:00:18. > :00:28.We are one week away from the game that never needs extra space. It is
:00:29. > :00:37.England against Wales. It is going to be a massive game. Do you want me
:00:38. > :00:42.to say something outrageous? One man who is desperate to feature is
:00:43. > :00:46.Jonathan Davies. He is back Andy helped the Scarlets to victory over
:00:47. > :00:55.the league leaders. That was the one bright spot in a weekend to forget
:00:56. > :01:00.for the rest of the Welsh regions. Good evening and welcome to the
:01:01. > :01:05.programme puts up that England game as seven days away and it will be
:01:06. > :01:09.huge. It is a preview coming up. We will kick off with the RaboDirect
:01:10. > :01:24.Pro12. Munster brought a strong side to
:01:25. > :01:29.Llanelli. Simon Siebel was at full-back. Jonathan Davies returned
:01:30. > :01:32.to the Scarlets in a bid to prove his fitness before the Twickenham
:01:33. > :01:52.showdown. Can they get this one rumbling?
:01:53. > :01:59.Bodies on the floor. Emyr Phillips still has it. He feeds Gareth
:02:00. > :02:06.Davies. Gareth Davies goes for the line himself. Beautiful. He looks to
:02:07. > :02:15.have got it down for the first try of the night. Very solid indeed.
:02:16. > :02:22.Impressive from the Scarlets. Linking up with John Barclay. That
:02:23. > :02:33.is a chance on the counter attack. Munster breakaway with a try. Just
:02:34. > :02:45.as we thought Munster strike on the counterattack. Casey Laulala as the
:02:46. > :02:53.first receiver. Kristian Phillips just get him into touch. Great work
:02:54. > :03:08.and good hands. Simon Siebel looking sharp. -- Simon Siebel. Has he got
:03:09. > :03:12.the speed to go all the way? John Barclay is going to get there. A
:03:13. > :03:24.remarkable breakaway try from the Scottish flanker.
:03:25. > :03:39.Casey Laulala has nobody outside him. He waits for the support.
:03:40. > :03:43.Williams is in there. Fantastic. Munster really stringing the passes
:03:44. > :03:54.together. They are making up the metres upfield. Could there be an
:03:55. > :04:03.overlap? A try scoring chance goes begging. The drive from the
:04:04. > :04:12.forwards. Pick and go. One more might do it. The Scarlets getting
:04:13. > :04:26.bodies in there. They could have an overlap outright if they use it. In
:04:27. > :04:39.at the corner. Or is it? It is one for the TMO. That is a potential
:04:40. > :04:52.knock-on there. The ball is lost forwards. We go back for the scrum.
:04:53. > :05:02.Duncan Williams comes blindside. A good tackle.
:05:03. > :05:18.Duncan Casey found a scarlet boot coming through. It is a yellow for
:05:19. > :05:25.Josh Turnbull. Munster scramble away. Duncan Williams with a flick
:05:26. > :05:32.up. It could not get much closer than that. Munster trying to force
:05:33. > :05:51.their way over. This could be another one for Tim Hayes to have a
:05:52. > :05:58.look at. Penalty. Duncan Williams puts it in. Munster again looking
:05:59. > :06:13.for the drive. The Scarlets have come away with it. Rhodri Williams
:06:14. > :06:17.breaks out. The crowd reacts. Let us have a look. That does not look
:06:18. > :06:47.good. Duncan Williams away. Munster have
:06:48. > :07:03.not given up this chance. It is spelt forwards. It is back into
:07:04. > :07:11.midfield. It has gone forward and the Scarlets have done it. We are
:07:12. > :07:16.continuing to claim the table and we are still in the hunt. As long as we
:07:17. > :07:23.are still in it, we will keep working hard. The boys were
:07:24. > :07:27.fantastic. Very happy. Munster were going for a clean sweep over the
:07:28. > :07:35.Welsh regions home and away but they were denied by a determined Scarlets
:07:36. > :07:43.side? They great try. How they helped them out, I have no idea.
