Who's going to win: Wales or England? Plus team discussion.

First topic message reminder :

It looks like the England team will be as below, I make it that 9 of Englands 1st team are been rested including the potent strike runners of Foden and Ashton. Possibly more as Wood impressed in the 6 nations and could be considered a 1st team player. It seems Wales will be naming a first choice team. Will it be a disaster if Wales loose this game against a experimental England team 'B' team?

Armitage Irish - 2nd choice (Foden 1st Choice)
Banahan Bath - 2nd choice (Ashton 1st choice)
Tuilagi Leicester - 2nd choice (Tindall first choice)
Flutey Wasps - 2nd choice (Hape 1st choice)
Cueto Sale
Wilkinson Toulon - 2nd choice (Flood 1st choice)
Care Quins - 2nd choice (Youngs first choice)
Corbisiero Irish -2nd choice (Sheridan 1st choice)
Hartley Saints
Stevens Saracens - 2nd choice (Cole 1st choice)
Shaw Wasps - 2nd choice (Lawes 1st choice)
Palmer Stade
Croft Leicester
Moody Bath
Haskell Unattached

What happened with the other two votes in the pole, the ref won the match?

2% rounding error

Taffineastbourne wrote:

rugbydreamer wrote:It would be insane to start Priestland at 10, for his first start in a Welsh shirt against England at Twickenham. He needs to be eased in, and Gats has only got 3 matches in which to do it. Wise call having him at FB, and there's no one else but Jones to cover 10 whilst Hook is injured (although I'd have preferred him to start anyway).

If S Jones gets stuffed in the first minute who do you reckon will move to 10??Think about it.

Well of course he'll go there, but only if he has to. First cap, FB sounds right to me, knowing we've got the option to move him up to 10 later on in the game if needs be. Getting him to learn his international trade the same way he has playing for the Scarlets (and we've all seen an improvement in him this season) sounds like the most sensible option to me. Glad that Gats is doing this.

rugbydreamer wrote:

Taffineastbourne wrote:

rugbydreamer wrote:It would be insane to start Priestland at 10, for his first start in a Welsh shirt against England at Twickenham. He needs to be eased in, and Gats has only got 3 matches in which to do it. Wise call having him at FB, and there's no one else but Jones to cover 10 whilst Hook is injured (although I'd have preferred him to start anyway).

If S Jones gets stuffed in the first minute who do you reckon will move to 10??Think about it.

Well of course he'll go there, but only if he has to. First cap, FB sounds right to me, knowing we've got the option to move him up to 10 later on in the game if needs be. Getting him to learn his international trade the same way he has playing for the Scarlets (and we've all seen an improvement in him this season) sounds like the most sensible option to me. Glad that Gats is doing this.

This is a WC warm up game.Surely it would be better to see how Priestand goes now rather than in the tournament?

That's why I said they had 3 games to ease him in to it. He played a bit at 10 against teh BaaBaa's, but this is his first start away from home and his first full cap. It would be madness to chuck him straight on at 10.

Give him 60mins at FB, then move him up to OH depending on how the game is going, then either start him at 10 in one of the next 2, or bring him on in that position off the bench.

Just think chucking him in the deep end at Twickenham could do him far more harm then good, especially when in the past he's proven to be a bit of a confidence player.

When the Scarlets play with Jones at 10 and Priestland at fifteen, Priestland comes in at first receiver a great deal. In fact most of the best tries are scored by the Scarlets when Priestlands pace is used instead of Jones's.

My biggest worry is when the Scarlets play with these players.... they usually lose

Why have the hairspreys only got a few on the pitch? They were afterall the top Welsh club last season.


I say England by 10

Huwball, the Scarlets were arguably the most creative and expansive welsh region last season. I think he's rewarded that form with the 4 Scarlets in the backs. However, the Scarlets also conceded a number of tries and lost a number if games, like you say, and as such you don't see any Scarlets forwards in the team. So, maybe Gatland is trying to harness the best bits of last years Scarlets which tore apart some of the best defended in Europe, and mix it with a more stable platform and forward edge than those Scarlets had last year.

Huwball wrote:My biggest worry is when the Scarlets play with these players.... they usually lose

Why have the hairspreys only got a few on the pitch? They were afterall the top Welsh club last season.


