Ben 10 - It's Hero Time
Canada
Warren Gatland has named his team to play Australia and has made the bold decision to select Cardiff Rugby’s Ben Thomas at fly-half.
Thomas is set to win his third cap for Wales on what will be his first start for his nation when they face Australia on Saturday.
The former Cardiff academy graduate has played at 10, 12 and at full back for the blue and blacks but this will be his first start at fly-half for the national side.
Thomas’ Wales debut did come at fly-half however, a second half substitute for Callum Sheedy against Canada in 2021 with his second cap coming off the bench at 12 against New Zealand that autumn.
This is the first time he has been selected since Warren Gatland returned as head coach in December 2022.
Why Now?
Despite having been a regular part of Cardiff’s 23 since 2019, this season has seen Thomas well and truly blossom.
The now 25-year-old started 17 of 19 games last season and spent most of his time at inside centre with just one start at 10, albeit a player of the match display during a 14-36 win over the Sharks in South Africa.
He has been Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt’s go-to man, filling his vision of a second playmaker at 12 whilst also captaining his side against Lions and Ospreys on judgement day.
So, what are his strengths?
Physicality
One area which Thomas has noticeably improved is with his ball carrying.
He is a more physical presence than in previous seasons, as demonstrated by his try on Boxing Day against Dragons, cutting a sharp angle off nine and busting through the would-be tackle of Taine Basham to score.
He may not be as physically imposing as others at 12 but with a mix of smart angles, late footwork and the dual threat of good handling he has consistently been able to cross the gainline for Cardiff this season.
He has also improved defensively with very few busts made through his channel this season.
In fact, of all the centres to play for Welsh regions in the URC this season, Thomas’ tackle completion percentage of 86% is the third best of those who played more than 120 URC minutes this season.
That’s not to say Costelow’s tackling is a weakness, with his own tackle success rate in the URC at 89%, but merely to note the improvement in that area of Thomas’ game.
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Running threat
Thomas made eight clean breaks in the URC last season, behind only Mason Grady in terms of Welsh qualified centres at the Welsh regions.
More often than not, he makes the correct decision at the right time as demonstrated with his show-and-go against Racing 92 on route to setting up Tomos Williams’ try.
He also possesses a good turn of pace, as seen with his interception against Munster.
Distribution
Thomas’ distribution has been superb this season, able to link play well with the ball out the back or feed runners on the short ball.
In total, Thomas completed the second highest number of passes by centres in the URC this season.
His tip on passes have been a particular feature with him making the joint-third highest amount in the URC this season and this coupled with his heightened threat as a ball carrier will hopefully succeed in getting Wales’ attacking game going.
Goalkicking
Here is a question mark for Thomas. With Tinus de Beer Cardiff’s primary goalkicker, opportunities to kick for goal have been limited for Thomas this season.
In total he attempted 11 kicks in the URC this season, succeeding with eight.
Costelow has the higher kick percentage of 79%, six percent better than Thomas, but has been guilty of missing a couple of very makeable penalties this season for both club and country.
Gatland had previously backed Sam Costelow as the 10 for Wales’ future, however, he has selected Thomas in one of six personnel changes to the Wales side which lost to South Africa.
Alongside Thomas, there is a return for Six Nations captain Dafydd Jenkins, along with Tommy Reffell, Christ Tshiunza and Archie Griffin, while Gloucester wing Josh Hathaway will make his debut.
Against them will be a new look Wallabies side with new head coach Joe Schmidt has selected two debutants in his starting XV and five more on the bench, while flanker Liam Wright captains the side on his sixth international cap.
Thomas may have to bide his time to showcase all of his skills in the Wales 10 jersey however with Gatland expected to ask his team to strip back to the basics and focus on the fundamentals of kicking, defence and fitness.
Wales Team:
L. Williams; J. Hathaway, O. Watkin, M. Grady, R. Dyer; B. Thomas, E. Bevan; G. Thomas, D. Lake (capt.), A. Griffin, C. Tshiunza, D. Jenkins, T. Plumtree, T. Reffell, A. Wainwright.
Replacements:
E. Lloyd, K. Mathias, H. O’Connor, C. Hill, J. Botham, K.Hardy, S. Costelow, N. Tompkins.
Australia Team:
T. Wright; A. Kellaway, J. Flook, H. Paisami, F. Daugunu; N. Lolesio, J. Gordon; J. Slipper, M. Faessler, T. Tupou, J. Williams, L. Salakaia-Loto, L. Wright (capt.), F. McReight, R. Valetini.
