27/10/2013 Scrum V Sunday

There were thrills and spills clot over the weekend. Robin Copeland

reveals how despite being man of the match last week, he still has not

had an invitation to join Sam Warburton's men. With the autumn

internationals on the horizon, we delve deep into Warren Gatland's

coaching philosophy. Good evening and welcome to Scrum V. We're here

to assess all the weekend's bed-macro action. We will kick

things off with the Welsh derby at the Liberty Stadium. - - we are here

to assess the Pro12 action. Andrew Coombs returns.

Andrew Coombs. That worked out nicely. He has got the early score.

He is aimed, he leaving. Matthew Morgan.

It is comfortable defending at the moment for the ospreys.

A drop goal attempt by Matthew Morgan.

That was a great off-loads to Justin Tipuric. Brilliant. Justin Tipuric.

That was lovely there. It was a great try. Determined from the

dragons. He is very difficult to bring down.

Lazy defending will see a yellow card.

Just watch his head. He's going straight down. Sympathetic applause

around the Liberty Stadium. Dragons are a man short and a

penalty now. James King supplied the ball. Scott

Baldwin there. Called when sneaked in. - - bald when sneaked in.

It fell into the hands of Francisco Chaparro.

It was frustrating. We will not give up. It was a step back. We have got

to keep driving towards the Munster game. We have a good record at home

this season. It is a disappointment for us. It is not OK to lose away

from home. It is a disappointment. We want to keep the home record

intact. A convincing win there. The gloomy few weeks in Europe. To what

extent will perform and have lifted them? It wasn't a great team

performance, if we're honest. Magic individuals who put looking at their

season, how do you assess overall? If we go back a few more seasons,

they are up our team. They see the strength in their forwards, and why

not? For the ospreys, they cannot find a coherent pattern of play

which succeeds at the highest level. They have got better players, no

disrespect. This Ospreys get to the line.

That was not a bad pass to Alun Wyn Jones, but they lost a couple of

yards. Then they did the same again, and the same again. They have lost

about five yards from the game they initially had. - - the gain. That is

the way they play. It is good enough to beat dragons at home.

With that amount of talent in 19, it is not acceptable. They need to open

their game up. Richard Hibbard made lots of runs in that game. His most

effective contribution was passing the ball.

Look what happens. It is amazing. You create space. He is a constant

threat. Get him out why. The same with Ashley Beck. Get them into wide

positions and they can create things. Eli Walker, good example.

Only one time in the game where they were so dominant. Watch the All

Blacks play. They do it. The Ospreys have to do the same thing. Get the

ball into wide positions. Use open space. Thank you. They are second in

the league after that, so it was an impressive win. Toby Faletau, an

injury on Friday night. We have had a message he has got the all clear.

He is one of the most important players in that squad. How much of a

relief is it that he is fit? It is always a relief when any player has

a neck injury and they recover. I think we said at the start of the

year, we must be realistic about the dragons ambitions. We saw them get

pretty much destroyed upfront. You have to have a platform to play off.

Thanks. We have come off two weeks of Heineken Cup rugby. The

tournament may not exist as it stands next season. Talks have

continued on progress of sorts have - - talks have continued and

progress of sorts has been made. The breakaway tournament formed by

English and French clubs. They were asking the WRU to help them get into

the tournament. They say they are confident of a positive outcome.

With no firm offers... On Thursday, the breakthrough of sorts. The plc,

the body that runs a Heineken Cup, exceeded some of the demands made 18

months ago, mainly that qualification for the tournament

should be fairer. But there were no representatives from the English and

French clubs at the summit in Dublin. Now whether any from the

Welsh regions, who nailed their colours to the mast earlier in the

week. Who will run any future European competition? The unions are

the clubs? And who will broadcast it?

To quit questions there. More meetings, more statements. How have

you interpreted events? It appears that the plc have accepted

conditions - - the plc. Who will control it, massive sticking point.

The other issue, I can't remember what it is? Television. That is

another sticking point. They say they will address governance. I saw

a statement from one of the club owners. I don't think there was any

doubt they would be a European cup competition next year. Fingers

crossed. We spoke to Warren Gatland this week, mainly about his coaching

philosophy and what next for Wales. We asked about ongoing European row

and how it might affect the fortunes for the national side.

