Episode 6 Scrum V

Controversy reigned on Friday night as the Scarlets and the Dragons

We will and Take That and bring you the rest of the weekend's action.

We catch up with the Scarlets's Flyer poor sop number-crunching for

Scott -- try scoring. I'm and Auditor so I could not help some of

them with their accounts. We head into the valleys for a try first.

thought you were bigger than that. I get that a lot. Good evening and

welcome. Martyn Williams and Jonathan Davies joined me in the

studio to analyse the weekend's Two of the League's deadliest

finishers, George North and Andy Fenby were hoping to add to their

third win in three. Almost a third The defence are desperate to get

back for the Dragons. Scott Williams dropped it. The advantage

was given up and the Scarlets had to settle for a penalty. The

Scarlets coming close to five in the end. Not even getting three.

They have kept their wits about them. That could be a try. Gareth

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 75 seconds

Maule thought he got the try. It is have got there. He could have got

one. It would be an important one for the Dragons. Good control. He

gathers the ball and drops it into his body. He slides over the line

Apology for the loss of subtitles for 75 seconds

feeling safe. Now, they will be outside. It is a kick and drive now

try for Morgan Stoddart. What did return to rugby! Morgan Stoddart

a prop forward tonight? It was really good for me. That is the

kind of whether I like playing in. A tough game last week. We needed

this performance. The Dragons were not helped by the decision to award

the tried to Gareth Maule. You have had time to consider it. What are

your thoughts? That was a huge momentum swing in the game. It was

tough with all those conditions. disappointed Darren Edwards. A

major talking point remains the controversial try and the penalty

The referees say they are happy with the decision. This is a

slightly wider angle on the night. The it shows it grazed and landed

between the dead ball line and the try-line. It suggests it did go

through the post. There appears to be confusion on the face of the

linesman and the Dragon players. was quite bizarre. I think Gareth

Simmonds was the only person watching TV who thought it had

missed. Great play by Gareth Maule. He reacted well. He was rewarded

with a try. It was a baffling decision. Darren Edwards was

disappointed with the decision. It seems it was an injustice in some

ways. But Gareth maul was the only player Alec enough to follow the

ball. You will not follow the ball if you have seen it go through the

posts. All the protocol was done correctly and all the right

questions were asked. But the wrong answer was given. I agree with

Darren Edwards so that they did not affect the outcome that much but at

that time in the match, in horrible conditions, up seven points swing,

it is a big difference. I can understand the official got it

wrong and the answer was all wrong. It was unfortunate for the Dragons.

Samson Lee was the man of the match. Plaudits have been showered on him

or already. Given one get learned's prediction for picking youngsters,

would you be surprised to see him in the squad? Not at all. It was

his first start in the league. Tight-head props are fair and far

between. He was outstanding on Friday. He is still young. Let us

not put too much on him too early. We have to wait until he is up

against the big boys. Yes. Adam Jones has been one of the most

important players in Wales for the last decade. It is nice to see

someone coming through. Craig Mitchell is playing for Exeter.

That is a bit of insurance cover. Anyone with potential has to be

looked at. Another player who excelled has been out for 15 months

after injury. Morgan Stoddart. The Scarlets have an embarrassment of

riches. It was great to see him back. He probably would have gone

to the World Cup last year. It has been a pretty lonely place in rehab.

He come back and shows what he is all about. He said he was faster

than he has ever been. That is great. Basically, it is immaterial.

He needs game time and to build up confidence after getting his injury.

He needs to try to enjoy the game once again. If he is back to the

form he was at before he was injured, he was in contention for

Wales. We are not that strong in the fullback position. The result

leaves the Scarlets in second place. Ulster remained the pace setters in

the bleak. They had an impressive Luke Marshall was on hand to take

the final pass and score. Congratulations to Ulster. An

excellent start to the season for them. The Scarlets have attracted

praise for their back three players. They have been carving up defences.

Andy Fenby has given just a valuable contribution as the others

involved. We went to meet him earlier in the week and discovered

he is more than your average rugby You have been with the Scarlets for

a while now. You are an established name here. I would not be surprised

if some people did not know a great deal about you. Originally I was

born in North Wales. I went up St Asaph and the school there. I went

to university in Newcastle. I played three games for the Balkans.

