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'We're very pleased to be four from four with an opportunity that we can now finally talk about'
Wayne Pivac was thrilled after Wales gave themselves a Six Nations Grand Slam match next Saturday in Paris with their 48-7, seven-try dismissal of tournament whipping boys Italy in Rome. Pivac’s charges after now four wins from four, an incredible situation given how there were calls for the New Zealander to be sacked during a six-game losing streak in 2020.
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“Chalk and cheese,” he said when asked to compare his situation now with Wales to where he was just last November, a 32-9 defeat in Ireland being the sixth loss in a row and the prompt for a deluge of criticism about his tenure since succeeding Warren Gatland.
All that doom and gloom have now given way to the potential of Grand Slam riches next weekend at the Stade de France. “We know exactly the pain we went through in the autumn. Certainly not the results we were after but you are seeing some of the players that got opportunities in the autumn playing out there now in the Six Nations, coming off the bench, some getting starts, and we are that much better for it and we have got a lot more depth.
“We are going to have to keep building on that depth because the prize at the end of the game is working towards Rugby World Cup 2023 and this championship was always going to be a line in the sand for us. We are very pleased to be four from four with an opportunity that we can now finally talk about – to try and go all the way and win five from five and a Grand Slam.
“The good thing was that we travelled out to Paris in the warm-up Test before this autumn series,” added Pivac, sizing up the prospect of Wales seeking to clinch the Grand Slam away from home rather than in Cardiff where previous recent Grand Slams were clinched.
Watch all the best bits from Wales's victory over Italy earlier today ?
The Grand Slam is within their grasp… #GuinnessSixNations #ITAvWAL pic.twitter.com/ClR47QaxLm
— Guinness Men's Six Nations (@SixNationsRugby) March 13, 2021
“We have been there, we played in a late kick-off, nine o’clock last time, so it will all be familiar territory for us which is a good thing. If you asked this side coming out of the autumn would they take four from four travelling to Paris for a potential Grand Slam, you know the answer.
“We know we are going to be in for a massive game. The two times that we played France so far we have been on the receiving end of the result, so we know we are going to be in for a massive challenge.”
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Reflecting on this weekend’s round four win over Italy, a game where the four-try bonus point was in the bag well before the interval to afford him the luxury of getting some of his team’s bigger names off the park early, Pivac said: “We scored some good tries but we are actually disappointed we left a couple out there as well.
“We talked about being ruthless and clinical and at times we were but there were a couple that we left out that we didn’t quite finish. Josh Adams, if he had his time again he would have attacked that try line a little bit differently, but certainly we created at times.
“To have four tries in the bag by half-time we were very pleased with that part of the game. To have held Italy scoreless was also very pleasing. So we achieved everything we wanted in that first half and then it allowed us the opportunity to rest some of the bigger players, guys that had been playing a lot. Really, really pleased to have gotten ourselves in that position to be able to do that.
“It’s pleasing to score tries and we like playing the brand of rugby that gives us an opportunity to score plenty of tries. You saw our intent today… it was far from perfect but certainly the intent was there. It’s part of our game, we want to keep tweaking the attack and keep getting better and better if we can.”
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Asked about assistant coach Gethin Jenkins being seen at one stage looking upset with Wales, Pivac explained: “He was annoyed in the first half at 27-0 because we weren’t dominating enough tackles and we weren’t bringing enough line speed.
“Gethin had a chat at half-time around that and you saw that come out in the last ten minutes when the messages were going on thick and fast around defending that try line because at a certain point the game becomes a dress rehearsal for next week and defence at the end was paramount. We were pleased we held them out.”
PLAYER RATINGS
One more to go? Here's how we rated the Welsh players in Rome #ITAvWAL #SixNations https://t.co/yrgW89SFzp
— RugbyPass (@RugbyPass) March 13, 2021
Comments on RugbyPass
Thanks 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 🤐
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….
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….
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….
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 💪
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?
45 Go to comments