While the rest of the Wales squad were busy preparing for the Guinness Six Nations wooden-spoon shoot with Italy, 12 of Warren Gatland’s group were playing for their regions and clubs, having been released from national duty for the weekend by the head coach.
There were also others from outside the Six Nations panel who took the opportunity to stand out.
Rugby correspondent Mark Orders takes a look at which players displayed their Test credentials and who didn’t in the latest round of United Rugby Championship action:
The top two performers among Gatland's released players
Aaron Wainwright (Dragons)
The Dragons man has been playing second fiddle to Taulupe Faletau with Wales and found himself switched from six to lock for the Dragons after the dismissal of Matthew Screech but emerged in credit from the match with Connacht at Rodney Parade. There was a try, plenty of ground eaten up with ball in hand, four defenders beaten and a dozen tackles. All in all, a message, then, to Gatland that he has something to offer.
Keiran Williams (Ospreys)
The Ospreys’ best two players in the defeat against Benetton in Swansea were Williams and young full-back Iestyn Hopkins, making his first start for the region. Hopkins was bold and daring as a counter-attacker and brave under the high ball in a display that bodes well.
Williams’ display wasn’t perfect but the pluses significantly outweighed the minuses, with the centre adding trademark punch on the gainline. Trying too hard sometimes led to the odd mistake, but he is someone who never gives up and invariably troubles the first line of defence. His was a strong effort. You can read more here about Welsh rugby's 'pocket battleship' who has everyone talking.
The rest
Rhys Davies (Ospreys)
A steady shift from the Ospreys lock for whom hard work is never a problem. Decent work in the trenches saw him make 10 metres from his 10 carries, while there were two turnovers and seven tackles without any misses.
Bradley Roberts (Dragons)
One trademark burst helped set up Aaron Wainwright’s early try and Roberts didn’t go missing when there was tackling to be done. If the Dragons’ lineout wasn’t the best, a lot of that was down to key jumper Matthew Screech’s first-half sending off.
Leon Brown (Dragons)
Connacht players were halted multiple times by the closest thing Welsh rugby has to a tank and Brown won a scrum penalty. On the other side of the ledger, the home set-piece had a couple of difficult moments and their tight-head didn’t have many opportunities to showcase his renowned carrying game.
Christ Tshiunza (Exeter Chiefs)
He caught the eye for Wales against Scotland, in particular, but didn’t hit the heights for Exeter Chiefs in their 40-5 defeat by Harlequins, with Tshiunza replaced on 53 minutes. Our sister title DevonLive said of him: “Like so many of Exeter's players, he just could not stamp his authority on the match. Perhaps guilty of trying to do too much when he did get his hands on the ball, being either turned over or bundled into touch.”
Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs)
Put in a strong defensive shift for Exeter against Harlequins in London, making 13 tackles and not missing a single one. There were also 10 carries from Jenkins and seven passes. Ultimately, the visitors found the home defence difficult to break down, but Jenkins kept putting his hand up for work.
Rhys Carre (Cardiff)
Cardiff were second best in pretty much every facet of play against Ulster, and Carre couldn’t put a significant mark on the game. He was part of a scrum that found the going tough at times. He also missed some tackles and couldn’t put his heavy-duty carrying game in gear.
Dillon Lewis (Cardiff)
He won one scrum penalty but the home set-piece also crumbled like a dynamited chimney stack at one point. One count put Lewis down for 22 tackles, which was commendable, but the tighthead didn’t have many chances to show his worth as a carrier.
Teddy Williams (Cardiff)
He came on for Cardiff against Ulster and included a lineout steal and seven tackles in a steady contribution. There was also some nice passing. Much of the traffic headed the other way, however, with Williams unable to show what he can offer with ball in hand.
Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers)
Fifty-eight minutes of steady application from the openside for the Tigers in their big win over Bath. Reffell did his work at the breakdown and put in some tackles and charges as the hosts piled up 48 points with others such as Jasper Wiese, George Martin, Hanro Liebenberg and Harry Potter stealing the headlines.
Nick Tompkins (Saracens)
A silver lining off the bench for Wales against England but it was mostly clouds all the way for 14-man Saracens in their defeat at Sale. While Tompkins sent out some nice passes, he could make little headway with his running as the Londoners fell to defeat against their nearest rivals.
Three players outside Gatland’s squad who potentially put down markers for the World Cup
Johnny Williams (Scarlets)
You’d probably call the fit-again Williams’ effort for the Scarlets against Munster the individual Welsh performance of the weekend. The centre caused the Irish no end of problems as he unfailingly challenged their defence and usually made ground post-contact. A whopping 96 metres were made from 14 runs, according to one draft of statistics, with the replacement relentlessly physical in defence as well. Gatland would surely have noted down Williams’ name.
Gareth Davies (Scarlets)
Coming on as a 45th-minute replacement, he helped inspire a wonderful second-half show from the Scarlets that saw them outscore Munster 35-14. Scrum-half Davies was at his fast and creative best, scoring a try and causing the opposition issues almost every time he had the ball. When he is in this mood, he looks as dangerous as any nine in Wales.
Angus O’Brien (Dragons)
Sean Holley sees him as one of Welsh rugby’s most underrated players, and the former Ospreys head coach isn’t wrong. Not only did O’Brien show off his running ability for the Dragons against Connacht, he also has a cultured boot on him and can distribute nicely. If Wales are looking to widen their options at full-back, they could do worse than run the rule over this guy.
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