The Scarlets offered me a contract and I decided it was better than

working full-time as an accountant. I then came back to Wales to play

rugby. The Scarlets is the biggest Regent geographically and covers

all of North Wales. You look at the squad and you have George North,

yourself and Rob McCusker. Is there a bit of a Northway alien

revolution going on? There is a lot of potential there. I think it is

much better if you could have something in the Welsh Premiership

as a natural stepping stone to pick players up. You are a qualified

chartered accountant. Idea imagine in a rugby environment and that

with the fact that he went to a public school, it may be case for a

fair bit of banter. Initially, when I came here. Everyone wanted tax

advice. I had to explain I was and Auditor which means I am not much

use in that respect. They then gave up and just started abusing me.

also gather you are a bit of an intellectual. We did you here that

this track Twitter. I have never been into reading. I had all this

spare time and thought what can I do with it. I started reading and I

have been working my way through the 100 best books of all time.

have been making headlines with your try-scoring exploits. I went

to keep playing on the pitch and scoring tries. I went to play at

the highest level possible. If I can do that with Wales, it would be

a dream. He mentioned the accountancy thing. I know you have

been out of the game for a little while. I assume you will go back to

it at some stage. I want to test your knowledge on accounting

phrases to see if you can help us out. Here is the first one.

Quantitative easing. That is basically the Bank of England

printing and making money out of thin air to them by at the

Government's bonce and inject more money into the economy. A just to

confirm your status as the most intelligent member of the Scarlets

squad, liquidity ratio. With that one, you are looking to see how

much liquid assets you have in the business. And how easy they are

accessible. Even though you have been out of the game for a few

years, he still have what it takes to be an accountant. It was good to

There are no flies on him. There are no worries about what he will

do when he finishes his rugby career. The Ospreys were on the

road this weekend where they faced of pattern to clear the line. They

had a warning to use it quickly fell stop it might be on for the

Ospreys. Just about squeeze doubt. -- squeezed out. Jonathan Thomas

clears the gain line very easily. He said such a lovely attacking

balls. First trial the game. -- first try of the game. The drift

not quite good enough. Richard Fussell squash the gap, nice and

easy. There was the street -- sweet slight hesitation. He gathers the

ball. Good counter wrecking by the Ospreys. Have they finished this

one? Yes, they have lost a three against one. A walkover for

Jonathan Thomas. So many Blackshirts to pick from. It is

Jonathan Thomas that gets the little gift. Good work by the

Italians. They would try to go down the short side. Good defence by the

Ospreys, they have held firm so far. It is not needed. The first try for

the home side and it is for the proper, lucre there will Feeny. --

Biggar should have the legs, I guess he does. What a turnaround

for the Ospreys. Three wins on the We were almost talking about a

crisis for the Ospreys. They have won at the last three. The first

two are three games, you can't say what side the game -- the team will

go. You expect them to win against Zebre. Their manner they are

playing as well, Dan Biggar is on fire. They have got one of the best

front fives around. You mention Dan Biggar, another great night for him.

24 points and man-of-the-match performance.

There is no coincidence considering the game time he has had. He is

scanning a bit more and looking what is in front of him. You have

got to play, that is the thing, you have got to play. You work out your

strengths and weaknesses. You have to take your hat off to him, he has

done that. He is picking off for was in front of them. He is running

the game, he knows when to run and when to kick. Before he turned his

a kick too much. I think he is enjoying himself now. They should

have won the first couple of games anyway but they were just a bit

rusty. You have got -- they have got a fair chance in Europe. Mark

add a has suggested in a statement that the WRU are short-changing the

regions to the tune of about �2 million. They have got record

profits and they hope it is not just an ego thing within the WRU to

say they are doing all these good things. If that is the case, well

done to them. At the lifeblood are at the grassroots like the schools.

