Once, it was all so certain. A time traveller could leave 1967 and resurface a decade later still knowing who Wales’ scrum-half would be.
Gareth Edwards made 53 unbroken appearances for his country over 11 years. His selection was as predictable as a red scarf at Anfield, carols at Christmas or tears after a Strictly Come Dancing final. The sun rose in the morning and set at night, Edwards wore the Wales No. 9 jersey — iron laws, though Chico Hopkins still claims there were times when he deserved to play ahead of his more renowned rival.
There was continuity, too, when Terry Holmes was around, and when Rob Howley, Dwayne Peel and Mike Phillips were in their pomp, with Phillips starting 67 games for Wales. Once, amid suggestions Warren Gatland wasn’t happy at the prospect of a lot of his players playing abroad, a Wales international of the era said: “What’s he going to do? Drop Mike Phillips?”
The idea seemed too ridiculous for the individual to contemplate.
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But the Wayne Pivac years were different. At one point, five different players started at scrum-half for Wales in six games. No number nine began more than five consecutive Tests under the recently deposed New Zealander. It was musical chairs without the music.
Wales struggled because scrum-half is a key role and the selectors were not allowing one player to bed in. Kieran Hardy was first choice for the summer tour of South Africa and he did well, but Pivac started with Tomos Williams for every Test in the autumn.
Williams had been playing well for Cardiff but Dane Blacker, fast in everything he does, didn’t feature at all in November, despite being included in the Wales panel. Gareth Davies was on the outside, along with Rhys Webb and Rhodri Williams, two players, who, like Blacker, had been on form for their regions.
Gatland will want a No. 9 who can boss play while getting the ball away quickly for the Six Nations. True, Phillips may not have had a silver service and there were some who said his height counted against him, but he was ferociously competitive, a brilliant defender and feisty to the point where he’d fancy his chances against a small army. He was supremely fit and nothing fazed him, and he had the knack of scoring important tries.
There is no-one of Phillips’ ilk available to Gatland today, but he needs to get his scrum-half call right. The best teams have the position sorted, with Ireland favouring the rapid Jamison Gibson-Park, France having Antoine Dupont at the base of their scrum, South Africa looking to the irrepressible Faf de Klerk and New Zealand with Aaron Smith.
There are plenty of talented young nines in the pipeline in Wales, among them Archie Hughes and Harri Williams at the Scarlets, Harri Morgan at the Ospreys — if he can break the injury curse which appears to be following him around — and Che Hope is well thought of at the Dragons.
But those are for the future. Right now the challenge is to identify the top scrum-half in Wales and then back him in selection.
Who will Gatland be looking at? Here are some of the candidates - including forgotten Wales nine Rhys Webb, who at 34 is producing some outstanding rugby and could be said to have thrown a little grenade into the selection mix.
Keiran Hardy (Scarlets)
Very quick over 30 metres and a player who kicked well in the Tests against South Africa in the summer, when he played some of his best rugby. Hasn’t found it easy to back up that form, but Gatland will want to see what he’s about.
Verdict: While he should have credit in the bank after his performances against South Africa, he’ll need to impress afresh if he’s to be a Wales starter.
Dane Blacker (Scarlets)
Only started two games this season, and the Scarlets have won them. There may be a message for the coaches there. Blacker is quick and doesn’t give defences much time to organise. Wales didn’t think he merited a game this autumn, but he’s a player who’s on the up.
Verdict: He’s unproven at Test level, so Gatland would need to watch him closely and take soundings from his regional coaches. But there’s potential to work on. The challenge for him is to keep developing.
Gareth Davies (Scarlets)
Hasn’t played for Wales since the defeat by Italy last March, a loss he could fairly argue wasn’t all his fault. While not playing badly, he found it hard to shine in a Scarlets side that started the season slowly. On the plus side, he's create, can snaffle timely tries and emerged as Gatland’s first-choice scrum-half in the Kiwi’s first stint as Wales coach.
Verdict: He'll need to reassert himself.
Rhodri Williams (Dragons)
On his day, he can match most with his kicking, game management, awareness and intelligence. He had one of those good days against the Lions last weekend, when he was the top-performing player on the field. He could have further opportunities to prove points against Cardiff and the Scarlets over the festive season.
Verdict: Coming from a long way back, he’ll need to outplay his rivals over Christmas, for starters. The sense is there’ll still need to be more and in that respect he’s an outsider here, albeit a talented one.
Rhys Webb (Ospreys)
Some rave about him, others less so: perhaps it’s always been that way. But Webb’s display for the Ospreys against Montpellier on Saturday evening was exceptional, with the 34-cap player not just to the fore in attack — “he’s causing merry mayhem”, the TV commentator said at one stage — but also setting an example in defence and competing for ball at the breakdown. He’s a leader for the Ospreys and he has been for the past couple of seasons, notwithstanding that Pivac barely picked him.
Verdict: It would be hard to ignore Webb’s effort against Montpellier. He is 34, but age shouldn’t matter if he’s good enough. Gatland liked him as a player back in the day. On form, he should be in the mix. Perhaps he's chucked a little grenade into the number nine mix.
Tomos Williams (Cardiff)
Gatland watched Williams underline his worth with an electric display against Argentina in the recent autumn series. The Cardiff player is fast, skilful and competitive, and he has played under the New Zealander before.
Verdict: You’d have thought he’d be Gatland’s first-choice.
Lloyd Williams (Cardiff)
He’s been around a long time, recently clocking up his 250th appearance for Cardiff, but he’s playing as well as ever and his fitness remains something else. He makes good decisions and can run a game.
Verdict: Unfortunate to start just one Test under Pivac. He still has a lot of offer but will need an exceptional surge of form to put himself in contention.
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