Wales Team to face France

[Ospreylian]

With a superb opening round of matches over, I thought I'd post the team I believe should start for Wales against France. Some big changes need to be made in my opinion. Here it is:

1. Paul James
2. Richard Hibbard
3. Adam Jones
4. Ian Evans
5. James King
6. Sam Warburton (C)
7. Justin Tipuric
8. Toby Faletau

9. Mike Phillips
10. Dan Biggar
11. Eli Walker (if available)
12. James Hook
13. Jamie Roberts
14. Alex Cuthbert
15. Leigh Halfpenny

Bench: Gethin Jenkins, Matthew Rees, Craig Mitchell, Olly Kohn, Ryan Jones, Lloyd Williams, Jonathan Davies, George North

Paul James has to start over Jenkins, entirely because of his superior scrummaging abilities. Jenkins seems to have lost the loose work he was so good at in the past, so is no longer as much of a threat to oppositions at the breakdown. Wales' scrum also struggled at times on Jenkins side.

Hibbard is supposed to be available for next weekend, so it's a no-brainer for me. In my opinion this guy is one of the best hookers in Europe at the minute. Wales miss him.
James King should have started against Ireland in my opinion. Coombs grew into the role as the game went on, but King has been superb for the Ospreys. He is a real find and needs to be nurtured for the world cup, especially in a position where we need more depth.

I'd switch Warbs to blindside and start Tipuric at openside. Tipuric was the key player in Wales' turnaround in the second half. Can't argue with 5 carries and 26 metres gained for a half of rugby, compared to Sam's 8 carries and 5 metres gained in 80 minutes.

I'd keep Biggar in. Thought in open play he was smart for most of the game and he has a great delay on his pass when needed. The charge-down was just a lack of international experience.

If Eli Walker is available I would definitely go with him over North. North didn't touch the ball until 30 minutes into the game. Walker has been outstanding for the Ospreys. Cuthbert can't be excluded from the team, he played too well in the second half.

Hook at inside centre would act as a second receiver to provide more creative flair to the backline. We all know what the player is capable of when faced with a mismatch in defence. Roberts would compliment him well. Hook creates the gaps, passes/offloads to Roberts who crashes through. Simple.

 

[Draggs]

15 Halfpenny
14 Cuthbert
13 Davies/Hook
12 Roberts/Hook (Roberts needed for defence)
11 North
10 Biggar
09 Williams

01 James
02 Rees
03 Jones
04 Evans
05 Kohn
06 Jones (c)
07 Tipuric
08 Faletau

16 Hibbard
17 Jenkins
18 Mitchell
19 Coombs
20 Warburton
21 Phillips
22 Hook/Davies
23 Byrne

 

[tompaton]

My team;

1. Paul James
2. Richard Hibbard
3. Adam Jones
4. Ian Evans
5. Andrew Coombs
6. Justin Tipuric
7. Sam Warburton (c)
8. Toby Faletau
9. Lloyd Williams
10. Dan Biggar
11. George North
12. Jamie Roberts
13. Jonathan Davies
14. Leigh Halfpenny
15. Lee Byrne

16. Ken Owens, 17. Gethin Jenkins, 18. Craig Mitchell, 19. Olly Kohn, 20. Ryan Jones, 21. Mike Phillips, 22. James Hook, 23. Scott Williams

Alex Cuthbert has been defensively liable for ages and this needs to be sewn up. I'm not just talking about his positioning for the O'Driscoll try but the simple one on one tackles. Before Saturday the talk was how would Ireland's wings cope with the size of North and Cuthbert but in reality it's Cuthbert who cannot defend. Until he does he doesn't deserve his place. In the meantime, Byrne will relish the opportunity to play against some of his team mates and with the form he's shown for them, I would bet my bottom dollar he'll come out and have a cracker.

I know people believe we need some height in the lineout if Tipuric plays but lets get some perspective for a second here. Fulgence Ouedraogo was their go to man in the lineout Saturday. They don't rely on height in the lineout. Pape didn't take one lineout. Coombs was accomplished in that department so I don't think we need to change that. I mean we said we need Shingler as a lineout option but we threw to him once! Tipuric and Warburton can be used at the back. Coombs played outstandingly on debut and I think deserves a vote of confidence. Pick the players on form for once.