The uncertainty is always difficult for players. I don't think the farm

for a few players has been as good as it could be. - - the form. They

are looking at big offers from French or English clubs. The agents

are probably pushing. I think it is had an effect on their performance

on the field. We need to get things sorted. It is an interesting point.

Players are bound to be affected by this. It is their livelihood. Can

uncertainty off the pitch affect your play on it? A psychologist

might say so. I think players are in the here and now. The WRAP - - The

WRU said they will read contracts some players. They will be using

money that would have gone to the regions anyway. Is this a back door

way to get central contracts off the ground? If I was able to be player

and offered a short-term, temporary contract, as opposed to a three-year

deal in France with this much money, you would have to take it. I cannot

see how short-term contracts will be appealing to these players. I don't

see how short-term contracts will fill a gap for them. Presumably, it

will target the players who want to stay here anywhere - - anyway. If

there is a doubt about whether there will be a European competition next

year, temporary contracts will not help. Warren Gatland is one of the

hottest properties in world rugby at the moment. He is back in charge of

Wales. It is my honour and pleasure to officially announce the new

national coach of Wales is Warren Gatland. 20 years of hurt are over.

Warren Gatland. Wales keep on winning under Warren Gatland. Coach

Warren Gatland is a red-hot favourite to coach the British and

Irish Lions. There are calls for him to be knighted. He has won Grand

Slams, European trophies and premiership titles. Success fuels

his desire for more. I think the next step is to compete against the

best, we need to keep winning. We have talked about being good enough

to win, but do they believe it? I am not sure. We expect to go to New

Zealand and to the next level. For every Welsh fun watching Scrum V,

Wales can when the World Cup? Yes, I think so. I am really excited about

the next two years. His stock has risen so much, his style has been

given an identity all of its own. I want to talk about this style of

play that has been associated with you. Is it a badge of honour that

you have this named after you? It suggests it is a bit 1-dimensional.

What is a warrant ball? Chuck it up, get over the gain line, smash. It

was not a bad game plan, is it? Expression Mark - -! The first part

of any set piece is to get across the line. The instructions to

players are to play what is in front of you. We are trying to... Rugby is

as much about mental preparation as physical. Man management is a big

part of his philosophy. Being a father figure. You have two

sometimes lose your cool, but it is only effective they few times a

season. If players are happy that their wives and girlfriends are

happy, that is better. It is not just a one-man operation. He has his

generals, and they are a strong willed as he is. We will have a

debate and discuss things. Sometimes, it is heated. We are

pretty lucky to do. We have skills in size and speed. It is an exciting

time to be involved in Welsh rugby. Interesting stuff. Warren talks

about his man management. We understand Mike Phillips has been

sacked. It was to do with this incident where he allegedly turned

up drunk to a video analysis. Do you think he is a scapegoat? To other

people were involved to have not been sacked. The argument is that he

is a scapegoat because he is one of the big figures of the club, but he

has got previous and we all know that. He is walking a tightrope. I

like Mike. He's a typical work hard, play hard work be guy who enjoys

life to the hilt. He does have responsible it is and he has let

himself down badly. A lot of people are in the same position. He was

warned repeatedly. He may end up with a central contract. You never

know. Gareth, as someone who has played in France, there is the lower

level of tolerance perhaps for these kind of incidents? They are

different in the way they celebrate after matches. The foreigners tend

to stick together. We don't know why Mike has been singled out. It is

very unfortunate for him. He loved being in the international

environment. We hope you can use as motivation.

Someone else I want to talk to you about. Warren Gatland has spoken

about quotas for Lions squads. You don't meet me to remind you about

the controversy. -- you don't need me. Maybe the debate needs to be had

that this -- there should be a character on players. You couldn't

do that, could you? It is a shrewd move to bring it up. Immediately,

when you say it, it sounds absurd. Once the conclusions arrived at, you

say, we would never do it. You would never drop somebody because you have

to pick a Scot or a Welshman. He has been shrewd in doing that. The one

thing that Lions say is that once you arrive, you are not Welsh

Scottish, you are I in. Why do you need a quota? -- Welsh or Scottish,

you are in. We are Welsh, we are British, and for that talk we all

British. Back to the action. The scholars were hoping to take the

European form on the road in the pro 12. -- the Scarlets.

