Dragons get Derby Day Blues.

It was a low key start for Henson last night at the Cardiff City Stadium, although Welsh fans were treated to some glimpses of what this gifted player can bring to the game. On a couple of occasions, he managed to fix the opposition midfield with a look as the ball went through his hands like a silk scarf. He offers some impressive options from full back, where he can pick and choose where to enter the line of the attack, and is so much more difficult to mark. It has to be said, however, that the Dragons 15 Martin Thomas shaded that particular contest, and I remain unconvinced by Henson in that position. He has a tendency to let the ball bounce, and one senses that the centre berth allows him less time, and therefore he is able to go back to his rugby instincts. He is just one of those players who try to do too much if they have too much time.
Here's hoping that the Blues don't have to use him at 12 straight away after seeing Jamie Roberts limp off with what looked like a painful knee injury. Gatland (and particularly Edwards, who looks to Roberts for his leadership of the defensive line) will be nervously awaiting reports from the Blues medical team.
Blues owner Peter Thomas was interviewed during the game, and reemphasised the Blues commitment to the City Stadium deal. But how long can they stage home games in such a huge space ? Last night was a good crowd, by league match standards, but the TV cameras gave the viewer the sense that somewhere else in Cardiff there was something else going on. At least we knew for certain that it was not a pack of reporters trailing our Gav around the bars of St Mary's Street. For once.

Will Henson have all the right moves ?

So - another day, another comeback.
The man who has had more comebacks than Status Quo prepares to face the Dragons tonight in an eagerly anticipated Valleys derby. Will the boys from Rodney Parade rain on his parade ?

The acquisition of The Perma-Tanned One will certainly give the Blues more midfield options, and it will be an interesting test of the post Dai Young coaching set up to see how things develop. Henson was acknowledged to be the best 12 in the 6 Nations not so long ago, now his team mate Jamie Roberts has some claim to being the best in the world in that position. The Blues may go for an interchanging 12/13 set up, as the Lions managed so effectively with Roberts and O'Driscoll, but Henson has scant experience of playing with the trainee medic. Indeed, Roberts was pretty scathing when asked about Henson's re appearance in the Wales squad last year - how about this for a put down? -

"...Welsh rugby is not just about him. It's about the team and individuals working hard within that team."

So suffice to say that our Gav has some points to prove, and folk to win over.

Get used to this face...

Quins' surprise defeat of Heineken giants Toulouse yesterday will inevitably increase the stock of Chris Robshaw, who is now widely touted as the next England captain. Strong in contact, and blessed with palpable leadership skills, the young man from the Stoop will be difficult to overlook when Stuart Lancaster and his Band of Merry if Slightly Apprehensive Men gather to select their 6 Nations squad. Robshaw for captain would be accompanied by the popping of champagne corks in SW London, although Conor O'Shea may be secretly less than chuffed. To add the England job to Robshaw's "to-do" list may be asking a lot of a player who, a few short weeks ago, was only a fringe squad player.

No scrum, no chance...

Love it or hate it, it is a defining feature of the game. Hardly surprising to hear Martin Corry, the old Tiger, defending it as an institution on Radio 4 this morning. The boys love it down the Welford Rd, and their whole game plan revolves around the pressure they exert in the darkened recesses of the scrum. Messrs Cole, Castro et al are a force to be reckoned with. The Cardiff Blues may be looking strong in their Heineken Pool, but their lack of real scrummaging bite has cost them in the past, and will do again. Wales without Adam Jones struggle to impose themselves in the tight. To be a force at the top level, you have to be able to depend on your own scrum ball.
But how long can a paying public be expected to put up with numerous collapses, the tiresome macho posturing and occasional outbreak of handbags? The backs stand around and blow on freezing fingers as minutes tick away, and the bewildered ref goes through the litany (crouch-touch etc etc yada yada...). Quite simply, all this puts a premium on "the hit", and the prop who has lost it will probably go down.
My betting is that this farago will not be in place for the next WC - the question is, do we go back to the old days, where men were men and sheep were worried, or will we lose the scrum to a Rugby League type farce, where it is relegated to the role of a rather messy means to simply restart a game ?

How will we remember Wilko ?