:07:44. > :07:49.Sometimes, you have to look at the decision-making. I thought the
:07:50. > :07:55.referee was poor and it did not help either side. The Scarlets were
:07:56. > :08:05.fortunate. So many chances went begging in the second half. But you
:08:06. > :08:14.impressed with the physicality quit Iraq -- physicality? They certainly
:08:15. > :08:21.brought a tough edge. They went forwards. Jonathan Davies went
:08:22. > :08:31.forwards for them. They looked good. It was a good scalp to beat Munster.
:08:32. > :08:40.Jonathan Davies played just over an hour. Has it done enough to get his
:08:41. > :08:47.Welsh shirt back? The defensive role he plays is important. We are
:08:48. > :08:56.talking about it being the most difficult position to defend on the
:08:57. > :09:04.field. When you have more numbers coming up hard and closing people
:09:05. > :09:13.down, he is top class at that. Liam Williams has been fantastic. I think
:09:14. > :09:33.he controls it. Either you go up and in all up and out. I think Jonathan
:09:34. > :10:01.Davies has put his hand up to get selected. I think England will have
:10:02. > :10:06.options. Let us move on to the big game. Jonathan Davies will find out
:10:07. > :10:25.if he is picked on Wednesday when the squad is announced.
:10:26. > :10:34.The pressure is well and truly on at Twickenham next Sunday for both
:10:35. > :10:38.teams. It is win or bust. The cabin chip is up for grabs. Both teams
:10:39. > :10:49.have everything to play for. -- championship. England were blown
:10:50. > :10:58.away last year at Cardiff. It was getting. But at the same time, you
:10:59. > :11:03.learn most from games like that. You take the learning out of it and you
:11:04. > :11:15.move on. We have moved on and got better because of it. I am not
:11:16. > :11:20.wanted by what happened. It was a day that Wales were outstanding and
:11:21. > :11:24.they played really well. They took their chances when they got them .
:11:25. > :11:38.It was a dream day for them and was a nightmare for us. It is still the
:11:39. > :11:54.game all Welsh fans went to win. Has the animosity settles after the
:11:55. > :12:08.British and Irish Lions talk? I have spoken to them a few times. It will
:12:09. > :12:20.be good to see them again. You have revealed that a couple of players at
:12:21. > :12:28.one Direction fans. The kickers would have the windows down and the
:12:29. > :12:33.music blaring. Any friendships have been set aside as both sides set
:12:34. > :12:38.their course for championship glory. Wales stuttered in their opener
:12:39. > :12:49.against Italy and fell to pieces a week later against Ireland. The game
:12:50. > :12:53.is done. A fortnight later, redemption arrived. France travel to
:12:54. > :13:03.be Millennium Stadium and were destroyed by a Welsh side with a big
:13:04. > :13:11.point to prove. Jamie Roberts, straight through. He is going to
:13:12. > :13:17.score. It has been a huge recovery for Wales. I felt the pressure going
:13:18. > :13:22.into the game. A lot of the players felt the same . That brings the best
:13:23. > :13:25.out of a lot of players. The journey for England has been more
:13:26. > :13:32.consistent. They appeared to be heading for victory in Paris. But
:13:33. > :13:41.they were undone at the death by some classic French flair.
:13:42. > :13:51.They did not panic. A pensive drubbing of Scotland followed before
:13:52. > :14:00.heroic rearguard action V E over a strong Ireland. We react to things
:14:01. > :14:10.like that and do not dwell on it. You have to take your chances
:14:11. > :14:14.against a team like Ireland. The resolve shown in the victory over
:14:15. > :14:19.Ireland, you must have taken something from taking them out --
:14:20. > :14:30.keeping them out in the last ten minutes? It is great, it drove us
:14:31. > :14:35.through to get the win. With all four title contenders winning their
:14:36. > :14:41.home games so far, it could be a factor. Add a member the sound
:14:42. > :14:53.surrounding the whole stadium. I could hardly hear. I have never
:14:54. > :14:57.heard the Twickenham crowd as loud as they were. It was definitely a
:14:58. > :15:02.factor in getting back against Ireland and getting the win.
