Wales Look To Make Impact on Autumn Internationals

(Photo by John Gichigi/Getty Images)

The Red Dragons face a period of reckoning, where they will look to re-assert themselves on the world stage after falling behind to their European rivals.  Despite this, they still have the quality to mount challenges in the coming weeks and the incoming 2010 Six Nations.

At initial glances, the reading doesn’t really flatter Warren Gatland and his men.

They sit eighth on the IRB world rankings, just ahead of Fiji and Scotland.  They came third in this year’s Six Nations tournament, and their usual poetic attacking game failed to eventuate, scoring just eight tries in five matches—fourth overall and half as many as England managed to register.

But beneath this, there is enough to show that Wales is hardly on a downward curve.

The 2005 and 2008 Grand Slamming Six Nations champions boast arguably the most depth of any European nation, although this will be tested in the coming month due to injuries.  Fifteen Welsh players wore the coveted red of the British and Irish Lions, and at full strength they can field one of the most impressive XV’s in world rugby.

However, this is the immediate problem for Wales and Gatland.

While he has named a strong squad, he is without three key Lions—Adam Jones, Lee Byrne and Mike Phillips—as well as Ian Evans, John Yapp and Joe Bearman.

Jones, Byrne and Phillips are at their best World XV class players, so the immediate challenge is to fill their slots. 

All of the talk regarding Deacon Manu being made available hasn’t come to fruition, but while the absence of Jones is a blow, the recovery of Gethin Jenkins and Martyn Williams in the forwards softens the impact.

Phillips absence will be covered by the test recall of Dwayne Peel.  The Sale based scrumhalf did not feature in Wales’ Six Nation’s campaign this year, but will not be released for arguably the Red Dragons most important match against the All Blacks.

The game falls outside of the IRB’s designated test window and Premier Rugby Limited has no official “deal” with Welsh rugby.  PRL secured a big dollar deal with the English Rugby Football Union regarding player release, with Guinness clubs receiving 50,000 pounds per year per player called up by Martin Johnson.

With Wales themselves just finalising such a deal of its own with the Welsh regions, it is very unlikely they will start cutting deals with other national competitions.

This of course again raises the Pandora’s Box of top players plying their trade within their own countries regions/clubs/provinces to be guaranteed national selection.  Something that Warren Gatland is a staunch advocate of.

But moving forwards, much depends on whether or not Gatland and the Welsh coaching staff make adjustments to the Red Dragons for what is now effectively the two-year countdown to the Rugby World Cup.

As the British and Irish Lions tour showed, Wales is in possession of a talented group of players, with some individuals, such as Jamie Roberts, showing the natural class that often determines whether a team is good or great.

Wales in the recent years has suffered in key areas, namely the breakdown, and its first opponents in New Zealand will brutally expose them if their efficiency is not enhanced in the loose.

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