Cynics (and hard boiled, die hard Welsh fans are pretty cynical about anyone in an English shirt) will say he'll be remembered as a great kicker, and a bloke who kept the medics busy.
It is true to say that Wilko was never in the "classic" Welsh 10 mould. Despite being behind a behemoth of a pack for the vast majority of his international time, he only scored 6 tries. He has probably beaten more defenders playing flat on the line of attack at Toulon in the past three years than he did in all those years at Twickers.
But boy could he kick.
And pass - what is sometimes forgotten about Wilko is his ability to throw sharp, accurate passes off either hand. Like his kicking, this is something that this modest but most driven of sporting stars would have practised endlessly.
He would have easily by-passed Jason Leonard's record of 114 English caps but for that injury record. In redefining the role of the No 10 as THE defender of the midfield channel, Wiko put incredible strains on his body. When also taking into account the endless hours of kicking practice, it was no surprise when he went down with a succession of shoulder and knee ailments.
It was his ability to come back from these career threatening moments that defined him as the ultimate professional in a newly professional sport. Could he have been even better ? Probably. If he'd have made the move away from Newcastle earlier. If the English coaches had taken him to one side and said "Steady on - look after that shoulder". And if those same English coaches had somehow freed him to play the role he has played at Toulon. Watching him play London Irish last year in the Heineken, he was truly impressive. Decision making, passes, kicks spot on, a go-to player in all respects. I feel England only "went" to him to say "Go on - kick the penalty". As a 10 in that English set up he was expected to become the leader as the 2003 vintage faded away, but it never happened. Seeing him play that day at the Madjeski, it struck me that that leadership was there, but its failure to define the latter part of his career was a failure of "Elite Player Development". If that title is meant to mean anything...

Are the Tigers losing their teeth ?

Leicester's defeat at Clermont leaves them in a tough spot in Pool 4. They lie third, with just no hopers Aironi below them. If the French side do the double over them next weekend, it's hard to see the Premiership side finding a way past Ulster and Clermont to get into the knock out stages. Another "giant" heading for the Amlin ?

In a week that has seen our illustrious leader Dave "playing a blinder" (according to Boris Johnson) against everything that nimble footed Frenchie M. Sarkozy could throw at him, it was sobering for rugby fans to see front line English sides struggle to make a dent in their French opponents. Although they have always been famously guilty of putting the Heineken second to their own domestic competition, this season has seen the likes of Castres, Montpellier and Clermont tear into European opponents with all the reckless abandon of a Parisian tucking into his morning croissant. Ominously, they seem to be able to play the power game that was once the preserve of the English. Today, like the Saints yesterday, the Tigers looked clueless when the opposition refused to crack under pressure. Cockerill had better take a close look at the video, because it looks as though this particular outfit is unwilling to let a physical battering bother them. In the heat of battle today, it was Chuter and Tuilagi who lost focus, and French players like Malzieu and the hugely impressive Brock James who kept playing.
Like our Dave, Cockerill and co may leave Pool 4 empty handed...

The Cup that cheers

The day's Heineken action has been typically fast and furious, and there are some surprises as the Pool stages reach the half way point.
Surprise number one is that the Saints, last year's finalists who snatched defeat from the jaws of what looked like a comfortable victory, are already out. Defeat at Castres today was no more than they deserved, in truth. The French side looked pretty comfortable playing a power game against a side that is perhaps the most power obsessed side in the Premiership. Coach Lancaster - be warned.
Interestingly, a referee finally whistled Dylan Hartley for popping out of a scrum. Fancy that. As rare as Tory MP's going into France, whipping out their wallets full of Euros and saying "You know, I just love the convenience of it all..."
Down Wembley Way the Sarries had too much fire power for the Ospreys. The emerging talents of Justin Tupiric and Ashley Beck were outstanding for the visitors, but Borthwick ruled the roost in a line out with out Alun Wyn Jones and Ian Evans, and the Welsh side were starved of possession as a result. Next week has to be a decider for these two sides.
The other big surprise also came in this Pool, where the minnows of Treviso managed to survive a few late scares to hold off the giants of Biarritz. Rugby fans won't be sorry, having suffered X number of games where the Basque side has ground out dull victories, with a stellar set of backs outside the scrum twidding their fingers and chasing the occasional box kick. Again - all to play for next week, although one can't imagine that the Italians will repeat this score in the lions den. I suspect they'll be mauled by 30 points or more - but has the damage already been done ?