[November Tests 2016 EOYT] Wales vs. Argentina (12/11/2016)

[MikeTheNative]

It's better than it could have been I suppose. I'm not sure about Francis to be honest but we are struggling for depth at tight head, forwards I'm happy with but would have liked to see Hill get a chance from the start. It's a shame that L Williams isn't FB as he is much better attacker but I'm glad to see a S Williams and Davies centre partnership. I think Robert's might have had his day now. Also where the hell is Sam Davies? Made such a difference coming off the bench then completely drop him. I've been a big fan of Biggar past few years but he can struggle to get his back line going.

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

Wales starting XV

 

[Hendo74]

That only works if you apply it to all the players though, and Biggar has been struggling for form with Wales for some time. North was arguably worse than Cuthbert, too.

This is true. Biggar and North need to both come good, and sharpish.

Quite a good blend of physical prowess and guile in Saturday's XV, though, hope it pays off.

 

[dullonien]

This is true. Biggar and North need to both come good, and sharpish.

Quite a good blend of physical prowess and guile in Saturday's XV, though, hope it pays off.

Personally I agree with retaining North. Give him decent ball and he's lethal, so worth persevering with. Biggar on the other hand, whilst he's been decent for us during a time where there were no other real options, Sam Davies offers more in every facet of play (apart from under the high ball, and potentially goal kicking, although Davies' stats are very good there), so I'd be dropping Biggar in a heartbeat. Sam Davies starter with Anscombe (or Patchell if he continues impressing) on the bench.

I'm a little worried that despite the change in midfield, with Biggar inside them it'll make no difference to our attack.

Very poor management from Howley imo as well. Give a young lad his first cap against a rampant Aus team, then drop him completely because he made a couple of errors in a game where there was nothing to lose and he probably pushed some passes he otherwise might not have? Way to impact on a young players' confidence. Luckily I think Sam Davies is made of tough stuff, and he'll bounce back if/when given another shot.

 

[Every Time Ref]

Roberts isn't injured or anything? Interesting call there .. I've thought Scott Williams should be starting for a while now, good to see if it works.

Welsh lads - how do you rate SW as a defender? Against Aus I thought Roberts-Williams looked a lot less solid than Roberts-Davies (which for all it's faults has always been a hell of a defensive combo). 13 is harder to defend than 12 IMO though, so maybe Williams-Davies will work

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lee not starting seems a little harsh too, no prop could have made tackles on the australian backs. they just identified the mismatch well. although the whole replacement front row performed much better against AUS. i would have started Smith too

Not to mention the fact that there's no way in hell he's worse in the loose than Tomas Francis ...

 

[FNS]

Q for wales lads,what`s the thing you need to avoid or shut down from Pumas to get a win?

 

[MikeTheNative]

Roberts isn't injured or anything? Interesting call there .. I've thought Scott Williams should be starting for a while now, good to see if it works.

Welsh lads - how do you rate SW as a defender? Against Aus I thought Roberts-Williams looked a lot less solid than Roberts-Davies (which for all it's faults has always been a hell of a defensive combo). 13 is harder to defend than 12 IMO though, so maybe Williams-Davies will work

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Not to mention the fact that there's no way in hell he's worse in the loose than Tomas Francis ...

I don't think Williams/ Davies is as defensively secure as Roberts/Davies but it's a lot more creative and attacking. Whether they will use that creativity though is any ones guess. I agree on Francis, surely there are better options in Wales? He doesn't offer anything in the loose and isn't as good in the scrum as Lee.

Q for wales lads,what`s the thing you need to avoid or shut down from Pumas to get a win?

Actually tackle the other team unlike last week. Also we need a better attacking plan than big carriers down the middle, they also need to seriously up the tempo to gain anything from the game.

 

[MojoPin]

Welsh lads - how do you rate SW as a defender? Against Aus I thought Roberts-Williams looked a lot less solid than Roberts-Davies (which for all it's faults has always been a hell of a defensive combo). 13 is harder to defend than 12 IMO though, so maybe Williams-Davies will work

It varies - in good games he's been very solid, good at tackling high while Roberts has generally been more of a 'hit 'em low' type. But in games where he's on the back foot I've seen him commit to the wrong man and get spun around, but in those types of games that happens to a lot of the team, so hard to judge him on that. He won't be the one leading the defense but I think he's a good cog, if that makes sense. He's also very good at stripping the ball in contact.

Q for wales lads,what`s the thing you need to avoid or shut down from Pumas to get a win?