I say England by 10

You are only as good as last game, and the Scarlets scored 8 tries in their last two ML games last one against Cardiff Blues and also they won both


So would you put in from what you call the hairspreys................... Hook, Byrne, Bishop, Prydie ........ Oh maybe Jerry Collins

I won't make excuses really, but bar the front row and maybe a couple of others, it is likely to be Cement Head's first choice now. He had to look at somebody over Byrne, so thank God his hand has been forced with Byrne and Hook out. Toby is probably on the verge of the number 8 shirt, as he has to have a look at Delve and as good as an influence as RJ is, he probably isn't the answer.

It is a strong Welsh team. Will they win up at HQ? I'm not holding my breath. The thing with playing a near second team or whatever is they have more of a point to prove.

As an aside I would've started Henson if he is fit. If he's in the squad, then he should be used. We know what Roberts can do and so Henson and JD2 could have been given more of a run.

Wales.

Huwball wrote:Why have the hairspreys only got a few on the pitch? They were afterall the top Welsh club last season.

Because Gatland is starting to see sense and selecting players on how good they are rather than which region they represent.

Spot o luckless. Gatlands had no choice, other than to pick some form players. Shame he didn't think of that 2 years ago. Then me might have a more settled line-up, rather than being a month from a WC without knowing our best team or combinations. Genius.

40% think Wales will beat England. Mystified. We'll get beaten twice and not convinced we can beat the argies either. Great back-row though. Shame a bout the half backs. It'll be same old story. 16 tries in Wales last 12 games tells the story.

manofgwent wrote:16 tries in Wales last 12 games tells the story.

That's a shocking statistic - but then when you try so little when you have the ball, it's not surprising.

manofgwent wrote:Spot o luckless. Gatlands had no choice, other than to pick some form players. Shame he didn't think of that 2 years ago. Then me might have a more settled line-up, rather than being a month from a WC without knowing our best team or combinations. Genius.

40% think Wales will beat England. Mystified. We'll get beaten twice and not convinced we can beat the argies either. Great back-row though. Shame a bout the half backs. It'll be same old story. 16 tries in Wales last 12 games tells the story.

MOG

When it comes to Gatland you reiterate the same point all the time. Please think of another reason, I must have read you post the exact same words a thousand times already, and i still dissagree with you.

Please please please mate, change the record.

Luckless. That includes 4 tries v the ba bass. A penalty try against Fiji, in our impressive draw and crabby Phillips dodgy effort v Ireland. It's pretty much, a try a game. You ain't gonna win anything with that.
I see the same tomorrow. A try. Maybe 2, if England take their foot off the gas.

I fancy England by 16-20 points. Come on mr hill. Give me good odds!

Maesteg. I can't. Those are the facts. Tell me if I'm wrong at 4.30 tomorrow. But you won't be able to.

You are deluding yourself. Another welsh fan who looks at team and thinks the majority are world beaters. They aren't.

Alun wyn, over rated.
Bradley Davies. Poor.
Phillips. No form.
Stephen jones. Times up.
Centre pairing. Who knows????
Bennett. Need I go on?

Maesteg. I want to see Wales win as much as the next man. But I have no faith in the management team and am amazed that others do. Welsh fans are embarrassing themselves on these boards. We're building ourselves up for a big fall.
I've fallen for the hype in the past. This time we need to see some evidence that Wales are not a team in decline.
They're fitter than ever. Big deal. If you can't hold onto a pass and are absolutely petrified of making errors. You won't succeed.

I might bang on about the same thing. But I only just worked out the terrible try statistics. I'm not gonna change the record if I don't believe in it. What would you like me to say????
Lions half backs!
Bradley the enforcer?
Shane and his magic boots?
Priestland i's the new JPR?? Just pretty rubbish!
Matthew Rees. British lion. He was reserve for f's sake.
Roberts. Man of the series.
Henson. That kick!!!
George north. The next lomu!!

It's all nonsense. We won't even beat Samoa!

manofgwent wrote: It's pretty much, a try a game. You ain't gonna win anything with that.

3-1


I think the reality with the Welsh side is somewhere between the pessimism of Gwent and the "Can Wales win the world cup?" crowd. They are not going to be challenging for anything any time soon, but its hard to see them delcining significantly lower than they got in the near future. Theres certainly no 62-5 on the horizon (not from England anyway).

manofgwent wrote:Maesteg. I can't. Those are the facts. Tell me if I'm wrong at 4.30 tomorrow. But you won't be able to.

You are deluding yourself. Another welsh fan who looks at team and thinks the majority are world beaters. They aren't.

