Christmas cheers and jeers for Welsh sides

Wales’ four professional sides’ contrasting fortunes were reflected in their return to United Rugby Championship (URC) action on the weekend before Christmas.

With a remarkable 48-28 victory over Connacht, the Dragons broke a 15-month league winless streak, turning the star turn.

That success ensured Ospreys have slipped to rock bottom in the table, while Scarlets triumphed in the first Welsh derby of the festive season with a 21-17 victory against Cardiff at the Arms Park.

The table’s bottom three teams are Dragons (14th), Scarlets (15th), and Ospreys (16th), while Cardiff are currently third.

On December 26th, Cardiff host Dragons in a Welsh derby before Scarlets take on Ospreys in a basement match.

Dragons do not have an exhaustive list of glorious victories to pick from in recent times but their success against Connacht is a contender for top spot.

It was comfortably the best performance under Filo Tiatia’s leadership, surpassing both Dean Ryan’s shock victory at Scarlets earlier that year and the 2022 victory over Munster in Dai Flanagan’s first game in charge.

Dragons broke a 15-month winless streak in the URC, won three games consecutively, and moved off the table the previous week. They also won in Europe.

They scored six tries and only late Connacht scores – which earned an undeserved consolation try bonus – prevented the scoreboard revealing the true scale of the thrashing.

Tiatia and his coaches are experiencing some welcome selection issues as the Dragons travel to Cardiff.

Wales’ No. 8 Aaron Wainwright was benched against Connacht, who was a shoo-in, but Harrison Keddie, who had been replaced, was inspirational and could compete against Thomas Young in the open-side matchup.

“Harri was outstanding. In the previous couple of outings, Tiatia inquired when he would start playing.

Ospreys are now top of the table after Mark Jones’ side was humiliated by Munster in the 26-10 defeat in Bridgend.

As the crisis-ridden and directionless world of Welsh rugby continues into the festive season, Jones has always appeared optimistic, but even he sounded downbeat in his pre-match interview.

It comes in a week when it was announced that Wales captains Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake will leave Ospreys for Gloucester next season, while there is continued speculation about the organisation’s future.

When you lose your household names, Jones said, “It’s always a blow.”

“We have done our best to maintain them both financially and environmentally.

” There is so much uncertainty for everybody involved in Welsh rugby and people out of contract are considering this when making decisions. “

Ospreys players and supporters are concerned that the Welsh Rugby Union’s (WRU) intention is to cut a professional side.

Jones will refuse to let that lingering feeling explain why his team performed poorly against Munster, despite the fact that circumstances may be putting pressure on things.

” It has been a challenge for a couple of years with the budgets dropping significantly over time, “said Jones.

Players and coaches have had to adjust their salaries, squad sizes, and even their potential to win.

“Having smaller squads and losing your better players makes things harder.”

” It has been tough for the regions for a long time, they have done well to adjust and adapt.

With head coach Dwayne Peel making a swift exit after masterminding victory against Cardiff to return to his sister’s wedding, it was left to Scarlets forwards coach Albert van der Berg to bask in the post-match glory.

However, Peel had to deal with it first as Scarlets climbed off the bottom of the table for the second time in a row.

Van der Berg praised Dwayne as being good for the team.

“We didn’t have one of the best starts in the URC but Dwayne has stuck in there and led us well.

He was driving back two and a half hours to his sister’s wedding on Friday, saying, “It’s tough for him.” I give him credit for doing that, including returning to see his sister, and playing for the team.

Van der Berg praised the resilience of the Scarlets defence:” They]Cardiff] had a lot of opportunities.

“We lost the territory and possession battle for the most part, and I can’t believe it,” said the spokesperson.

Two Wales old-timers were at the heart of that Scarlets ‘ victory.

Lock Jake Ball, 34, was one of the defensive heroes when he recorded 19 tackles and continues to impress on his Scarlets return.

Van der Berg remarked, “Jake is in great shape.” He puts the hard work in and is still a master of the game. “

Van der Berg thinks that Ball, who played Test rugby in 2021, might be called back to Wales coach Steve Tandy in the wake of this form.

Van der Berg said, “He wants to knock on the door and see if there are opportunities for him.”

” He’s shown against Cardiff what he can do, so I can’t see why not. “

Scrum-half Gareth Davies, 35, scored another try try at Arms Park, including a trademark spectacular intercept try.

Although Davies has retired from international rugby, his outstanding performance in Cardiff demonstrated why he continues to play for Welsh rugby at the top.

” It’s fantastic what he is doing out there, “said Van der Berg.

Gareth is comparable to good red wine. Some players improve as they age as a result.

“He showed again his experience and he’s still got the speed to finish that try off”.

Wales’ centre Eddie James impressed in the 13-piece jersey, on the other end of the scale.

With Gloucester’s Max Llewellyn expected to miss the Six Nations with a knee injury, Tandy is looking for a solution to his outside center problem.

Van der Berg compared the 23-year-old James to South Africa centre Andre Esterhuizen: “He’s]James] got something.

He has everything and the right size. He will play for Wales for a while as he gains more experience and plays for England for a while.

After conceding at home to Scarlets, Cardiff captain Liam Belcher promises a fair evaluation of his side.

The Blue and Blacks had three yellow cards against their rivals, who dominated territory and possession.

But the hosts could only manage two tries in more than 20 visits to the Scarlets ‘ 22, while the visitors scored three tries with limited attacking opportunities.

Belcher responded, “That’s a lesson for us.” “We probably went too individualistic,” the statement reads.

” We had 22 entries, they had two but they were the better team in capitalising on opportunities. “

Cardiff missed a chance to finish top of the URC table with their first defeat at Arms Park since January.

Belcher urges players to accept accountability for their demise.

” We’re not happy with that, “said Belcher.

That’s not what we’re trying to say. A review and reality check will be conducted.

“It has to be an honest assessment, probably more from players. The coaches have put together a game plan after doing their job.