Warburton stays in the team. For his criticism, he was our top tackler and he had some good runs, and also applied pressure at the breakdown. I thought he was unlucky not to win a couple of penalties as Romain Poite awarded them for similar incidents involving Rory Best and Matthew Rees. We all know he isn't in the greatest form but he's still best we have available. Ryan Jones drops off tackles constantly - see the NZ and Samoa games in the Autumn. He also doesn't make as much headway with ball in hand as he used to.

Paul James is needed to counter the French scrum as Jenkins isn't cutting it. Jenkins was always an okay scrummager but his general play was what got kept him in the side for so long. With lack of game time of late, his general play is on the wane and Paul James is a far better scrummager and deserves his place. Hibbard, when fit deserves his place on regional form, no doubt. Ken Owens is pushing him hard in my opinion, while I'm continually bemused by the selection of Matthew Rees, who's upright ball carrying was exposed so much on Saturday.

Elsewhere, I see no need for change, Biggar had a charge down but other than that, he did get our backline running on attack, something which Priestland has struggled to do of late - he didn't get dropped. I think he deserves his place and will hopefully grow at this level. Mike Phillips is far too slow getting to the breakdown and the tempo increased when Lloyd Williams entered the fray.

I hope we can pull something out of the bag Saturday but somehow, I thinking there will be a major French backlash, as always when they have a shock loss.

 

[psychic duck]

15 Halfpenny
14 Cuthbert
13 Davies/Hook
12 Roberts/Hook (Roberts needed for defence)
11 North
10 Biggar
09 Williams

01 James
02 Rees
03 Jones
04 Evans
05 Kohn
06 Jones (c)
07 Tipuric
08 Faletau

16 Hibbard
17 Jenkins
18 Mitchell
19 Coombs
20 Warburton
21 Phillips
22 Hook/Davies
23 Byrne

I agree with nearly all that team.

Apart from a couple of points.

You say Roberts "is needed for defence" but I disagree. He is needed for his attack, otherwise there is no difference between him and Andrew Bishop on current international form. Bishop could do the job Roberts is currently doing, and also probably wouldn't have been run over by Fotuali'i in November.

Also I assume you put Hibbard merely on the bench as he is returning from injury?

And finally I don't see why anyone would want Byrne on the bench or in the team. Have people forgotten how bad he was in his last season with the Ospreys and Wales? He is also 32 and doesn't cover many positions from the bench, and to be honest people only really consider him currently thanks to playing in a good team. Fussell would offer more impact than the current aged Byrne and cover wing better than him imo. In the squad, I would still have Scott Williams or Eli Walker ahead on the bench.

 

[dullonien]

01 Paul James
02 Richard Hibbard
03 Adam Jones
04 Ryan Jones
05 Ian Evans
06 Sam Warburton
07 Justin Tipuric
08 Toby Faletau

09 Lloyd Williams
10 Dan Biggar
11 Eli Walker
12 James Hook
13 Roberts / Davies
14 George North
15 Leigh Halfpenny

16 Ken Owens
17 Gethin Jenkins
18 Craig Mitchell
19 Olly Kohn
20 James King / Andrew Coombs
21 Mike Phillips
22 Davies / Roberts
23 Alex Cuthbert

Ryan Jones must come into the starting 15 imo, purely for his leadership. I think Warburton is a great captain when he's playing well, because people follow his example, but at this moment in time we need vocal leaders in the pack and Ryan fits the bill. I don't mind if Warburton is retained as captain, but we still need those leaders.

That was another disappointing thing with Rees against Ireland, he didn't stand up as one of the experienced players in the pack, and a former captain and be vocal. Gethin Jenkins was the other experienced player, but like Warburton he's never been a vocal player, and I don't mind that, not every player is. Maybe Rees isn't all that vocal either though. We do need some more players in the team to step forward and be those loud voices in the team, whether it comes naturally or not. In the back-line the likes of Roberts should be making their voice heard as well.

With Hibbard fit he has to come straight back into the starting lineup imo. He's not been out injured for long, so I don't see it as a gamble starting him. I can't decide about Ken Owens. On the one hand, his carrying and general work rate against Ireland was superb, but the lineout seemed to struggle with him there. On overthrow and a dummy throw were both directly his fault (the dummy could have been miscommunication), so should he be retained above Rees. I'd probably argue yes, because Rees offered very little against Ireland.