From the Australian game, I think one of the problems with our defense was actually the way we tackled. It was very clean but it didn't disrupt the Australian rucks - so they went down but got quick ball while our guys were still on the ground. We need to disrupt the contact area in defense or the Puma's offload game will destroy us. In terms of attack, it's the same old story - we need to attack a little flatter, draw more defenders and get the ball away cleaner at the base of the ruck. Both of these things are related and one of the reasons I'm glad we've got Warburton back in the side - Tipuric wasn't getting involved in the right places but I think Sam's style will give him a bit more room to play. Sam's very good around the fringes of the lineout as well which was another weak area last time. Whether he can hit the ground running remains to be seen but I think if our back row has a good game and Gareth Davies given room to run, we should be in a much stronger place.

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

Arg

Noguera
Creevy
Herrera
Petti
Alemanno
Matera
Ortega Desio
Isa

Landajo
Sanchez
Moyano
JM Hernandez
Orlando
Moroni
Tuculet


Cordero not in the starting XV, dunno why

 

[FNS]

Injury or they wanted bigger wings vs Wales big wings. Maybe going for a fresh wing that could find spaces in a tired welsh defense on 2nd half?

Ps: i love our 6/7/8. Nice combo of agility and power. Matera/Isa are great ball carriers and Desio has great speed.

 

[petite]

Arg

Noguera
Creevy
Herrera
Petti
Alemanno
Matera
Ortega Desio
Isa

Landajo
Sanchez
Moyano
JM Hernandez
Orlando
Moroni
Tuculet


Cordero not in the starting XV, dunno why

really like moyano! but he had lots of injuries! hope he can complete, his defence is a mistery to me, but coredero´s defence has to imporve. moyano had great minutes vs japan.

replacementes
Julián Montoya, Santiago García Bota, Enrique Pieretto, Leonardo Senatore, Tomás Lezana, Tomás Cubelli, Santiago González Iglesias y Santiago Cordero.

 

[Cruz_del_Sur]

You guys worried about Hernandez?

 

[petite]

You guys worried about Hernandez?

yep! he`s usually slow and if he is out of pace due to his injurie, he´ll be like a slug!

 

[FNS]

He can be slow but he`s solid in defense and if he plays 12 then its a big help for Sanchez. Shame he had so many injuries in his peak he was Dan Carter equal.

 

[valley commando]

Personally I agree with retaining North. Give him decent ball and he's lethal, so worth persevering with. Biggar on the other hand, whilst he's been decent for us during a time where there were no other real options, Sam Davies offers more in every facet of play (apart from under the high ball, and potentially goal kicking, although Davies' stats are very good there), so I'd be dropping Biggar in a heartbeat. Sam Davies starter with Anscombe (or Patchell if he continues impressing) on the bench.

I'm a little worried that despite the change in midfield, with Biggar inside them it'll make no difference to our attack.

Very poor management from Howley imo as well. Give a young lad his first cap against a rampant Aus team, then drop him completely because he made a couple of errors in a game where there was nothing to lose and he probably pushed some passes he otherwise might not have? Way to impact on a young players' confidence. Luckily I think Sam Davies is made of tough stuff, and he'll bounce back if/when given another shot.

Agreed Howler messes up again unless he starts him next week and against the Boks

 

[Conor in Dublin]

Anything could happen here. Both teams are erratic enough. A 20 pt difference by either side is not out of the question, neither is a hell of a game by two outgoing teams nor a borefest by two teams who can't put two passes without knocking the ball. They call this a friendly test but both teams need this for the WR ranks.

We appear to be on a slightly better form but that generally plays against us, and they we're playing in Cardiff.

Only thing certain is i'll be watching it from the stands! Heard so many stories about the stadium, can't wait to be there.

Best stadium in Europe, the place is fantastic. Hope its full & passionate. Don't know if the roof will be closed but when a full stadium sings the Welsh anthem it is one of the great experiences in rugby. You'll find the locals great in the bars afterwards as well!

 

[AzaMatt]

Best stadium in Europe, the place is fantastic. Hope its full & passionate. Don't know if the roof will be closed but when a full stadium sings the Welsh anthem it is one of the great experiences in rugby. You'll find the locals great in the bars afterwards as well!

apparantly only 30,000 tickets sold, which is a shame. i will be there but was hoping for it to be much more packed

 

[Amiga500]

apparantly only 30,000 tickets sold, which is a shame. i will be there but was hoping for it to be much more packed

Really?

That is worrying. Seriously worrying.

It looks like whatever blight is affecting attendances throughout the domestic levels of the Welsh game are starting to seep into the international setup.

 

[LeinsterMan (NotTigsMan)]

How much are the WRU charging?

 

[Conor in Dublin]

Really?

That is worrying. Seriously worrying.

It looks like whatever blight is affecting attendances throughout the domestic levels of the Welsh game are starting to seep into the international setup.

That's embarrassing for Wales in what will be a tight match. There'll be a bigger crowd in Dublin for Ireland v Canada.