Here are the latest rugby headlines on Wednesday, January 4.
Liam Williams v Leigh Halfpenny
Liam Williams and Leigh Halfpenny are set to go head to head this weekend in what promises to be a mouth-watering Welsh derby between Cardiff and the Scarlets.
This will be the final opportunity for players to impress ahead of new Wales coach Warren Gatland's Six Nations squad announcement. Both Williams and Halfpenny are expected to be included in Gatland's squad, and Scarlets defence coach Gareth Williams, who worked as part of Wayne Pivac's Wales set-up, expects both players to put on a show at the Arms Park on Saturday night (5.15pm kick-off).
"There's a lot of warm memories surrounding Liam and his time here at the Scarlets," said Williams. "What he's achieved in the game is exceptional. We are lucky from the point of view of both clubs but also from a neutral point of view to have two players of such quality as Pence [Halfpenny] and Liam going head to head in those No. 15 shirts. That will be an exciting battle. The attitude to Liam will be a warm one."
SIGN UP: Get the latest rugby headlines sent straight to your inbox for free with our daily newsletter
One player who the Scarlets will have to shut down is openside flanker Thomas Young, with the Cardiff star having won more turnovers than any other player in the United Rugby Championship this season.
"He's one of many key players amongst their squad," said Williams. "Over the last couple of weeks we've been preparing to face Jac Morgan who is exceptional around that contact area so it will be a very similar focus from that point of view. Thomas has played an integral part in Cardiff's form over the past six weeks as have many other players. He's on the radar, as many other players are."
McBryde's job tougher as players bid to impress Gatland
Robin McBryde heads back to Wales this week in the firm belief that Warren Gatland's return will have a major galvanising effect on players there. The 37-times capped ex-hooker will be in Swansea on Saturday with runaway BKT United Rugby Championship leaders Leinster as they take on the Ospreys.
One man keeping a close eye on that game will be Warren Gatland, who has just begun his second spell as Wales head coach, taking over from Wayne Pivac. McBryde knows the Kiwi better than most - having been his assistant for some 11 years within the national set-up - and expects his return to have a real motivational impact, making Leinster’s job that much harder this weekend.
“A lot of Welsh players are going to be knocking on the door with the Guinness Six Nations just around the corner,” said the Irish province’s forwards coach. “They will see the announcement of Warren Gatland as head coach as them being given an opportunity to impress, especially if they have been out in the cold a little bit recently.
“This is one of the games that you need to impress in really ahead of a Six Nations campaign, so they have got that to play for. All these Ospreys players will be keen to get out there and impress him. That’s going to make our work a little bit harder on the weekend.”
As for what Gatland will bring to the Wales job second time around, McBryde said: “He was pretty consistent with regards to his messaging and one that sticks in the mind is ‘we will be the hardest working team in world rugby. No team will work harder than us’.
“I think he will bring that mentality to the Welsh squad and I don’t think he’s going to go too far away from the formula that he had. It won’t be exactly the same because the game of rugby evolves and he’s going to be working with different coaches, so they will add a different flavour and have certain things they want to do their way. But Gats will give them a good base. He’s got a good understanding of the Welsh culture, the Welsh players.”
First up for Gatland will be a Six Nations opener at home to his former charges Ireland, a fixture which traditionally had a bit of spice. "It was interesting really because I always got the impression it was Ireland getting a little bit more wound up than Gats was!” recalls McBryde. “Gats would never show that emotion anyway. Obviously, with him having coached Ireland previously, there was that little bit extra to the fixture. I think it was pretty even with regards to wins. Both teams play quite an exciting brand of rugby and opening game of the Six Nations, Gats back, it will make it interesting.”
The BKT URC clash between the Ospreys and table-topping, unbeaten Leinster kicks off at 7.35pm on Saturday evening at the Swansea.com Stadium, and McBryde certainly isn't expecting a walkover.
“It will be a tough place to go to," he added. "The Ospreys are in a rich vein of form at the moment. They didn’t have the best start to the season, but recently they have turned the corner. They look as though they have found their way through those tough times. We will be playing against a confident team who have built up a little bit of momentum recently. It’s going to be a big ask for us.”
Contract talks to begin
Dragons players will begin to hold talks about conditional contracts over the coming days, with head coach Dai Flanagan revealing discussions will be held after this weekend.
Before that, the Dragons' focus is on hosting South African side Bulls on Friday (7.35pm kick-off) in the URC.
Players across Wales' four regions have been up in arms over the current embargo on signing contracts, with many considering moving to England or France. It was announced in December that, while work to get a verbally-agreed six-year financial deal for Welsh rugby officially signed continued, the regions would in the meantime be able to discuss conditional contract offers for players. While they will not be able to sign a legal contract until a deal is completed at Professional Rugby Board level, it is a step in the right direction.
"We've got to get through this weekend and then we can start talking to players a lot more openly," Dragons boss Flanagan said. "We knew what block we were in and how tough this block was, specifically leading to this Friday night game. I've been very clear to the group, they'll all have conversations when needed after this weekend. But the full task and full thought process has been on this block."
The Dragons have had a tough Christmas schedule, going down 29-24 to Cardiff on Boxing Day before a New Year's Day 33-17 defeat to the Scarlets. They are in the midst of a five-day turnaround.
Evans creates history
Scarlets wing Steff Evans has achieved an impressive personal milestone by becoming the top Welsh try-scorer in the history of the United Rugby Championship.
Evans’ first-half try against the Dragons on New Year’s Day was his 50th in the competition and takes him to fifth overall in the all-time try chart. In going above Ospreys’ Dan Evans, Steff is now out on his own as the leading Welsh try-scorer. He is also the third fastest (in minutes) to reach the 50-try milestone.
Only Tommy Bowe (67), Craig Gilroy (59), former Scarlet DTH van der Merwe (58) and Tim Visser (58) are now above him. Evans made his Scarlets debut in 2014 and has 163 Scarlets appearances to his name, scoring 66 tries in all competitions.
Healy joins Edinburgh from Munster
Ben Healy admits he is excited to be joining Edinburgh from Munster on a two-year deal ahead of the 2023-24 season.
The 23-year-old stand-off qualifies for Scotland through his grandparents and will team up with Mike Blair's squad in the summer at the end of his current deal.
Healy, who has played for Ireland Under-20s, said: "Edinburgh is a hugely welcoming club with a really tightknit playing squad. It's also been great to see the club move into a new home in DAM Health Stadium which looks to have a brilliant atmosphere.
"Having played against them several times it's clear how much they want to play. They've really developed their game under Mike and I believe that style will suit me. I'm looking forward to putting myself into a new environment and seeing how I go."
READ NEXT:
Six Nations star accuses opponent of 'premeditated' attack and lying after shocking incident
Clive Woodward backs Gatland to make Wales a force and Rees-Zammit details emerge