:15:03. > :15:12.Sometimes, a little reverse psychology can work. It is a great
:15:13. > :15:13.feeling to play away from home and the home crowd are pretty silent.
:15:14. > :15:28.You know you are playing well. A lot of your colleagues have been
:15:29. > :15:33.diplomatic, saying it is like any other game. You don't believe that,
:15:34. > :15:39.do you? Do you want me to say something outrageous? ! All we can
:15:40. > :15:44.control is ourselves. Wales have got some big, experienced players and
:15:45. > :15:48.they know how to win the games, so we will have to play very well for
:15:49. > :15:56.the full 80 minutes to beat them. Out for revenge? I wouldn't say
:15:57. > :16:04.revenge, but we are looking to the next game and we want to be better
:16:05. > :16:06.than we were against Ireland. England have performed well under
:16:07. > :16:12.Stuart Lancaster. They have taken the scalps of New Zealand,
:16:13. > :16:24.Australia, France and Ireland. But one significant scalp remains...
:16:25. > :16:28.Not only have Lancaster's England never beaten Wales, they have never
:16:29. > :16:33.scored a try against them either. I know you have been studying this
:16:34. > :16:36.campaign. We mentioned their consistency so far in this
:16:37. > :16:41.tournament. What have you found out? Are there any areas Wales can
:16:42. > :16:45.exploit? If you look at the attacking patterns, the same old
:16:46. > :16:51.England, in many ways. A lot of the attacks start with a drive, they
:16:52. > :17:01.like to drive, to suck in defenders. Care they're carrying. Positive
:17:02. > :17:05.play. They split the field, forward runners either side. Playing off
:17:06. > :17:13.ten, this time it is early Twelvetrees. Again, just two players
:17:14. > :17:20.to win the ruck. Options either side, they can play off Twelvetrees,
:17:21. > :17:25.Farrell. But we are looking at is the weaknesses. One man in the ruck,
:17:26. > :17:35.we are looking at a wind and a fallback winning rucks. The ball
:17:36. > :17:41.comes out eventually and we see here again playing off ten, this time
:17:42. > :17:49.Farrell using Courtney laws. This is a common theme, options both sides a
:17:50. > :17:53.game for Danny care. Twelvetrees popping up, only one player
:17:54. > :17:57.supporting the ball and the turnover eventually came for Ireland. It
:17:58. > :18:03.shows the way the attack. This from a drive, from a restart. They are
:18:04. > :18:12.not played -- not afraid to play drives. Here we see positive play,
:18:13. > :18:15.they want to off-load, poor body position from Wilson, who is
:18:16. > :18:25.tackled, another Irish turnover. This one, Best, they want to play
:18:26. > :18:29.positive, a lot of attackers on their feet and another penalty for
:18:30. > :18:32.Ireland. It could be a good day for the likes of Lydiate and wore button
:18:33. > :18:42.if they carried their form from the last much into that. -- and
:18:43. > :18:47.Warburton. And Warburton was back to his best against France? We saw how
:18:48. > :18:53.many tackles he made, if you get Lake tackles, effective ones, with
:18:54. > :18:56.Sam going over the ball, and the others, Toby Faletau is becoming
:18:57. > :19:00.good at this as well. Those turnovers could beat the difference
:19:01. > :19:04.in the game and I can see Wales creating a few turnovers and
:19:05. > :19:07.exploiting them. We know that games are won and lost upfront, but if
:19:08. > :19:14.England get parity and plenty of possession they have got some
:19:15. > :19:19.dangerous runners right now. Danny Care and Mike Brown have been key
:19:20. > :19:28.for them. This guy has been on fire. Deceptively strong, left footed. He
:19:29. > :19:31.has just got great balance and he is confident, he has waited a long time
:19:32. > :19:35.for his opportunity but he is confident, it is a very, very good
:19:36. > :19:41.finish. Our kicking game can't be loose. This is a guy that just