I would like to see Eli come into the side. His defence is no worse than Cuthberts, but he offers something different in attack. Cuthbert is still an excellent try-scorer, but I feel we need a little variety on our wings, and between North and Cuthbert, I'd keep North. North was quiet in the first half, but then nothing functioned inside him to bring him into the game. In the second half he began to look a little like his old self. He beat more defenders than anyone else (equal with Faletau I think), and sparked a counter or two. He's not at 100%, but his game is a little more complete than Cuthberts at the moment.

Leigh has to stay at fullback. He's the best fullback in the NH, and has been one of the most consistent players for Wales over the past 18 months, and rarely had a poor game in all of his caps.

I'd feel bad for leaving Coombs out completely, but I wanted to include Ryan, and also want to see Warbs and Tips play together from the start. On the bench, like Ospreylian, I think King has been immense this season and I'd love to see him there on the bench.

 

[GarethEWilliams]

With a superb opening round of matches over, I thought I'd post the team I believe should start for Wales against France. Some big changes need to be made in my opinion. Here it is:

1. Paul James
2. Richard Hibbard
3. Adam Jones
4. Ian Evans
5. James King
6. Sam Warburton (C)
7. Justin Tipuric
8. Toby Faletau

9. Mike Phillips
10. Dan Biggar
11. Eli Walker (if available)
12. James Hook
13. Jamie Roberts
14. Alex Cuthbert
15. Leigh Halfpenny

Bench: Gethin Jenkins, Matthew Rees, Craig Mitchell, Olly Kohn, Ryan Jones, Lloyd Williams, Jonathan Davies, George North

I like this team, and would agree with it bar one point. I would start North over Cuthbert at the minute. I think Cuthbert has a lot to learn in defence, and if you look at 2nd half performances there wasn't a lot between them apart from the try. I don't get the whole Walker isn't ready yet, have we not learnt anything from the stance "Experience is in the past its what you do today that counts" Thats why I like King too, give him a go.

 

[DuncTheDoodle]

1. Paul James
2. Richard Hibbard
3. Adam Jones
4. Andrew Coombs
5. Ian Evans
6. Sam Warburton
7. Justin Tipuric
8. Toby Faletau

9. Mike Phillips
10. Dan Biggar
11. George North
12. Jamie Roberts
13. Jonathan Davies
14. Alex Cuthbert
15. Leigh Halfpenny

Ken Owens, Gethin Jenkins, Craig Mitchell, Olly Kohn, Ryan Jones, Lloyd Williams, James Hook, Liam Williams

Eli's unavalible still, otherwise I'd love to have brought him in as well. I'll give Ryan half an hour, then start him next match.

 

[wlshby09]

1. Paul James
2. Richard Bibbard
3. Adam Jones
4. Ian Evans
5. Ryan Jones
6. Warburton
7. Tipuric
8. Faletau
9. Lloyd Williams
10. James Hook
11. George North
12. Jamie Roberts
13. Jon Davies
14. Leigh Halfpenny
15. Lee Byrne

I'd have Walker in there on the wing, get North in the centre then. I don't care if he hasn't played there, or if its a risk, why not try.

Bench: Gethin, Matthew Rees, Craig Mitchell, Coombes, Shingler, Phillips, Biggar, Liam Williams

 

[Draggs]

I agree with nearly all that team.

Apart from a couple of points.

You say Roberts "is needed for defence" but I disagree. He is needed for his attack, otherwise there is no difference between him and Andrew Bishop on current international form. Bishop could do the job Roberts is currently doing, and also probably wouldn't have been run over by Fotuali'i in November.

I suppose so. Our attack is non-existant, and many blame Roberts, but we wouldn't change the style of play even without him. See Scott Williams playing IC.

Also I assume you put Hibbard merely on the bench as he is returning from injury?

Precisely. I see Hibbard as the first choice when fit.

And finally I don't see why anyone would want Byrne on the bench or in the team. Have people forgotten how bad he was in his last season with the Ospreys and Wales? He is also 32 and doesn't cover many positions from the bench, and to be honest people only really consider him currently thanks to playing in a good team. Fussell would offer more impact than the current aged Byrne and cover wing better than him imo. In the squad, I would still have Scott Williams or Eli Walker ahead on the bench.

Experience playing in France, can cover fullback and allow Halfpenny to move onto the wing.

I might actually consider keeping Phillips in the team. His experience in France would be useful, and he can be a nuisance when at his best. Still unsure of Lloyd, blows hot and cold.