It was another enthralling weekend of European rugby with Welsh rugby fans experiencing highs and lows
It was another enthralling weekend for Welsh rugby fans, full of highs, lows and frustration.
The Dragons were the story of the weekend as Filo Tiatia’s side claimed a remarkable victory in Paris over French giants Stade Francais to reach the quarter-finals of the EPCR Challenge Cup.
But there was heartbreak for both Cardiff and the Ospreys, who slipped to narrow defeats to Benetton and Ulster respectively.
Here are your winners and losers after an exciting weekend of rugby.
Winners
Filo Tiatia and the Dragons
Historically, the Dragons have been the poor relations to the other three Welsh sides, but they have begun to buck that trend and are on an upward trajectory.
Tiatia has undoubtedly improved this Dragons side, which now has a far stronger backbone and is a tougher side to beat.
This famous victory over Stade Francais in Paris was arguably the best Dragons performance in a decade.
The Welsh club was strong at the set-piece, physically imposing and fired plenty of shots.
What will please Tiatia the most is how they soaked up pressure and bounced back after going behind in the game.
This side never stopped believing they could win and this could be a stepping stone to greater things.
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Aaron Wainwright
The Dragons were excellent to a man, but Wainwright was totemic.
If the British & Irish Lions were touring this summer, Wainwright would be a nailed-on tourist and a strong contender for the Test side.
The Wales star is going from strength to strength and was the key player for the Dragons in Paris.
Wainwright made 16 carries and 13 tackles, helping the Dragons get on the front foot.
His back-row colleagues Ryan Woodman and Thomas Young were also very good against Top 14 high-flyers Stade Francais, but Wainwright was sensational.
Chris Coleman
The Dragons front five were all outstanding, with the likes of Rodrigo Martinez, Brodie Coghlan and Ben Carter, along with replacements Elliot Dee and Wyn Jones, putting in top-class performances.
But a special mention has to go to Coleman, who did a sterling job anchoring the Dragons scrum.
Stade Francais have a reputation as a ferocious scrummaging unit, but Coleman more than held his own at scrum time. The 27-year-old also made 14 tackles.
Tighthead prop has been an area of weakness for Wales for the last few years, but the position is looking a little healthier lately. If Coleman can build on this performance, he can put himself back into contention to make Steve Tandy’s squad.
An honourable mention also has to go to loosehead Martinez, who finished as the game’s top tackler with a remarkable 21 tackles.
Jacob Beetham and Mason Grady
Beetham has long been a player touted for a big future in the international game, but a series of injuries, coupled with the 24-year-old being moved around the backline, has stunted his progress.
But he had a fine game in Cardiff’s narrow 38-35 defeat to Benetton in the Challenge Cup.
Beetham was very strong under the high ball, while he also looked a threat with ball in hand and claimed an interception try.
Grady was also extremely prominent, with the Wales wing using his explosive power to get over the gain-line on a number of occasions.
The 24-year-old could be a huge asset to Wales if used correctly.
Reuben Morgan-Williams and Kieran Hardy
Both Ospreys scrum-halves made a big impact in Belfast on Saturday night.
Morgan-Williams got the nod to start and was excellent.
The 28-year-old was a constant threat with ball in hand, scoring his side’s first try.
Hardy also made an impact from the replacements bench and was cruelly denied what would have been a sensational try to win the game when the TMO called a dubious forward pass in the build-up.
Losers
Archie Griffin
The Wales tighthead was given a torrid time at the scrum by his Wales team-mate Rhys Carré as Bath edged out Saracens 31-22 in a hard-fought Champions Cup round-of-16 clash at the Rec.
Griffin coughed up a number of scrum penalties and was driven backwards at a rate of knots by Wales loosehead Carré.
The 24-year-old’s inability to lock down the scrum became a big problem as Bath trailed 10-0 at the break.
Bath head of rugby Johann van Graan had no choice but to replace Griffin with world-class Springboks star Thomas du Toit, which changed the course of the game.
Officials
The officials in both the Benetton v Cardiff and Ulster v Ospreys games have received some vitriolic criticism on social media.
Cardiff’s players were incensed with referee Kevin Bralley because they thought Evan Lloyd had crossed the line for what would have been a match-winning try.
With Cardiff camped on the Benetton try-line, they crossed the line twice only for the ball to get turned over, but Cardiff were adamant Lloyd had scored in one of those surges.
After the hosts had worked their way up the other end, Cardiff captain Ben Thomas could be seen arguing with Bralley and was eventually penalised.
Over in Belfast, the Ospreys’ Challenge Cup hopes were extinguished when Kieran Hardy’s try three minutes from time was disallowed for a forward pass in the build-up.
After initially awarding the try, referee Anthony Woodthorpe went to the TMO, who ruled Watkin’s pass had gone forward.
Pundits and supporters all felt the Ospreys were hard done by and the officials have taken a hammering on social media as a result.
Louis Rees-Zammit
The Wales star was part of a Bristol Bears side who were ruthlessly put to the sword 59-26 by Toulouse in the Champions Cup.
Bristol were taken to the cleaners up front and were outclassed out wide as the French champions ran riot on their home patch.
It was a difficult day at the office for Rees-Zammit, who was forced to operate on the back foot behind a Bristol pack that took a savage beating.
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