:19:42. > :19:49.controls the tempo of the game. Taps and goes, taps and goes. Just watch,
:19:50. > :19:56.this is a Harlequin strike. Good support by Brown. The hand goes up,
:19:57. > :20:06.quality play by Brown. A very, very good finish. I was at Twickenham, a
:20:07. > :20:09.great place to play, and even better placed to win, but it is a fast
:20:10. > :20:28.track and it will be a very fast game. They have got a lot of
:20:29. > :20:29.ball-carriers. They have got believe I'm a pilot out. That could be
:20:30. > :20:39.significant. If we can play with the intensity we
:20:40. > :20:45.did against France and the defensive structure, I'm not sure, on the back
:20:46. > :20:51.of lusty, what they have the confidence. At the defensive line is
:20:52. > :20:59.crucial for us. The breakdown will be significant. On form, we have to
:21:00. > :21:07.look at England. Kind against Ireland, they got the confidence
:21:08. > :21:13.back -- kind against Ireland. How they lost to France, they will be
:21:14. > :21:19.kicking themselves. They go in as slight favourites coolly because of
:21:20. > :21:24.their consistency, and then the home advantage as well. But if Wales play
:21:25. > :21:29.as they did against Ireland, they won't win. They like they did
:21:30. > :21:35.against France, I would expect them to win. I think they will win as
:21:36. > :21:41.well. We always used to kick to Brown's left, he struggles to kick
:21:42. > :21:46.off his right foot. He is dangerous when he runs. Those breakdowns in
:21:47. > :21:50.the wide channels, the likes of Cuthbert, North, Jonathan Davies,
:21:51. > :21:54.those are the guys who need to contest and they have got the power
:21:55. > :21:57.to do that. Actively PRO12 and the Blues were in
:21:58. > :22:05.action facing bottom of the table Zebre.
:22:06. > :22:09.Revenge was on the Blues group of mind but to claim it they had to do
:22:10. > :22:19.something they have failed to do so far in the league this season, win
:22:20. > :22:27.away from home. Zebre's team contained five players on loan.
:22:28. > :22:41.Leonard completes what he thinks is a try. Did it go forward from
:22:42. > :22:52.Filippo Ferrarini? Knock-on. No, it is trite. -- it is a try. And a try
:22:53. > :22:57.is awarded to the scrum-half. The Blues can consider themselves a
:22:58. > :23:05.little bit unlucky. He does well with the reverse pass to get himself
:23:06. > :23:24.out. Leonard opting for the blind-side this time. Luigi Ferraro
:23:25. > :23:33.on the outside. A second for Zebre. Can the Blues get something before
:23:34. > :23:47.half-time? Lewis Jones to Gareth Davies. Lovely outside break by Tom
:23:48. > :23:59.Williams. Just forced out. Lewis Jones... Tom Williams on the
:24:00. > :24:07.perpendicular, great angle from the fallback and a deserved score for
:24:08. > :24:11.Williams. Blues needed to attack from deep. Five minutes ago. Dan
:24:12. > :24:20.Fish on the outside, get around his man. Very intelligent cross kick.
:24:21. > :24:24.Will it land for Ellis Jenkins? The vagaries of the bounce take it away
:24:25. > :24:35.from Jenkins but it could still be on for the Blues. Copeland at the
:24:36. > :24:41.back. The referee saying to use it. It forced upon Davis. He is over the
:24:42. > :24:52.line. Obstruction, says the referee, and it won't count.
:24:53. > :25:01.Lewis Jones, caught at the base but does well to make it available. Fish
:25:02. > :25:06.has got space on the left-hand side. There is the equalising try for the
:25:07. > :25:18.Blues! But the referee going to the TMO. I'm not sure what he is looking
:25:19. > :25:24.for. No try, obstruction. No try. Obstruction, and the Blues have
:25:25. > :25:29.conceded the double to Zebre. A dreadful result for the Blues, but
:25:30. > :25:33.it was mired in controversy after that tribe was denied by the TMO.
:25:34. > :25:37.Dale McIntosh said he had no idea what he called that decision.