Alun wyn, over rated.
Bradley Davies. Poor.
Phillips. No form.
Stephen jones. Times up.
Centre pairing. Who knows????
Bennett. Need I go on?

Maesteg. I want to see Wales win as much as the next man. But I have no faith in the management team and am amazed that others do. Welsh fans are embarrassing themselves on these boards. We're building ourselves up for a big fall.


I've fallen for the hype in the past. This time we need to see some evidence that Wales are not a team in decline.
They're fitter than ever. Big deal. If you can't hold onto a pass and are absolutely petrified of making errors. You won't succeed.

I might bang on about the same thing. But I only just worked out the terrible try statistics. I'm not gonna change the record if I don't believe in it. What would you like me to say????
Lions half backs!
Bradley the enforcer?
Shane and his magic boots?
Priestland i's the new JPR?? Just pretty rubbish!
Matthew Rees. British lion. He was reserve for f's sake.
Roberts. Man of the series.
Henson. That kick!!!
George north. The next lomu!!

It's all nonsense. We won't even beat Samoa!

mog,

I am somewhere between your opinion and the 'we will win WC brigade' BUT if my reckoning is right Rees started tow of the 3 Lions tests and had gametime in the first so would hardly call him reserve.

Rees came on in the 1st. Came on in the 2nd and started the 3rd, when the lions gave their 2nd string, like Shane, a run-out and Rees played. Rees then had a long injury lay-off and people started thinking he was Sean Fitzpatrick. He's wales' best choice. But look at our choices.
I'm being told to change the record, but how pathetic are these deluded people. We've won 3 games from 13 in the last year and that could easily be 3 from 16 and then 17 when the springboks bash us.
Gatland won't change his mind. The same dross will still be played. Why would he change it now. He's had enough time to do it before and hadn't done so.
Don't believe the hype. When Bennett throws his 1st bad throw or when Phillips keeps going blind, or when croft takes every restart
I do like our back row though.

I reckon this English side is definitly good enough to see off the Welsh team.

manofgwent wrote:Maesteg. I can't. Those are the facts. Tell me if I'm wrong at 4.30 tomorrow. But you won't be able to.

You are deluding yourself. Another welsh fan who looks at team and thinks the majority are world beaters. They aren't.

Alun wyn, over rated.
Bradley Davies. Poor.
Phillips. No form.
Stephen jones. Times up.
Centre pairing. Who knows????
Bennett. Need I go on?

Maesteg. I want to see Wales win as much as the next man. But I have no faith in the management team and am amazed that others do. Welsh fans are embarrassing themselves on these boards. We're building ourselves up for a big fall.
I've fallen for the hype in the past. This time we need to see some evidence that Wales are not a team in decline.
They're fitter than ever. Big deal. If you can't hold onto a pass and are absolutely petrified of making errors. You won't succeed.

I might bang on about the same thing. But I only just worked out the terrible try statistics. I'm not gonna change the record if I don't believe in it. What would you like me to say????
Lions half backs!
Bradley the enforcer?
Shane and his magic boots?
Priestland i's the new JPR?? Just pretty rubbish!
Matthew Rees. British lion. He was reserve for f's sake.
Roberts. Man of the series.
Henson. That kick!!!
George north. The next lomu!!

It's all nonsense. We won't even beat Samoa!

Manofgwent I am fully sympathetic. I agree with all your points. Why not pick some halfbacks who can generate quickball?

I look at my own side England and I despair.

Simon Shaw - will be 38 in September. Can he last the full 80 minutes? Past his sell by date.
Riki Flutey - overrated. Hasn't played for England in over a year. Has barely played any rugby in over 2 years and has plied his trade for two sides in awful form.
Delon Armitage - poor form, known more for his appalling discipline - 2 bans recently. From hero in 2009 to zero in 2011.
James Haskell - overrated showpony. Good ball carrier but lacks the overall abilities to be a good backrower or no 8. Lacks the brains too. English version of Andy Powell.
Mark Cueto - poor club form, another member of the England trio banned recently, surely another player should be tried out?
Matt Banahan - is he just a big lump or does he have more to offer? Definitely not a centre.
Lewis Moody - is he really the best no 7 we have now? Does he really deserve to be captain? Wouldn't it have been better to try out Robshaw or play Wood instead?

Players like Hendre Fourie, Shontayne Hape and Tim Payne who shouldn't be in the England squad.

