Ashley Beck - Best Inside Centre in Europe...?

having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun.

cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

Beck really is having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun all over. Great support play and fantastic passing game. Reads the match wonderfully.

I cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

Paddy Wallace.

Jonathan Davies if you consider him a 12 also (I do).

He was the stand out performer for any Welsh Region this weekend .

Make of that what you will but I guess you already have.

maestegmafia wrote:having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun.

cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

It doesn't get any more convincing because you wrote it twice

Certainly on form

If only he had a consistent 10 inside him (though Biggar has looked very good the last 2 weeks)

and a half decent 13 outside him.


I would love to see what he could do with JD2 - Will certainly keep Roberts and Williams on their toes.

Gavin Henson or am I skating on thin ice?

Best Inside Centre in Europe?

Paddy Wallace.

No debate.

That was my answer in the other thread And Davies, as I consider him to be more of a 12 than a 13.

Rory_Gallagher wrote:That was my answer in the other thread

I bet you meant it too.

Pot Hale wrote:

Rory_Gallagher wrote:That was my answer in the other thread

I bet you meant it too.

wales606 wrote:Certainly on form

If only he had a consistent 10 inside him (though Biggar has looked very good the last 2 weeks)

and a half decent 13 outside him.


I would love to see what he could do with JD2 - Will certainly keep Roberts and Williams on their toes.

Aye...

Agree Biggar is pulling performances together nicely now... Lets hope he can do it from now on and reveal some of that youthful potential he once showed in abundance.

maestegmafia wrote:having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun.

cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

6 tiries, 4 of which were against Treviso.

For a 12 that's still pretty good gelodge.

Well looking at it in perspective, he's the on form 12 in Wales, Ireland, Scotland, Barritt and Fofana would have something to say about it though!

maestegmafia wrote:having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun.

cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

In attack yes, but in defense he is bloody awful. Promising player but with loads to learn to be honest.

Jamie Roberts, Brad Barritt and Wesley Fofana are all better than Ashley Beck at 12.

I think Ashley Beck is quality. Can't wait to see what he can do in a Wales jersey.

maestegmafia wrote:having a great season so far, scoring tries for fun.
cant think of anyone who rivals his form...?

He only got his first league try of the season last weekend.

Wesley Fofana.

JD2 is a FAR better 13 than 12. Put him into space and he turn on the gas. Ireland know this better than anyone. 3 tries in 2 matches v Ireland for him.

Beck will challenge Roberts in time depending on the situation and opposition.

Shame Beck didn't get on the bench for Wales.

Beck is the understudy 12
Scott Williams is the understudy 13

I hope Tovey becomes Priestland's ankle biter.

Will be interesting to see what happens with Matthew Morgan's career

Didn't Davies score a bazillion tries at 12 for the Scarlets anyway though? He picks wonderful lines, which is still a quality that a 12 should have. He can be a big bruising runner, or a silky runner, on command it seems. I think he is really suited to 12.

JD2 is a FAR better 13 than 12. Put him into space and he turn on the gas. Ireland know this better than anyone. 3 tries in 2 matches v Ireland for him

I disagree. I think that pace and power in the 12 channel, particularly of set phase play, is much more dangerous. Scarlets vs Munster with Davies taking the ball at pace and going through the 10 channel was really excellent, he caused a lot of problems there and I think his tendancy to step back against the defence works really well closer in.

For me Beck is down the list with Fofana, McAllister, Davies, Barritt, Contepomi, F Steyn (when he plays there), Roberts, Jauzion - in no particular order ahead of him. Beck is similar to Twelvetrees, an exciting young talent with a well rounded skill set. Potential to be a quality international but still developing.

Ashley Beck has decent footwork and such good hands, which is more than you can say for Jamie Roberts.

luckless_pedestrian wrote:Ashley Beck has decent footwork and such good hands, which is more than you can say for Jamie Roberts.

Yep, Roberts "Lions man of the series" is a pretty poor player.

Maybe if Wales had a decent 12 they would actually win something...

Who says Roberts is a poor player FFS, Grandslam? Maybe if we had some creativity in the backline we could actually beat a SH team for once.

1 Player does not make a SH beating team.

One player can help develop a slightly better gameplan though. We won't be able to beat the SH teams by just running at them like we have done this 6 nations.

I stand by what I said. Ashley Beck is a much better footballer than Jamie Roberts.

luckless_pedestrian wrote:I stand by what I said. Ashley Beck is a much better footballer than Jamie Roberts.

Doesn't mean he is the better IC though. Until he puts in good performances in big games - such as HC or Rabo final, I will reserve judgement.

He put in a good performance in the HC game against Sarries at Wembley and scored two cracking tries in the process, Tiger!

No, but it does mean what it says, which is that he's a better footballer.

Davies seems to be best of both worlds though - he has the size and the skill. I think he would be the best 12 in europe.

Rory, I think he'd be even better with a playmaker in midfield with him.

He can fill that role himself at times though - with his silky runs and good hands, he can really put players into great positions.

He's a better all-round rugby player than he's been given credit for in the past.

Gordon D'arcy?

Rory_Gallagher wrote:He can fill that role himself at times though - with his silky runs and good hands, he can really put players into great positions.

He s a better outside centre. I don't think Roberts should have a spot cemented for him in the Welsh camp.

Beck has far more skill but sacrifices the bulk of Roberts.

Beck looks a fine prospect, but best IC in Europe? Not yet by a long way. Not to say he can't improve.

I'm also not sure we should be basing "form" on a home game against an Italian side.

It's like Visser, we need to see him perform regularly in some big games.

I disagree personally, he offers skill without sacrificing bulk, and is the perfect 12 IMO. He is up there with the best right now.

Rory_Gallagher wrote:I disagree personally, he offers skill without sacrificing bulk, and is the perfect 12 IMO. He is up there with the best right now.

Davies and Roberts don't have the passing game to be great inside centres. Beck does.

Davies has improved a great deal in that regard. Look at Nonu, he wasn't a great distributor or playmaker, but he made the 12 shirt his own over time and constantly improved. Now he is the best at that in the world probably, or at least he was during the RWC.

This where Wales lose out not having an A team as I would like to see Beck at 12 in that environment.

I am not a big fan of Roberts, his main quality is he is big. He is not very quick, not a great passer and can be very predictable. I would love to see Wales play with a more skilful 12.

I think with Roberts, Davies, Beck and Scott Williams though we have some decent options in midfield that some sides would love.

doctornickolas wrote:I am not a big fan of Roberts, his main quality is he is big. He is not very quick, not a great passer and can be very predictable. I would love to see Wales play with a more skilful 12.

Absolutely right.

sugarNspikes wrote:Beck looks a fine prospect, but best IC in Europe? Not yet by a long way. Not to say he can't improve.

I'm also not sure we should be basing "form" on a home game against an Italian side.

It's like Visser, we need to see him perform regularly in some big games.

+1