:25:38. > :25:43.Bizarre. Give us your thoughts, try or no cry? For me, it is a try. I
:25:44. > :25:49.watched it without volume last night and I thought it was given for a
:25:50. > :25:53.forward pass. I can freeze-frame any minute of all in play and show you
:25:54. > :25:58.clips where players are close to other players, bumping other
:25:59. > :26:03.players, and it's fine. That, to me, is an offside position but he does
:26:04. > :26:10.not interfere with the play. Ellis Jenkins is being penalised for
:26:11. > :26:14.obstructing... For obstructing the defender. Once the TMO is brought
:26:15. > :26:18.in, if you watch things in slow motion, back and forth, it is matter
:26:19. > :26:24.of fact, but the referee has got to be able to feel that. It is the
:26:25. > :26:34.worst decision I have seen by a TMO. Just watch, what is the TMO looking
:26:35. > :26:39.at? You can judge on a try scoring decision, on a tackle. Look at the
:26:40. > :26:43.players, that is the one allegedly blocked. He does not even put his
:26:44. > :26:46.hand up, you doesn't think he is being blocked. The assistant referee
:26:47. > :26:54.is an Italian comedy TMO an Italian... I don't have to say any
:26:55. > :26:58.more. That is the worst decision I have ever seen on a rugby pitch. It
:26:59. > :27:03.is a dreadful decision and if it comes down to putting new assistant
:27:04. > :27:08.referees, because of that decision, they have to look at it. If I was a
:27:09. > :27:13.player there, losing a game on that, I would be utterly distraught
:27:14. > :27:19.and have to have a word with the TMO and referee. But, the bullet is that
:27:20. > :27:24.the Blues should not have been in a losing position against the bottom
:27:25. > :27:32.side. I don't know if that is right, at the moment. They are not sure of
:27:33. > :27:37.their finances, there are a lot of players not knowing whether our next
:27:38. > :27:42.year, and also then, are they going to put more money in? Is there more
:27:43. > :27:49.money coming in? Unless someone puts more money in, if anyone thinks the
:27:50. > :27:55.Welsh regions are going to win the PRO12 all the European cup, they are
:27:56. > :28:00.deluded. That is the situation. The national team is doing very, very
:28:01. > :28:06.well. Regional rugby is at that position at the moment. Dragons, if
:28:07. > :28:18.they went to Zebre, you would be worried. They lost to Edinburgh last
:28:19. > :28:22.week. The four regions should be looking at top four with finances
:28:23. > :28:25.but unfortunately it is not happening and the longer it goes on,
:28:26. > :28:29.the worse it is for the region. I don't care who it is, they have got
:28:30. > :28:33.to sort it out. That is the situation the region is at. We can't
:28:34. > :28:38.buy overseas players, the youngsters coming through are not good enough
:28:39. > :28:43.yet to play in the PRO12 and we cannot have overseas players...
:28:44. > :28:46.Looking at the Blues specifically, a miserable season, four wins in the
:28:47. > :28:50.PRO12 and conceding more than any other points than any other team.
:28:51. > :29:00.There is a meeting tomorrow to review Phil Davies' position. A
:29:01. > :29:05.couple of runs of defeats over the years, do take responsibility and
:29:06. > :29:08.you get a situation like that, but ultimately there are a lot of things
:29:09. > :29:12.going on. There has been a lot of change. Two years ago, three years
:29:13. > :29:19.ago, a lot of top players left the Blues, let's not forget that. Phil
:29:20. > :29:24.came in and try to put things right. It has not gone as anyone there
:29:25. > :29:28.would have wanted it, I'm sure, but Phil is a director of rugby with two
:29:29. > :29:38.young coaches route at Premiership level, particularly Paul John, but
:29:39. > :29:43.that was, what, five, six weeks ago? That has to be given time.