He partnered Gareth Davies, scrum-half who got the call ahead of

Rhodri Williams. Zebra, boosted by the recent win over the blues, were

hoping to take another scalp. The Kiwi scrum-half was caught by

Gareth Davies. Nice and quick. Crossing the game line almost at

will. Inside ball to Garcia. He is into the 22. All the way he goes.

Garcia, for the first time for zebra. The barn door was open.

He found his opposite number, who makes ground over halfway. Davis

inside, and nobody is home. Davis goes all the way through the posts.

A perfect riposte by the Scarlets. There is a sidestep that could have

outfoxed MI5. Scarlets might have settled for a draw here. Williams

ordering his troops. Charge down from Williams. Picked up by Rob

Evans, and a penalty to Zebra. Williams, yes, it came off him and

technically he is offside. He was lucky because it must have been

instinctive on his part. Off the post. Zebra have the lead

with a couple of minutes left. Now it is just a case of running down

the clock for the Italians. Seconds away from another famous scalp. They

have already taken the Blues. Can they take the Scarlets? A penalty to

the Scarlets. Is this a dramatic finale? You can feel the tension on

those spectators. He is Priestland. Yes, -- here is Priestland. Out of

jail for the Scarlets. We already saw them beat Cardiff

this season. Are they a significantly better side? I would

expect -- still expect to go there and win. The bigger point in this

now is, should any form of Heineken competition take place next year,

qualification is no longer on being above the Dragons for any of the

regions, but being in the top six. They have got to change the

goalposts and get the top six. Every game, they have got to get

something. Scholars have lost some points with a full strength team. --

Scarlets. The argument is over whether to keep the competition

European in flavour. Given that the Italians were in danger of being

cast adrift in a New World order, how timely is it that they are now

competing and winning matches? He is right in terms of what the

qualification process will be. Zebre might have an effect. If they keep

taking points off of people, they will be part of the decision. What

we want to see is 12 good teams. That is what we want to see Zebre

doing. They are not ready to compete for a European spot yet. A fixture

that injured for more than 130 years was consigned to the history books

last season after the matches had become increasingly one-sided. The

age-old annual tie between... The rivalry remains. As a fixer between

two schools, it is not only one of the oldest in Wales, it is one of

the oldest in the world. It has in June world wars, depressions, even

foot and mouth disease, and it has seen them. -- two world wars. Now it

is in the archives. However, the former pupils of these great

academic situations will not allow this it -- institution to go quietly

into the night. Do the basics right and win the

game. The mat has been played since 1879, and now it has stopped. What

has happened? The fixture is in abeyance, hopefully only for the

short-term. When it is safe and possible, we will go ahead with it

again. But traditions do evolve. You say a safe fixture. What had

been happening? The results speak for themselves. There was concern at

the Brecon end that the size of our boys was disproportionate. I think

that was a fair and reasonable stance to take.

How bad had they got? We came here nine years ago and Llandovery

were... It was aimed complete mismatch. Brecon got to the point

where they would celebrate if they scored or if they played well in a

half. It was a complete mismatch. It was the sort of game you don't like

to watch your kids taking part in. But that is rugby.

As a contest, maybe it was losing meaning. A game could have been

played. It is a shame that a game is being played. We could have done

more to even up the sides. It is a shame to lose it. Will we get the

fixture back in future? I have said all along that we will do whatever

is necessary. I don't think you should squander 100 and years of

tradition. -- 100 and years of tradition.

I don't think it's appropriate to ask a school to put out a team that

is not their best team. That is not what sport is all about. The big

issue is one of safety. Providing we have quality referees and

professional line judges to ensure the safety of the game, that is half

the battle. If it was about parity of fixtures, Wales would have

dropped fixes with New Zealand about 50 years ago! Losing is part of

life. I was born in Scotland so I'm used to that. And so as one grand

old vision is put on hold temporarily, so another one has

begun. Well done, boys. Moving on to the premiership and a

full round-up of all the weekend's action, here is Kat Peters.

