Adams is an out-and-out winger, keep him there
I WAS as shocked as everyone else when I saw the Wales team to face Fiji today and noticed Josh Adams was starting the game at centre. This might have been a plan all along for Wayne Pivac this autumn, and we did see Josh surprisingly move to the midfield in the second half of the South Africa match – but I'm not sure that's the case.
If you asked Josh, he would undoubtedly tell you he is an outand-out winger with the ability to maybe play a couple of other positions. The proof of the pudding will be in the eating with this experiment and I do see the value of players being able to play in different positions, but do we not have a 13 capable of playing this match?
I'd have liked to have seen Nick Tompkins, Scott Williams or Uilisi Halaholo given a chance. I know Halaholo is coming back from Covid-19 so isn't at 100 per cent so I can understand him missing out.
But what was the point of having Scott in the squad for him to hold tackle bags before being released?
I'm sure he will be very disappointed not to be playing in this game.
Josh is one of the first names on my Wales team sheet if everyone is fit and firing and in that side, he plays in the 11 jersey on the left wing. I'm not sure too many people would argue with that.
Josh might have a very good game at centre against Fiji, but Wayne has already converted George North from a wing to a midfielder. Do we need to do it again?
Josh is one of the best wingers in the world. He's only 26 but has already been a top try-scorer at a Rugby World Cup and in a British & Irish Lions series. That's not bad going. Josh will have had to work overtime this week to get ready to start at centre because 13 is one of the most difficult positions on the field to play.
The best compliment I can pay Jonathan Davies is that over the course of his career he has made it all just look so easy.
I never played 13, but my position on the wing meant I knew what the man inside me was going through. When you play inside centre, you are protected by your fly-half and 13. It is not an easy position at 12 – far from it in fact because you have to be immensely physical – but the defensive challenge is often onedimensional. The opposition runner comes at you in not a lot of space and it is basically just a case of who wins the collision. It is very, very different at 13 and this will be Josh's problem. You have a lot of space between you and your outside winger. That amount of space has gone up even more since the 50:22 law came in because wingers are now dropping back to stop those kicks happening.
“Basham has been oustanding – he is the benchmark for other less experienced players”
This will be Josh's conundrum against Fiji. When does he rush up and hit his opposite man in defence? When does he hold off and drift out? These are split-second decisions that can have absolutely enormous impacts on matches. It is to Jon's great credit that he has done this expertly for so long over the course of a glittering career and not got much praise for it.
I'm sure Josh will be comfortable on the ball at 13 when it comes to attack and he could trouble Fiji with his out-and-out pace. It may well suit him and I'll be eating my words!
Jon will have been passing on his knowledge to Josh this week I've no doubt about that. He's hugely experienced, has been captain of the side recently, and is not the sort of bloke to be annoyed at someone else taking his shirt. Josh would have been mad not to pick his brains.
One thing that I think does suit Josh well in terms of centre is his work rate. If you look back on the first quarter of the South Africa game, he was everywhere and always coming off his wing to try and pick up possession. That's what you want to see in a winger and what Warren Gatland always used to tell me. Warren's message to me before every game was ‘go and get as many touches as you can' because the more touches you get, the more likely you are to score. It was something he was really keen on. I'm sure Josh will also be delighted Semi Radradra and Levani Botia are both absent.
This Fiji game is must-win for Wales as far as I'm concerned. It's the third game of the autumn and Wales normally get better the longer each campaign rolls on.
It will be immensely physical and while Fiji have a lot of good players in their starting side – think Albert Tuisue, Vilimae Mata and Josua Tuisova especially – they are not at their strongest because of Covid-19 and injuries. I think Wales will win by about 20 points even though the match will be immensely physical.
It has been a hugely difficult autumn so far, mainly due to injuries. Wayne has so many senior players out it is making things a real struggle. That was already the case before the campaign began, but then for Wales to lose Alun Wyn Jones and Ken Owens as well amounts to a monumental blow.
With that in mind, I think Wales did well against South Africa.
It looked for a long time like they might grab a shock victory against all the odds and the players deserve credit for pushing the Springboks so close. Ultimately, it was the strength of the away bench which proved the difference. Wales don't have the strength in depth South Africa do and that was shown on the night.
After back-to-back losses I've got no doubt Wayne is thinking he has to win this game with Fiji. Maybe that explains why he has picked most of the same pack from the South Africa match. I think that shows how much he needs a victory. I think Wales will target Fiji up front initially, especially if we have more wet weather in Cardiff which seems likely. The Principality Stadium roof being open this autumn because of Covid-19 restrictions has certainly impacted both Welsh games so far. That could well happen again today.
Whatever the weather, Wales should win because Fiji aren't at their strongest but I'd like to see some of the squad's younger players turn up and be counted. I was disappointed by the efforts of the next generation in the summer when Wales played Argentina. The team were well beaten in that second Test and drew the first with a man advantage for long periods.
There are some players who are still being seen as the next generation even though they have been regional regulars for two or three years. They need to be looking to the likes of Taine Basham for inspiration. Taine has been outstanding this autumn and deserves a great deal of credit for his superb performances. He has set the benchmark for other less experienced players.
