Wales and Lions legend Graham Price reflects on Wales’ narrow defeat to Scotland and what needs to happen going forward
Wales were better against Scotland – but ultimately still fell short(Image: Getty Images)
My main hope after last week’s game was for the players to show the fans they do understand what the Welsh jersey really demands and that we are starting to see progress. On Saturday,they delivered on both counts.
The fans also delivered. The attendance of 57,744 against France, was justifiably criticised but against Scotland the Principality Stadium was packed to the rafters.
The atmosphere was completely different as 70,000 fans witnessed an exhilarating spectacle on and off the field. It’s been quite a long time since we have experienced that sort of occasion.
Then again, it has been quite a long time since we witnessed the team perform at that level.
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Some of that was down to Wales’ marked improvement, with the home fans starved of any success or expectation during the past couple of years.
After all, Wales have now suffered eleven successive Six Nations defeats in Cardiff, with the most recent success against Scotland four years ago in February 2022.
Yes, Wales have slipped to 12th in the world rankings and are still facing another Wooden Spoon with matches to follow against a rejuvenated Ireland and then Italy.
And the off-the-field uncertainty that has affected Welsh rugby still exists and will continue to carry on for weeks to come.
However, for 80 minutes on Saturday the Wales team and fans recreated the sort of experience that has been so familiar in the past.
It also offered hope of what it could look like again in the future.
For the opening hour, Wales finally had some attacking momentum which threatened the gain line. Wales rediscovered something they had mislaid in recent seasons.
It has been a while since Welsh rugby fans have woken up on a Sunday morning following a rugby international feeling the disappointment because of the close manner of our defeat. There was also hope in equal measure that made it feel like a milestone in Wales’ rebuilding process.
It was agonising to lose after leading 20-5 and 23-12 to a Scotland side that only held the advantage for the final six minutes of the game.
However, with Finn Russell calling the shots, there’s always a sense that the outcome of the game might come down to a single piece of brilliance.
Perhaps it is because we have been through such a long period of losses and on the wrong end of some heavy scores we appear to have lost the ability to close out a game when we are in front. It may be down to the losing habit, or because we lost Sam Costelow who left the field with what looked like a serious injury when he was playing so well.
Scotland arrived with the confidence of having defeated England in their previous game. Under Gregor Townsend they’ve built a side that are not just plucky challengers any more.
They have been through what we are going through and they have developed a belief in their ability to win.
From the start, Wales took the game to Scotland but didn’t make much headway. We were attempting to go too wide too soon.
However, once Scotland got their hands on the ball they made ground by going through the phases, committing tacklers, attempting to punch holes in our defence and creating opportunities.
As Warren Gatland used to say, “You need to go forward before you earn the right to go wide”.
I believe the major difference between the teams was their midfield. Russell, Huw Jones and Sione Tuipolotu have played so often together their teamwork appears to be instinctive.
Scotland won the second half 21-6 and were the dominant attacking force after half-time.
However, the turning point was the Graham Darcy try. Russell and Darcy were both switched on to the opportunity while we had switched off completely.
Whoever shoulders the responsibility, it proved to be the major turning point in the game as it reduced the deficit to four points and enabled the visitors to dominate the final quarter.
It was a bitter, but encouraging step forward, that bodes well despite the result.
To give credit where it is due there were some commendable performances.
Rhys Carre did what he does best. It’s almost impossible to stop him scoring from that range. Captain Dewi Lake had his most effective game for Wales for some time, while Eddie James looks to have secured his place in the team by providing the momentum in midfield that we have been missing. I believe we should abandon the strategy of selecting a playmaker at twelve and pick James there instead.
There were heroics from our second rows in defence. It looks like Dafydd Jenkins and Ben Carter have secured their engine room partnership.
Then there was Aaron Wainwright. No matter where he has been asked to play, Wainwright has consistently been Wales’ most effective performer in both defence and carrying.
He was immense for a second successive week, continuing his terrific performances, despite Wales’ tribulations.
The returning fly-half Costelow also excelled after replacing Dan Edwards. Costelow being helped off the field injured in the second half was the saddest sight of the day.
However, we are still being affected by poor discipline. The yellow card awarded to Joe Hawkins could have been a red card and it could have easily been avoided. We were fortunate that Scotland didn’t take advantage of it.
The upcoming weekend off will hopefully allow the injured players to recover before the Irish Game, although Costelow looks very doubtful. This would be a big blow as he made a huge contribution to our improved performance.
The next fortnight must be spent building on the foundations we finally laid against Scotland.
They now know what it’s like to play well. They also know they can improve on that performance.
If they find the belief, this Wales team can get better and better.