Poor treatment of JSD and David Strettle who offer more pace and elusiveness than both Banahan and Mark Cueto.

I really do despair. MJ has done nothing to prevent the humiliating run of defeats against both Ireland and South Africa.

Honestly looking at the team Im not as despondent as MOG, I agree we welsh are guilty of overhyping our players before they have achieved anything but.

The front five is more than capable of holding its own in the scrum against England. The lineout is a worry espescially if Wilkinson kicks long to the corners to pressurise it, but Im not sure England are looking to play a tight kicking game.

The loose forwards for Wales are prob quicker than the English counterparts but lack the power of the England players which tells me that Wales plan to recycle and move the ball away quickly whilst not counter rucking on Englands ball and fanning out into the defensive line.

Wales halfbacks need to produce the goods, and that starts with Phillips, Wellies has the experience to run the backline but if the ball he gets is pants then it isnt going to work.

If Roberts and Davies are given that quick ball they can run at the defensive line and make breaks to put the wingers in. Englands centres to me look exciting, Flutey has to be the catalyst but with tuilagi alongside him it could be a dream partnership for the sais. Some big collisions with Roberts in there as well.

Shane vs Banahan is going to be same old same old, wouldnt suprise me if Banners smashed shane aside to score a try; whilst in the same game shane dances around to score himself. North vs Ashton is interesting and georges form had tailed off at the end of the season but both have good try scoring records this season.

Preistland at full back is a clever choice in my eyes, we need competition in this position, and Priestland has done well for ths scarlets there.

So honestly I think its a lot rosier a situation than MOG.

Priestland is an option. I agree with our scrim and I love the back-row.
My major gripe i's why haven't some of these options been looked at a long time ago. It looks like gatland will now stick with Phillips and jones, but I'm worried about our centre pairing. We still don't know our best combination and with only 5 weeks till the SA game that's worrying.
I really can't wait for these games as gatlands ineptness had made it all the more fascinating, there are places up for grabs. But what we can I'll afford are injuries. Matthew Rees is a worry already.
So let's hope things do take shape in the next couple of weeks and we have a full strength squad to take to new Zealand.

If you think of the last 4 or 5 England Wales games they have all been pretty tight. So both teams have weakened teams to one extent or another so the game should again be pretty tight. The England (and Welsh) fans who think Wales will get a good going over are living in the past IMO. England no longer have the raw power advantage over us - in-fact given our freezer training and WG obsession with power the pendulum may swing a bit the other way.

North vs Ashton is interesting and georges form had tailed off at the end of the season but both have good try scoring records this season.

Ashton is'nt playing in this game which is why I questioned England's lack of strike runners.

But there are guys with pace in the England team. Croft and Care are both more than rapid - and Banahan is fast just needs a runway the size of heathrow to get up to speed.

yep sorry munk should have double checked the england team, Cueto is not a good choice imo but Im sure there are England fans who will say hes a top winger, Ive never rated him, still george is young and his form had slipped so its still interesting but would have prefered to see Ashton.

manofgwent wrote:Maesteg. I can't. Those are the facts. Tell me if I'm wrong at 4.30 tomorrow. But you won't be able to.

MOG mate,

Your point is well made and with absolute clarity. I know I and I am sure many others take to heart your reasoning and your opinion and dont just regard it as pessimism.

But you cant reinforce that opinion by constantly repeating it mate...!

I really enjoy reading your posts, just would enjoy a little diversity thats all.

I know we both hope you are wrong this weekend, and your posts some up that churning feeling we all have in the pits of our stomaches right now, partly because we haven't a clue whether progress has been made since the teams last outing and the lack of changes made.

But I for one am hoping that the players and the coaches have the brain power to have identified issues and the time to have corrected them.

I really can't see how England will lose this one. Yes their team is experimental, however they are at home, and the pack looks good enough to starve us of any ball. Our pack looks ok in the second row, but the front row looks weak with mitchel and Bennent, and the back row is quite young.

"Matthew Rees. British lion. He was reserve for f's sake."

I think you will find he started the first test on the bench but he came on with Adam Jones and promted a turnaround in the Lions forward performance. He was clearly first choice for the 2nd & 3rd tests, starting both games.

Unfortunately for Wales, their first choice Lions front row of Gethin, Rees and Adam are all unavailable for Saturday.