:29:44. > :29:47.Sometimes people change things for the sake of it. Hopefully this group
:29:48. > :29:52.will be given a chance to show what they can do as a group. We will have
:29:53. > :29:56.to leave it there, thanks for your thoughts. Let's check out the rest
:29:57. > :30:00.of the PRO12 fixtures now. Edinburgh faced the Ospreys, we will have
:30:01. > :30:11.highlights of that in a moment, but first it is all stuff against the
:30:12. > :30:21.Dragons. -- it is also. Bruce Douglas made his first start since
:30:22. > :30:43.signing. Tommy Bowe it is written after injury. -- made his return
:30:44. > :30:52.after injury. Lovely stuff. Roni piano goes all the way. -- Pienaar
:30:53. > :31:07.goes all the way. That was not straight. Tommy Bowe gets away. What
:31:08. > :31:23.a return for Tommy Bowe excavation Mark -- for Tommy Bowe! . Pienaar
:31:24. > :31:28.again. Here comes Tommy Bowe. Can you believe it? Sensational stuff
:31:29. > :31:40.from Tommy Bowe. Here comes the secondary shirt. The
:31:41. > :31:47.Dragons are trying to bring it around. Penalty yet again the and a
:31:48. > :31:57.nap. That is three in a row. Somebody could be going to the sin
:31:58. > :32:09.bin. Evans has gone to the bin for deliberately standing up. It is a
:32:10. > :32:16.penalty try. It collapsed straightaway.
:32:17. > :32:32.Pienaar had to readjust. Scholes is through. Has he made it? It is
:32:33. > :32:43.short. The Dragons are there. Sean Doyle gets his second try. Taken
:32:44. > :32:57.quickly. Good defence once again. Lovely hands on the giant prop.
:32:58. > :33:06.Peter Ferguson says it is good. They are now only 30 point adrift.
:33:07. > :33:15.Wales squad members Dan Biggar and Justin Tipuric started for the
:33:16. > :33:18.Ospreys against Edinburgh. The match was moved from Murrayfield because
:33:19. > :33:36.of the worm infestation there. Lovely play by Justin Tipuric. Still
:33:37. > :33:45.going and still moving. An excellent drive from Edinburgh. They moved the
:33:46. > :34:07.point of attack. That was one for the forwards. Dan Biggar. Trying to
:34:08. > :34:21.put the ball behind the winner. Sam Beard goes over in the corner.
:34:22. > :34:31.Brendon Leonard does not try to force it. In the end, it is as easy
:34:32. > :34:43.as that for Grayson Hart to get a second. The replacement trying to
:34:44. > :34:48.get an impact on the game. The kick goes through. They go down together.
:34:49. > :35:04.It will be one for the TMO to sort out. A try is given. Jeff Hassler.
:35:05. > :35:10.Not a happy dressing room and not a happy group. It is disappointing.
:35:11. > :35:16.You cannot concede sloppy tries when you are away from home. We had to
:35:17. > :35:23.chase the season more now. We will rely on others. It was
:35:24. > :35:28.disappointing. We have to regroup and we will probably need to win the
:35:29. > :35:32.next five or six games to get a top four finish. The other results of
:35:33. > :36:01.the weekend: a great night at the office for your
:36:02. > :36:07.boys on Friday. We were outclassed. To travel to Northern Ireland and
:36:08. > :36:15.play a side of that quality, they were too strong at front. We have
:36:16. > :36:20.Duncan Bell and Bruce Douglas coming out of retirement more or less. That
:36:21. > :36:27.is not an excuse, it is a fact. We have to be realistic as to where we
:36:28. > :36:35.are. -so pleased the Scarlets beat Munster last night. Without our
:36:36. > :36:41.front line players, it is a big ask to go and compete. We played
:36:42. > :36:55.Leinster a couple of weeks before. 17,000 fans turned up. The Cardiff
:36:56. > :37:03.Blues had the same thing. When the players are away, it is exaggerated
:37:04. > :37:09.even more. The girls in between the Welsh regions and they are the
:37:10. > :37:17.regions that is. It is something very depressing. That is a lot to do
:37:18. > :37:24.in recruitment. Somebody has to sort it out. It is just pathetic. Let us
:37:25. > :37:31.finish on a positive. Everyone tries to be dramatic and say it is another
:37:32. > :37:42.game. Twickenham is a great place to go and play. You walk through the
:37:43. > :37:45.car park now. You can see the cars and picnic baskets and champagne.
:37:46. > :37:53.You do not need motivation. It is on. The England game is just seven
:37:54. > :37:55.days away. The players are trying to play it down but we are not. Good
:37:56. > :37:58.night.