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These are your evening rugby headlines on Friday, December 12.
Wales star warns of English ‘raid’
Former Wales international James Hook says the current uncertainty in Welsh rugby has added to the risk of English and French clubs launching a “predatory raid” on the nation’s top talent, with a raft of senior players already set to cross the border.
With Wales’ four professional teams being left to reach consensus on their futures after plans were announced for the number of regions to be cut to three, players’ futures are somewhat up in the air, with many now considering their options.
Wales captains Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake are set to leave the Ospreys to join Gallagher PREM side Gloucester, while team-mate Dan Edwards has attracted the interest of Leicester Tigers, with other Welsh internationals also having admirers in England.
While Hook admits the players cannot be blamed for wanting financial security for themselves and their families, he has warned that more Wales-based talent will look elsewhere, with more than 80 players out of contract at the end of the current season.
“This was always going to be the concern for all players this season, because of the restructure in Wales, particularly for players like Jac and Dewi,” the former fly-half told BBC Radio Wales Breakfast. “You can’t blame the players. From their point of view, it’s about survival not betrayal.
“If the regions were stable and doing well, it would be a little bit of an issue, particularly for our best players like Jac and Dewi. They’re probably thinking ‘I’ve got a short career and I need to financially secure my family’. They’ll think about securing their family and creating a better future on the pitch for themselves.”
On Edwards, Hook added: “It’s the same situation for Dan. He’s come through the academy system, I coached him from the age of 16 or 17, and we’ve seen him grow into the player he is today.
“He’s a young 10 who wants to be competing for trophies. At the moment, the way Welsh rugby is, that’s not an option so naturally he’s going to be looking as well. It’s not just these top players who are looking, it’s the others also.
“I’m speaking to a lot of people around the game in Wales, players, coaches, supporters, everybody’s in the dark,” he continued. “You just feel something’s going to happen soon but don’t know when.
“There’s so much uncertainty that’s just going to put that anxiety on the players. Rugby is emotional for fans, but it’s employment for players.”
Rees-Zammit moved
Louis Rees-Zammit has been moved to full-back for Bristol Bears’ second round clash with Pau in the Champions Cup on Sunday.
The Welshman, who joined Bristol ahead of the current season following his stint in the United States trying to crack the NFL, will start in the 15 jersey against the Top 14 side, with Scotland’s Tom Jordan – who has filled the full-back position for the Bears since the autumn international break – starting at fly-half.
Rees-Zammit is, of course, most used to playing on the wing but has also previously been deployed at full-back, featuring there a handful of times for both club and country. This weekend will be the first time he has started in the position for Bristol, however.
He will be joined in the back-three by another Welsh talent, with academy wing Aidan Boshoff making his first start in the Champions Cup after making his competition debut off the bench against Scarlets last weekend.
Lovejoy Chawatama, Joe Owen and Benjamin Grondona come into the starting pack, with Viliame Mata ruled out with injury. Meanwhile, Fitz Harding will captain the side from number eight.
Bristol Bears: 15. Louis Rees-Zammit, 14. Kalaveti Ravouvou, 13. Benhard Janse van Rensburg, 12. James Williams, 11. Aidan Boshoff, 10. Tom Jordan, 9. Kieran Marmion, 1. Ellis Genge, 2. Gabriel Oghre, 3. Lovejoy Chawatama, 4. Pedro Rubiolo, 5. Joe Batley, 6. Joe Owen, 7. Benjamin Grondona, 8. Fitz Harding (c)
Replacements: 16. Harry Thacker, 17. Jake Woolmore, 18. Max Lahiff, 19. Santiago Grondona, 20. Luka Ivanishvili, 21. Sam Wolstenholme, 22. Sam Worsley, 23. Josh Carrington
Victory for Wales U20s
Wales U20s came from nine points down at half-time to beat Scotland U20s 43-28 as Richard Whiffin’s side scored six tries to emerge victorious in Merthyr Tydfil.
In a game that saw a raft of young prospects get minutes under their belt ahead of next year’s U20s Six Nations, Wales came out on top with a much-improved performance in the second half.
Scotland opened the scoring after 15 minutes through Rory Purvis, but Wales hit back minutes later through Evan Morris. Full-back Henry Widdowson then put the visitors back in front, before Cardiff wing Rhys Cummings closed the gap with the first of his two tries of the afternoon.
Hooker Joe Roberts then stretched Scotland’s lead to 12-21 at half-time, but a strong start to the second half saw Wales cross twice through Thomas Williams and the highly-rated Tom Howe, with Carwyn Leggatt-Jones converting the scores.
A slick Welsh attacking move saw Cummings break through to score again, but Scotland then cut the hosts’ lead to five points as Oliver Finlayson-Russell edged over the line.
With just over 10 minutes to go, a successful penalty from Leggatt-Jones stretched Wales’ lead, before James Talamai secured the win by crossing in the corner.
Reflecting on the game, Whiffin said: “We were disappointed at halftime, it was a very flat performance in the first half, it didn’t represent what we are truly about. In old fashioned terms, they got a bit of a rocket at half-time.
“We saw a much more energised and connected team in the second half. I thought to be fair in the second half the bench gave real impact arid really drove us home.
“Scotland challenged us,” he added. “I thought their ball movement was really good, they got into the wide channels a lot and were a handful so it certainly shows that game in the Six Nations is going to be a tough one but one we look forward to.”
Wales U20: 15 Lewis Edwards 14 Evan Morris 13 Osian Darwin-Lewis 12 Luc Anfield 11 Rhys Cummings 10 Carwyn Leggatt-Jones 9 Sion Davies 1 George Tuckley 2 Tom Howe 3 Jac Pritchard 4 Oscar Rees 5 Tom Cottle (capt) 6 Osian Williams 7 Ryan Jones 8 Evan Minto
Replacements: 16 James Talamai 17 George Leyland 18 Callum Donaghue-Proud 19 Osian Williams 20 Joe Denman 21 Cerrig Smith 22 Ellis Lewis 23 Steff Jac Jones 24 Thomas Williams (25 Jack Hoskins 26 Joseff Jones
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