Tycroes
I think you'll find most of us England fans have a similar opinion on Cueto:
Good all round player, but doesn't have that extra pace to be a really top class winger.
Was useful to keep in the team while Foden and Ashton bedded themselves in, but is becoming less important as time passes and will be one of those players phased out after the RWC.

I quite like the approach Johnston has come up with for this selection - it's largely about the probables for the squad confirming their places and checking a few combinations, with only a handful of the first choice XV being included to add experience and stability.

I don't know if I'm alone in this as an England supporter, but I actually think Wales should start this match as favourites, because their selection is much closer to the best available team.

Maesteg agree with all you say.
I will try to be more diverse, but when asked who's going to win and team discussion. Well... England to win and I think you know what I feel about the team. When fit. Very good front row. 2nd row not convinced. Great back- row without the lumbering jones. Half backs. Not convinced. Centres. Loads of talent, but we don't know our best pairing. Wings. Let's hope Shane and north don't get knocks. Full back???..... Coaches. A waste of space.

Maesteg agree with all you say.
I will try to be more diverse, but when asked who's going to win and team discussion. Well... England to win and I think you know what I feel about the team. When fit. Very good front row. 2nd row not convinced. Great back- row without the lumbering jones. Half backs. Not convinced. Centres. Loads of talent, but we don't know our best pairing. Wings. Let's hope Shane and north don't get knocks. Full back???..... Coaches. A waste of space.

manofgwent wrote:Maesteg agree with all you say.
I will try to be more diverse, but when asked who's going to win and team discussion. Well... England to win and I think you know what I feel about the team. When fit. Very good front row. 2nd row not convinced. Great back- row without the lumbering jones. Half backs. Not convinced. Centres. Loads of talent, but we don't know our best pairing. Wings. Let's hope Shane and north don't get knocks. Full back???..... Coaches. A waste of space.

Im off to chapel to say a few prayers i think...!

manofgwent wrote:Maesteg agree with all you say.
I will try to be more diverse, but when asked who's going to win and team discussion. Well... England to win and I think you know what I feel about the team. When fit. Very good front row. 2nd row not convinced. Great back- row without the lumbering jones. Half backs. Not convinced. Centres. Loads of talent, but we don't know our best pairing. Wings. Let's hope Shane and north don't get knocks. Full back???..... Coaches. A waste of space.

Who would you have as full back, injuries permitting ? Real shame Martyn Thomas injured himself again

Munk. It's difficult to say now. I hope priestland shows up well. You can make a case for stoddart too. Let's hope we don't go down the hook line again. I just wish that the management hadn't left it this late to start looking. Byrne hasn't been playing well for a while, but has still been selected. Leigh halfpenny has been unlucky with injuries, like a lot of our back 3 in the last year, otherwise he may also have been looked at.
It i's a Shane for Martyn Thomas. Let's hope he can recapture his form. Full back has been a problem for a while. When Byrne was playing well, the dragons had Tovey at 15, the blues had Blair and the scarlets have used stoddart, priestland and another youngster who's name escapes me. So we haven't got much back up. Hopefully the likes of prydie and fish will be involved in the future too.

With all this talk in amongst us English about the centres and what not, I'd kind of forgotten about the fact JW is starting. Can he bring his Toulon form to an England shirt? If so then does anyone think he might push Flood for a starting place by the end of the friendlies?

Same old worries for Wales: breakdown, lineout, kick-offs. Has been the same with brief exceptions for 20 years or more. We can now add no back moves/predictability. I'm hoping we've got at least the last of those sorted for tomorrow.

One thing in Wales' favour - that England back division hasn't played together before, and may not gel tomorrow.

For the future I think Stephan jones looked good and Prydie has the pace and the height just needs to fill out a bit.

I think Byrne gets too much criticism, we expect him to cut those magic angles as often as when he was on form but we forget that he has been carrying injuries for three years that have hampered any consistent selection for club or country. Though I do believe that Byrne is still our first choice fullback.

Daniel evans? Scarlets player. Saw him have a blinder v London Irish.

