Wales player ratings vs Scotland - Six Nations Super Sunday
Wales player ratings: Wales and Scotland played out a dour denouement to the truncated, pandemic afflicted 2020 Six Nations.
With the wind whipping off the Irish Sea and squally showers, conditions were difficult for both sides with Scotland enjoying the more encouraging first half hour as Wales were repeatedly penalised, turned over and made handling errors, yet they inexplicable went into the sheds at half-time 7-6 up after 21st Rhys Carre powered over from a short distance, after an uncharacteristic chip from Taulupe Faletau gave them territory.
James Davies being penalised for being off his feet seconds from the break, gave Adam Hastings the chance to reduce the lead to one point after Russell, who went off with a groin strain, had opened the scoring.
The second-half was similarly uninspiring as both side’s sought to break the deadlock as both side’s benches tried to whip up some patriotic fervour. The game’s key moment came on 61 minutes as Stuart McInally emerged from a powerful Scottish driving maul with the ball and despite Halfpenny reducing the score to 11-10, a late penalty from Hogg on the final whistle – Wales’ 16th conceded – saw Scotland emerge triumphant to register their first win on Welsh soil since 2002 and leave Wayne Pivac with a far from satisfactory fifth-placed tournament finish.
Wales player ratings
Leigh Halfpenny – 6
Difficult conditions for a full-back, Halfpenny was quiet in the first-half compared to his opposite number, Stuart Hogg. Nearly knocked a high ball on in second half but showed his customary composure to drill the ball through the uprights on 66-minutes.
Liam Williams – 7
In only his third game back, Williams marshalled Kinghorn out wide with a series of powerful hits and made a brilliant take off a ricocheting ball to release pressure from Wales late on.
Jonathan Davies – 6
His comeback from nearly a year out continues. Used more for clearing lines with his cultured left-boot from the backfield than for offensive play. It was a muted afternoon for the double-Lion.
Owen Watkin – 5
Worked hard to contain Chris Harris and James Lang in midfield but was unable to free himself of Scottish defenders. Still waiting for a breakthrough performance in a Welsh shirt.
Josh Adams – 7
Showed his appetite for work early on by yanking Graham into touch and was often heard shouting encouragement. He had a few probing breaks in his own half and always looks to do something positive but he didn’t have any field position to punish the Scots.
Dan Biggar – 5
Quiet as Wales failed to impose themselves in first half. Went off early in the second-half with a lower-leg injury, after pulling up after converting Wales’ only try.
Gareth Davies – 6
His game was a mixed bag. Showed enterprise with a little nudge down the left-wing for Adams inside his own-half, shot out of the line to make a few last-ditch ankle taps but was skittled by Hamish Watson and saw some box-kicks floating into touch and his service was patchy.
Taulupe Faletau – 6
Rarely spotted in the first half but picked a ball off his feet to chip in behind the defence deep in Scottish territory, otherwise, couldn’t free himself from Scottish tacklers. Quiet for a player of his stature.
James Davies – 6
Struggled to impose himself on the game as Hamish Watson and Jamie Ritchie had the better of the backrow skirmishes. Penalised for a penalty early on, he cost Wales three points after being caught off his feet just before half time. His work rate couldn’t be faulted, but like his brother, he has had very little rugby in the last 12 months.
Shane Lewis-Hughes – 8
Rarely seen in the loose, he did show neat hands after taking a Russell chip kick but his strengths are in the tackle – where he made a creditable 21 tackles – and he was still showing fighting qualities in the game’s dying embers. One of Wales’ better performers.
Will Rowlands – 6
Hands let him down, few hard carries in the tight exchanges but improved as the game went on. Good footwork for a break-up midfield, tidy in the lineout.
Alun Wyn Jones – 7
Winning a record 149th appearance, Alun Wyn Jones was his customary all-action self and in a robust defensive performance, where he made 13 tackles, he put in a series of thumping hits on James Lang and Jamie Ritchie, showing he’s lost none of his edge. Will be hugely disappointed to be on the losing side.
Tomos Francis – 6
After playing second-fiddle to Alec Hepburn in Exeter’s double-winning heroics, it was somewhat surprising to see him still chugging away in the final minutes. A willing carrier in the tight, he wasn’t able to impose himself on Rory Sutherland.
Ryan Elias – 5
Endured a challenging opening 10 minutes, with an overthrow early on to Taulupe Faletau, a shipped penalty and a throw adjudged not straight. Will have better days in a Welsh shirt.
Rhys Carre – 5
Carre crashed over on half-hour for his first Wales try but he fell off a few tackles and wasn’t able to dominate his opposite number, Zander Fagerson. Still finding his feet at Test level, Wales would like to see more from him carrying.
PLAYER RATINGS
Here's how we rated Scotland's meaty win in Llanelli #WALvSCO https://t.co/llygro5vRO
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 31, 2020
Replacements
Wyn Jones – 7
Widely acknowledged to be a superior scrummager to Carre, the Scarlet won a scrum penalty just after coming on and was a willing runner in the loose. Expect to see him starting during the Nations Cup.
Rhys Patchell – 6
Tidy enough, he pushed the ball down the line without fuss, but another who has had little rugby and didn’t impose himself on the game.
Cory Hill – 5
Unable to stop the powerful Scottish rolling maul from rumbling over for the game’s winning try, he put himself about but had precious little time to make any sort of impression.
Spoilsports! https://t.co/i59P2piOsq
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) October 31, 2020
Aaron Wainwright – 5
Tried to add some ballast in defence, but another Welsh pack member who couldn’t bend the game Wales’ way.
Lloyd Williams – 6
His first Wales performance in nearly four years, Williams’ swift service couldn’t conspire to conjure up a late try.
Nick Tompkins – 5
Whipped the ball down the line in customary but too much on one pass to Jonathan Davies as Wales chased the game.
Comments on RugbyPass
Ben Smith Springboks living rent free in his head 😊😂
67 Go to commentsGood to hear he would like to play the game at the highest level, I hadn’t been to sure how much of a motivator that was before now. Sadly he’s probably chosen the rugby club to go to. Try not to worry about all the input about how you should play rugby Joey and just try to emulate what you do on the league field and have fun. You’ll limit your game too much (well not really because he’s a standard athlete like SBW and he’ll still have enough) if you’re trying to make sure you can recycle the ball back etc. On the other hard, you can totally just try and recycle by looking to offload any and everywhere if you’re going to ground 😋
1 Go to commentsThis just proves that theres always a stat and a metric to use to justify your abilities and your success. Ben did it last week by creating an imaginary competition and now you did the same to counter his argument and espouse a new yardstick for success. Why not just use the current one and lets say the Boks have won 4 world cups making them the most successful world cup team. Outside of the world cup the All Blacks are the most successful team winning countless rugby championships and dominating the rankings with high win percentages. Over the last 4 years statistically the Irish are the best having the highest win rate and also having positive records against every tier 1 side. The most successful Northern team in the game has been England with a world cup title and the most six nations titles in history. The AB’s are the most dominant team in history with the highest win rate and 3 world cups. Lets not try to reinvent the wheel. Just be honest about the actual stats and what each team has been good at doing and that will be enough to define their level of success.
19 Go to commentsHow is 7’s played there? I’m surprised 10 or 11 man rugby hasn’t taken off. 7 just doesn’t fit the 15s dynamics (rules n field etc) but these other versions do.
7 Go to commentsPick 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.
19 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?
9 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.
9 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 🤐
19 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….
19 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….
86 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!
9 Go to commentsexcellent idea ! rugby needs this 💪
19 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 comments