What the Cardiff Blues XV might look like next season...
The Cardiff Blues have quietly gone about their transfer business in the last two close-seasons by making a series of shrewd signings. The addition of Josh Adams and Hallam Amos last year added firepower to an already potent Blues backline but there was a feeling that there was a soft underbelly to the capital side in the wake of Gethin Jenkins, Matthew Rees and Tao Filise retiring so reinforcements needed to be made up front.
The Cardiff Blues coach John Mulvihill deserves credit for his powers of persuasion and he has done enough to encourage Cory Hill back to his home region and on Tuesday it was announced that jumbo-sized loosehead prop Rhys Carre was heading back to Cardiff after an eventful gap year at Saracens.
With promising young No 8 Sam Moore signed up in the New Year, the Blues look to be only a couple of signings from a side that could challenge at the top of the Pro14, after flattering to deceive in recent seasons, so what exactly is their best XV? RugbyPass plays selector as is pleasantly surprised at the glut of talent available with 12 full-internationals in their starting line-up.
Do you agree? Let us know…
1. Rhys Carre
There was a sense of frustration in Wales when Rhys Carre headed to the European and Premiership title winners last summer, but a lot can happen in eight months. Saracens have endured a chastening fall from grace and the clarion calls for the 6ft 3in, 21st stone loosehead to come home have grown in recent months until this week’s announcement Carre was coming back to the ‘Diff. At 22, he’s still raw but his prodigious ball-carrying has already seen him win eight Welsh caps and you would assuage there are plenty more are to come.
2. Kristian Dacey
Easy to spot with his eye-catching ponytail bobbing round as he hits ball-carriers, Dacey has been at the Blues since 2011 and will turn 31 later this month. A part of the furniture after 158 appearances at the region, he is mobile, runs hard and has a knack for scoring ties with 26 in his time at the Blues. Capped by Wales in 2015, Dacey will expect more pressure on his place from Liam Belcher and Kirby Myhill in the coming months.
3. Dillon Lewis
Another local boy from Church Village, at 24, Dillon Lewis has become a mainstay of the Welsh squad with 26 caps and enjoyed an extended period in the starting jersey this year after the injury-enforced absence of Tomas Francis. Still honing his trade at the set-piece at the highest-level, Lewis has an eye-catching work rate for a tighthead and regularly goes beyond the 50-minute mark that most front-rows are hooked. Against France, he competed at 40 rucks in 70 minutes on the field and he brings the same endeavour to the Blues week-in, week-out. A valuable asset to the Blues.
4. Cory Hill
It was a coup for the Blues to lure the Dragons captain Cory Hill away from Rodney Parade, but for Hill it was simply a case of coming home. From Maesycoed, near Pontypridd, the second-row was released by his home region at 21 and since he has proved to be an operator of international class, with 28 caps for Wales. Hill’s leadership and technical excellence in the lineout will be a huge boon at the Arms Park. The lock is able to cover blindside adeptly when required.
5. Seb Davies
Quietly-spoken, Seb Davies has made steady progress since making his debut for the Blues in 2014. The 24-year old has soft-hands and an imposing 6ft 6in, 18st 4lb frame, which has meant he has been played at No 8 on occasion. The hope is that he can kick on and add to his six Welsh caps but first Davies must swat away the considerable attentions of Filo Paulo the abrasive Tongan lock and Rory Thornton, the former Wales U20 lock for a place in the starting XV.
6. Josh Navidi
Seemingly indestructible in his 173 appearances for the Blues, Josh Navidi had to show patience while Sam Warburton, Dan Lydiate and Justin Tipuric dominated the Welsh 6 and 7 shirt but since 2017, he has grabbed his opportunity with both mitts and made 23 of his 24 appearances for Wales. He has shown a wider audience a level of consistency that Blues supporters had been witnessing since making his debut in 2009. Low-slung, immensely powerful at the breakdown and explosive when breaking off the back of the scrum, at 29, Navidi is respected throughout Welsh rugby. Shane Lewis-Hughes brings a rangier defensive option in the mould of Dan Lydiate when Navidi is on Test duty.
7. Ellis Jenkins
In November 2018, Ellis Jenkins put in a man of the match performance for Wales against future World Champions South Africa but ended the game with a horrific knee injury and hasn’t played since. Captain of the Cardiff Blues, another local boy from Church Village, had made 104 appearances for the Blues before injury and finally the portents are positive he can resume his career. Another turnover specialist with a high-workrate, soft-hands and excellent technique, there is an avalanche of goodwill that Jenkins retains his Blues shirt and in time, the Welsh jersey. The arch jackaler Olly Robinson is on hand and expected to keep him honest, along with the versatile Will Boyde.