He's hugely inconsistent MOG and just didn't kick on from that game, bit of a disappointing end to the season for him. He can cover a lot of positions and is still young though, so fingers crossed he breaks through next season.

manofgwent

I agree with you on Gatland, he persisted in having a tight knit "loyal band" of players and coaches around him, immaterial of how poorly (or well) they performed ............... the only possible outcome in this scenario would have been complacency on the part of the players and smacks of an autocratic approach and unwielding desire not to introduce change whether tactics or players e.g. Jon Thomas overall performance level, Byrnes/Phillips dire form since the Lions, Hooks performance against France all considered his "loyal band"

Players have been introduced purely as a last resort e.g. Bradley Davies only selected because of injuries not because of his outstanding club form, Jon Davies was your best try scoring centre a season before he was intoduced

As a result your most impressive FB or FH this season has been Priestland, a player well known to be affected by confidence and nerves now been thrown into a lions (3 Lions actually!!) with very little game time

MOG ............... I think you have some veru good players,
Front 3
Matthew Rees was in fact the Lions first choice hooker for the 2nd/3rd test,
Adam Jones is recognised as up there with the best around
Jenkins on his best form is also up there

Locks,
AWJ why oh why are you picking him, Charteris is the better option or even Ryan Jones, Bradley Davies has to crank it up

Back 3
Delve/Warburton/Lydiate can be as good as any NH combo....... Faletua, Turnbull great back up

Backs
Lets just say if your forwards do their job, you need quick distribution, then your backs can do some damage

Whether they are good enough to progress past the last 8 is down to luck on the day.

The only good thing is (down to injuries again I know) is that you have the best backs on show (perhaps Knoyle and 1/2p would have been in through choice), personally I would only pick Warburton and Lydiate as my preferred choice in that pack

Keep the faith my man

Dre280783 wrote:Our pack looks ok in the second row.

Bradley Davies and Alun Wyn Jones both need to play a lot better than they did in the Six Nations. They've been very good in the past but not the recent past.

luckless_pedestrian wrote:

Dre280783 wrote:Our pack looks ok in the second row.

Bradley Davies and Alun Wyn Jones both need to play a lot better than they did in the Six Nations. They've been very good in the past but not the recent past.

Totally agree there luckless

AWJ and BD both burst onto the scene very very well................. had that hunger, now they are all encompassed into Father Gatlands "untouchables" they seem to have lost that desire, I would select Ryan Jones and Charteris now, in my mind they give a better balance

As Tony Blair once said in 1997

"COMPETITION COMPETITION COMPETITION"

well he didn't actually but you know what I mean

flyhalffactory wrote:I would select Ryan Jones and Charteris now, in my mind they give a better balance

They are both on the Bench so we may well see them there...

I think Ryan Jones has always made his best performances coming off the bench, since the beginning of his career he has been hounded by headlines stating the impact he made coming off the bench.

It's definitely time for alun wyn and Bradley to put their hands up and put in the sort of performances we believe they are capable of. 2nd row i's a position where we lack depth. You could bring in charteris or Ryan jones ( I'm still convinced he's a lock. Something that rhymes with lock, maybe).
It just makes it all the more baffling that just 9 months ago, gatland picked gough and deiniol jones at lock v Fiji. Two players well into their 30's and who aren't even involved in the welsh squad now. Shouldnt he maybe have been looking to the WC and looking at players.
I think we've missed the injury plagued Ian evans. He's physical and has that hard/lunatic edge about him.

Charteris and Davies in the 2nd row as starters for me. AWJ form is poor, there would only be one reason to start him against Samoa; that would be his defence.

My biggest concern for Wales is not the result on Saturday but the injuries before even kicking a ball!

M Rees; reading between the lines has a neck injury that may need an operation, sounds like a disc problem, he is mad if he plays with an injury using injections to kill the pain, I suspect he is out of the RWC hence K Owens!

Lee Byrne a knee injury this looks like he could be out for the three games or worse as he has suffered knee and ankle injuries for some time.

Jame Hook: as Gatland has picked his strongest team and Hook is not even full back (he is no FB) to cover Bryne, has he recovered from the shoulder operation as his tackling has not been up to 18 month ago!

Adam Jones Gethin Jenkins toe/foot injury, are they going to take part in these warm up game e.g., bringing in Andrew (who is not currently up to standard, I would bring in I Thomas, fast)?

Why all these injuries to front line players, has it been caused by the training methods or over trianing hence counter productive? These injured players exclude McCusker and Tovey (both back problems?).

It may be me but I have a feeling Gatland is manageing bad news on injuries to prevent his own bad press for the above i.e., minor injuries today become more serious with time before the RWC.

Only time will tell or the team selection for the return at Cardiff, if Wales win this Sat he could pick a weaker team and we may not see any of the above players!

It could be a close game this Sat but I think Wales may struggle in the front row and Jonny will win it on Penalties!

That's my speculation over, enjoy the game!