Replacements:
B. Pollard, Isaac Kailea, A. Alaalatoa, A. Blyth, C. Cale, T. McDermott, T. Lynagh, D. Pietsch.
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Wales Take On 'Boks For Rugby's Oldest Trophy
Canada
When an understrength Wales and South Africa face off on Saturday, in a game outside of rugby’s international window, you would be forgiven for thinking there’s very little on the line.
However, for some, that couldn’t be further for the truth.
Several players are fighting for their position whilst there is also the opportunity of silverware.
No, I’m not talking about the Prince William Cup, a trophy the two have competed for since 2007 – with Wales winning six and South Africa 12.
Rather, the Raeburn Shield.
Much like the wooden spoon in the Six Nations, the Raeburn Shield is not a physical trophy that Saturday’s winner can hold in their hands but rather a hypothetical linear trophy.
The idea for the shield began in fan forums online in 2008.
Dave Algie, one of those involved in the trophy’s conception, has since taken to social media, promoting the idea of a physical shield in the future.
Algie admits one of the reasons it was born was on the back of disappointment following his native New Zealand’s loss in the 2007 World Cup but the “historical beauty” of the trophy has made it a great study.
The idea is that the trophy is a title holders trophy, a winner stays on mentality, similar to that of boxing with the championship belts.
Therefore, the trophy dates back to the first ever game between England and Scotland in 1871, 116 years before the first Webb Ellis Cup tournament.
The name Raeburn is born from Raeburn Place where that first international was held, similarly the Utrecht Shield for women’s rugby is named after the first international between France and Netherlands.
The Raeburn Shield has been ‘won’ by 12 different nations.
New Zealand, South Africa, Australia, Argentina, England, Ireland, France, Wales and the first ever holders Scotland, along with tier two countries Japan, Romania and Samoa.
Unsurprisingly, New Zealand have held the trophy the most, successfully holding the trophy for three years between 1987 and 1990 with 17 successive defences, the most in the title’s history.
More recently, Ireland had 16 successive defences between their win in New Zealand in July 2022 and their World Cup quarter-final defeat to the same opposition 15 months later.
That left the All Blacks as the ‘holders’ only for them to lose 11-12 in the World Cup final against South Africa.
The Boks haven’t played since that win in Paris, meaning if Wales win on Saturday they will be the holders of the trophy for the 18th time in their history.
Wales first held the trophy in 1888 when a Thomas Pryce-Jenkins try gave them the win against Scotland during that years’ Home Nations Championship.
Bizarrely, Wales didn’t hold the trophy at all during their golden generation of the 70’s, with a huge hole between their 11-6 win against England in 1966 and their next trophy win against Scotland in 1986.
Wales’ famous 32-31 win against England saw them take the shield and go on their longest run in their history with the trophy, winning seven further games including a summer tour to Argentina and the first ever game at the Principality Stadium, against South Africa.
Ultimately, the run ended in dismay for Wales with a 31-38 defeat to Samoa at their home World Cup.
“Wales losing to Samoa was a bit depressing from a Welsh perspective, but it was lovely from a history perspective with Samoa winning the shield for the first time,” said Algie.
Wales last held the shield in 2022, beating Scotland 17-20 at the Principality Stadium, only to lose the shield one game and 14 days later in a 23-19 loss at Twickenham.
For Wales women, who have held the trophy twice, in 2015 and 2016 after wins against England and France respectively, reclaiming the Utrecht Shield may seem a long way off, however that might not be the case.
“That’s one of the great things about the shield is that whenever you think you’re going to get something, you don’t,” said Algie.
“You can’t pre-plan expecting the trophy and some countries don’t get to play for the trophy for a long time.
“For instance, Canada took the Utrecht shield from Australia in May and then faced the Black Ferns. Everything was set up for New Zealand to take the trophy and then take on England at Twickenham in June but then Canada beat the Black Ferns 22-19.”
Currently, there is not a physical shield and Algie is trying to raise funds to make his dream a reality.
“The Utrecht trophy is done and the design for the Raeburn Shield is too,” said Algie.
“We wanted English oak for the Raeburn and French oak for the Utrecht as a nod to their origins.
“I’m just having to be patient as it costs a lot of money. We are fundraising and people can donate to get their name on the back of the shield and be a part of history.”
Whilst the trophy is not recognised by World Rugby right now, Algie believes eventually that will come.
“My mission is that the trophy will be in the hands of the players and then fans are interacting with the idea of the shield, planning ahead for when and where they could win it.
“In the future, tournaments will want the Raeburn shield or Utrecht shield to be on the line. Imagine the holders’ captain walking out with it and placing it on the side of the pitch and then the captain handing it to the next winning captain.
“For broadcasters and media it would be pure theatre and add drama to every game. Look at this weekend, Wales could do it and become the holders. Anything can happen in a one-off game!”