Bridgend was a lot closer. Although they lead their visitors 13-5 after

40 minutes, the second half was a much closer affair.

The evening kick-off last night was at a wet and miserable Park. Three

tries were all converted by Josh Lewis.

Today, Cardiff came from 13-0 down at half-time to beat their

visitors, Swansea, 4318, leaving the table looking ideas. Carmarthen are

sitting pretty on the top. 43-8 -- 43-18. The match between Neath and

Pontypridd was postponed following the devastating news that

Pontypridd's long serving prop, Stuart Williams, died earlier this

week. He was 33. Our deepest condolences to the

family of Stuart Williams from everybody here. After the blues'

heroics against Toulon, their fans are more touristic about what lies

ahead in the future. One man who embodies that optimism more than

anybody else is Robin Copland. We caught up with him just before the

Blues took a trip to Ravenhill. You have done it! Somebody like

yourself, who has come to the Cardiff blues from Wexford through

Rover, you pay to have embraced the ethos of the club. If you don't

appreciate the club you are playing for, you're not going to perform to

the best of your ability. You're not go to have the pride and attitude.

The question most fans are asking is, how can a team go from being

beating -- beaten to beating the European champions within a week? It

was a mental change in attitude and the relevant Asian that those

performances are not good enough. The whole week, we were registered

up and show what we could do. Talk me through that awful, nerve

jangling few minutes when Toulon launched everything at you. It was

energy sapping. It was a journalist pumping. The final whistle went. --

adrenaline pumping. I let out a roar at the final whistle. I was so

tired, I had nothing left. Everybody was on the pitch celebrating. It was

really special. Your displays of late have led some to talk about

your international ambitions. Do you have a preference? I'm Irish, Irish

born and Irish bread. My ambition was to put a green jersey on. It is

a long way down the line to begin considering stuff like that, but I'm

a while away from putting on a green jersey as well categories. Is it

fair to say you are an extrovert? I to show my feelings. I'm a bit of a

mess, I always have been. I usually fall the prodigal jokes. Anything

clean you can tell us about on camera? No! I hear there is a band

being formed at Cardiff. I do involve? No, and I don't know why.

I'm really talented. I don't know why I'm not involved. I've had

words. Another of my sources have said you can do a mean limit our

impression? Where are you getting these facts! I will deny that to the

ground. -- Lewis Armstrong. We have got you a selection of birthday

cakes. Happy birthday. Sir Robin Copland made his second

consecutive start for the Blues in a side that showed two changes from

the side that beat Toulon. Ulster, top of their pool in Europe, were

hoping to extend their sold-out winning streak.

He gets it away. For the corner. A wonderful try by the second row.

Second try. Good Ulster defence. That is going to be a try. Good

support by Callum Black. Ruan Pienaar. Jared Payne. Jackson.

Stuart Olding got away. He could not quite get there. Yes, he could. Good

defence by Ulster. Wilson. Good support. Jackson.

Nicely done. Tommy Bowe. Here is Tommy Bowe again. Jared

Payne. What a finish by Dan Tuohy. They came back at us. We let them

into the game with a few silly errors.

Here rather weak and's other results.

- - here are the weekend's other results.

Phil Davies called on his charges. That was was good to be a tall

order. It was. Ulster played a very good game. I the blues played hard.

They were outclassed in the end. It is very different to losing at

home. There is no shame in losing to Ulster. It seems like a turning

point for the Cardiff Blues. What you make of Robin Copeland? He is

dynamic, he is quick, he has good feet. He does impact the game when

he gets the ball in his hands. Phil Davies has taken a while to come

from the same direction, but I think he is a very fine player. Rank you.

We have to leave it there now. Scrum V extra time follows immediately

after this online. Make sure you tune in for that on the website. We

so Robin Copeland there. He is a bit of a character. That was evident

during his interview. We tried to persuade him to audition for this

blues band, which I believe Sam Warburton is leading. Bit of

persuasion, he did eventually oblige. Good night from others.

HE SINGS LIKE LOUS ARMSTRONG. # We had all the time in the world. # if

that doesn't get me in the band, I do not know what will. # We have all

the time in the