8. Nick Williams
Nick Williams has added a huge amount of value in the No 8 shirt as one of the Premier ball-carrying forwards in the Pro14. At 36, and after 77 appearances in the shirt, if he carries on for one more season, he will likely need some back-up which is why the Blues have signed 21-year-old former England U20 No 8 Sam Moore from the Sale Sharks. Moore’s signature was highly sought after and the hope is that the son of former Wales lock Steve, will shake off some niggling injuries to excel in a regional shirt.
NICK WILLIAMS JOINS THE PACK 🚨🚨
As a celebration for our newest member to the team, use the discount code 'NW8' at the checkout for £8 off ANY twinpack supports. Code ends Midnight on Sunday! @nick8williams
Shop here: https://t.co/owB5cZRYNR pic.twitter.com/l3zIAWECKc
— Bearhug (@getabearhug) June 12, 2020
9. Tomos Williams
Naturally gifted, the former Wales international basketball player can do things on a rugby field that few others can even attempt. His offloading skills are You Tube-friendly but the terrier from Treorchy has added bite and brings an extra edge around the fringes. Fleet of foot, he is a threat in broken-field play and has astute kicking game. His talent had led to calls for him to be Wales’ first-choice scrum-half as Wales head to France in 2023. He has a very able deputy in Lloyd Williams who brings 210 regional appearances worth of experience with him.
10. Jarrod Evans
Jarrod Evans is a throwback. At 5ft 9in, and 13st dripping wet, he’s not the biggest of fly-halves, but he is robust enough and has a Willo-the-Wisp type quality to ghost past defenders with a shimmy of the hips and a burst of acceleration. For those old enough, there are shades of Cliff Morgan about the Pontypridd-born playmaker. Like Williams inside him, he is able to conjure up moments of brilliance and the nuts and bolts of his game are improving with every season.
11. Josh Adams
The Premiership’s leading scorer with Worcester in 2016-17, and a breakthrough act with Wales the following year, it was only a matter of time before the Carmarthen-born flyer was lured back to Wales. Fortunately for the Cardiff Blues, they were the lucky recipients of one of the world’s in-form wings, who scored more tries than any other player during 2019. Although the World Cup, injury and the pandemic has stopped Adams in his tracks, with five tries in his first six appearances for the region, it would suggest there are plenty more to come.
⏪OTD in 2019
This time last year, on the back of @WelshRugbyUnion's Grand Slam, we announced that wing @JoshAdams951 would be joining Cardiff Blues!
Safe to say that Josh had an instant impact with his new region. It would be rude not to rewind to a pretty spectacular debut! pic.twitter.com/fRbUI2NRRA
— Cardiff Rugby (@Cardiff_Rugby) March 19, 2020
12. Ben Thomas
Next season may see a changing of the guard at inside-centre with Ray Lee-lo at 34 entering the latter years of his career. Thomas is only 21, but he enjoyed a breakthrough season with the Cardiff Blues until the lockdown. A former fly-half, Thomas has the skills to play as a second-receiver and vision to put carriers into space and cultured kicking game could see him as a perfect foil to Jarrod Evans.
13. Willis Halaholo
Auckland-born, but now qualified for Wales, Halaholo was selected for the match against the Barbarians before incurring a serious knee-injury. The popular midfielder has been a big success after pitching up from the Hurricanes in 2016. One of the few players with the footwork to get the Arms Park crowd on their feet, the hot-stepper has a strong fend and enough power to bust a tackle or go-round the first-up defender. The 29-year-old adds an element of unpredictability to the Blues backline.
14. Owen Lane
The ‘Lane train’ is only 22 but has already scored 23 tries in 47 appearances for the Blues. The former flatmate of Carre, Lane played his youth rugby as an outside-centre but his finishing ability and raw power have seen him kept him on the flank for the foreseeable future. Lane still has some defensive positioning to iron-out but his match-winning ability saw him called up for Wales out in Japan and he’s expected to be part of the Wales set-up for the long-term.
15. Hallam Amos
Another arrival in the close-season last summer, Hallam Amos spent six years at the Dragons before moving West to Cardiff where he is hoping to fulfil his potential. After making his Wales debut at 18, he has added only 22 caps through a mix of injury and patchy form, but at 25, the Blues will hope to see him in his prime years. Physically, Amos has it all. At 6ft 1in and 15st, he has a turn of speed, power-fend, a decent kicking and offloading game, all he needs now is to show some consistency.
Replacements:
- Dimitri Arhip
- Kirby Myhill
- Rhys Gill
- Filo Paulo
- Shane Lewis-Hughes
- Lloyd Williams
- Garyn Smith
- Matthew Morgan
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