our place are pretty good’.
“Coaches have their right to pick and drop anyone they want. I just think how you handle stuff sometimes, especially someone like Rhys Carre who has openly talked about his weight obsession and his issues – I’m talking about it from experience. It is something that may send him down a dark hole for no reason.
“You could just drop him from the squad without saying he is overweight or not fit or whatever.”
Hamilton argued that Test rugby was an elite sport and that reasons for dropping a player needed to be made public, but Goode didn’t agree in the instance of Carre:
Hamilton: You need to give a reason and we are in a high-performance environment.
Goode: Yeah, but you can say that behind closed doors.
Hamilton: It’s elite sport, you have got to be fit, you have got to be conditioned for it. I can understand about being nice and kind to players but the way that you say things, the statement said that he had fallen in his general conditioning.
Goode: When have you heard any other coach say that about a player?
Hamilton: There aren’t many. But if he has fallen short in conditioning, he must be pretty far down the pecking order when it comes to the fitness stuff. He has been given lines and parameters for the World Cup.
"The fact we all did it together was probably a bit more upsetting than if I did it myself…"
– @nowellsy15, with Liam Heagney ???, on exiting Exeter, his England #RWC2023 decision, testimonials, and his one must-pack thing for France. #EnglandRugby https://t.co/yvRnS8fhgf
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) May 28, 2023
Goode: That is his responsibility, but how you handle things, especially coming out of Wales with everything that has gone on there this year, the culture that has gone on and then you see players supposedly aren’t happy in certain environments, there are better ways to handle it. In my mind, I can’t think of any or many instances where a coach has outed a player in public like that so openly when they are not in a great place as a country.
Goode also had plenty to say about the Test retirements of Jones, Tipuric and Webb. “Rhys Webb came out and said, ‘The issues in Welsh rugby, I need to look after my family’. He is going to have an opportunity to go and play abroad and sign a contract.
“The same thing that Jack Nowell did for England, he has gone over to La Rochelle, taken himself out of the World Cup picture.
“But with these guys [Jones and co], I’m hearing they ain’t happy and they are like, ‘Do you know what, I don’t want it anymore in that environment’. And it’s going to be a harsh environment because Gatland has come in and ultimately they were poor in the Six Nations, and he is now trying to change the narrative of what is going on and it’s hell for leather for them to try and catch up with other teams.
“I have heard the environment isn’t a happy place to be so the easy decision was for them to take themselves out of the equation. I might be wrong – it’s just what my sources are telling me.
“And when your heart is not in it for one reason or another – I’m not talking about pulling on a Wales jersey, I’m talking about the whole thing of getting to a World Cup in that environment – some players think, ‘I actually don’t want to do that’ and everyone just has to suck it up and get on.
The BIG season finale, Goodey’s getting abs & Jim almost lifts the World Cup ???
Listen now on Spotify ? https://t.co/ppbWLX19BI pic.twitter.com/OYh6L5To8u
— The Rugby Pod (@TheRugbyPod) June 6, 2023
“I’m desperately sad about Tipuric, who has been an absolute stalwart for Wales over the years; Alun Wyn Jones, the most capped rugby player ever, that he is not going to be there when his performances are still good enough to go to the World Cup for Wales.
“I’m not saying he is the player that he was but for Wales, he is definitely in the top three second rows that could make an impact on that team.”
Hamilton, though, argued that Tipuric would have lost out in the long run for squad selection, even if he had committed to Wales’ RWC training programme.
“I know we spoke about how good Tipuric was for Ospreys in one of the matches at the end of the season, but you look at the quality of the back row – Aaron Wainwright, Gatland is a huge fan of him. You have still got Taulupe Faletau. Taine Basham is back fit again who, when he played for Wales, was a top player as well.
“Jac Morgan has been brilliant so in the back row, they have got a bit of strength in depth. Did I mention Tommy Reffell? He is playing extremely well so you can see why Tipuric wouldn’t be in that squad. Rhys Webb came back in, got man of the match against Italy in the Six Nations.
“Apart from that? It’s not me being harsh, it’s just me trying to see the reasoning behind it. But yeah, a lot has happened in Wales, Gatland has got a lot of fixing to do.”
Comments on RugbyPass
It 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.
25 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 🤐
13 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….
25 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….
13 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….
77 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!
1 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
13 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
12 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.
13 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.
13 Go to commentsHi, Dave here. Happy to answer questions 🥰
13 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 commentsSuch a shame Roigard and Aumua picked up long term injuries, probably the two form players in the comp. Also, pretty sure Clarke Dermody isn’t their coach. Got it half right though.
3 Go to commentsOh the Aussie media, they never learn. At least Andrew Kellaway is like “Woah, yeah it’s great, but settle down there guys” having endured years of the Aussie media, fans, and often their players getting ahead of themselves only to fall flat on their faces. Have the “We'll win the Bledisloe for sure this year!” headlines started yet? It’s simple to see what’s going on. The Aussie teams are settled, they didn't lose any of their major players overseas. The Crusaders and Chiefs lost key experienced All Blacks, and Razor in the Crusaders case, and clearly neither are anywhere near as strong as last year (The Canes and Blues would probably be 3rd & 4th if they were). The Highlanders are annually average, even more so post-Aaron Smith and a big squad clean out. The two teams at the top? The two nz sides with largely the same settled roster as last year, except Ardie Savea for the Canes. They’ve both got far better coaches now too. If the Aussies are going to win the title, this is the year the kiwi sides will be weakest, so they better take their chance.
3 Go to commentsThe World Cup has to be the gold standard, line in the sand. 113 teams compete for what is the opportunity to make the pool stages, and then the knockout games for the trophy. The concept is sound. This must have been the rationale when the World Cup was created, surely? But I’m all for Looking forward and finding new ways for the SH to dominate the NH into the future. The autumn series needs a change up. Let’s start by having the NH teams come south every odd year for the Autumn/Spring series games?
13 Go to commentsWhat’ll happen when the AI models of the future go back in time and try to destroy the AI models of the past standing in their way of certain victory?
44 Go to commentsThanks, Nick. We (Seanny Maloney, Brett and I) just discussed Charlie as a potential Wallaby No 8, and wondered if he has truly realised how big he is in contact (and whether he can add 5 kg w/o slowing down). Your scouting report confirms our suspicions he has the materiel. No one knows if he has the mentality (as Johann van Graan said this week about CJ, Duane and Alfie B) to carry 10-15 times a game.
57 Go to commentsHe would be a great player for the Stormers, Dobbo should approach the guy.
3 Go to commentsGood article. A few years back when he was playing for the Cheetahs, he was a quiet standout for exactly the seasons stated here. I occasionally get to see his games in the UK, and he has become a more complete player and in many ways like an Irish player. His work ethic is so suitable to the Leinster game. I wonder if Rassie would have him listed somewhere.
3 Go to comments