If there is money there, surely the money should go to the regions and

then they can decide what to do with it and who to keep and who to

bring through. A another thing he mentioned, Martin, it will resonate

with the you is that the tribalism that has existed in Welsh rugby is

still too strong and the people need to embrace the regional

concept. You moved from Pontypridd to Cardiff. What is your take on

that? It is time for people to say, we're not going to go back to the

old system and to embrace the regions. It has been 10 years since

the regions were setter. It has worked for the national side, three

Grand Slams, but it has not come off for the regions in Europe. Once

one of those the regional sides win in Europe, it will snowball. The

clubs are still hugely important. They are still churning out a good

players. It is important the region's embrace the club some work

closely over the next couple of years with them. Everybody wants

successful regional sides. Premiership is vitally important.

You look at the quality of rugby they play, maybe the power and the

intensity is not there, but I grew up in the Llanelli affairs -- at

and I wanted to play for them. All the youngsters growing up want to

play for their towns. After achieving that they can play for

the regions. You can embrace your town and then the region. That

brings us on to the Premiership. This is that the date in the

Scarlets region yesterday. Llandovery to come Llanelli. --

half-time with Matthew Morgan pulling the strings and setting up

a Jamie Murphy who scored two tries. A hat-trick in 15 minutes brought

Newport into it in the second half. But it was not quite enough as

Bridgend earned a hard win victory. -- they had won victory. Cross Keys

have hung on with this touchdown side walk up and managed to steal a

victory. Aberavon must have thought they were home and dry as they led

by 10 points with 10 minutes left. But a try by Carmarthen Quins meant

the wizards are still waiting for their home win. No such willies for

Pontypridd. They let all the way again Swansea. -- no such worries.

Llandovery welcomed Llanelli. There were many spectators keeping an eye

on their scrum-half. Goods straight men in midfield. --

good straightening up in midfield. Williams makes the start. That is a

replacement number 8. Good power from him, he is still going. That

is the proper, Bo Wayne Evans. He is over for lunch every's second. -

first time. Here we go again. That is a risky pass. That could have

been intercepted. Llandovery are having all the luck this afternoon

Foster look at abounds. A bonus point try for Llandovery. Can

Llanelli finish with something? That is Kristian Phillips whose

cause for Llanelli but that is just This season, hopefully we can work

on the same things and do the right things well. So six games, six wins

a maximum bonus points for Llandovery who are sitting pretty.

Pontypridd are hot on their heels. Warm congratulations to everyone

here on the Click team. -- on the Let's return to the PRO12 and the

Blues were back at home for the second week running last night.

Leigh Halfpenny returns from injury to bolster the Blues to are hoping

to banish memories of last week's thrashing to Ulster. The Warriors

arrived at the Arms Park with confidence having won three in a

problems for the Blues in the scrum again this evening. The referee

will go all the way back. That is a funny one. But it will do. It is a

penalty has gone Glasgow's way. Peter Horne again. He has found the

measure. Four out of four for Peter Maughan. -- Peter Horn. A penalty

advantage for the Cardiff Blues. They come back for the penalty.

That will do nicely. Leigh Halfpenny has come back. The raids

of footwork by Allister Hogg. Brought down by Alistair -- by

Horne, that is an excellent kick and the Cardiff Blues did not

deserve that. Filise is still going towards the try-line. Leigh

Halfpenny, did he get the ball down? The ball into hands. Robinson

was outside 10. He thought he could do it himself. That is the hand

that knocks him -- it out of his A poor game all the way round.

Glasgow kicked their way to victory. Just a frustrating night. You have

got Europe coming up. Let's talk about these grown. It has been an

issue for you. You guys make a big issue out of it. Last year was the

same. We have got to keep on working at it. We have to keep on

working and they have been some games where we have performed well.

Today, for both packs, it was difficult with the referee's

calling system. They had more penalties in that a period then we

did. That is his interpretation. The scrum is an interior that

Cardiff Blues have been having trouble with all season. They did

well against Treviso. It was not a big issue. It depends on the

referee's interpretation. They have to look at their purchase. London

Welsh have done well, they have brought in if you eastern Europeans.

What he has inherited, he has to work with. You have to try to pick.

You and the Welsh Games to worry about. You need a big strong base.

It has never been a strong point in the last 10 years. The scrum has

never been the power of the Cardiff Blues. They have to rely on other

things. The need to be more accurate and more effective.

Perhaps the back play was not what it could be. We have a few examples

are panicking a little bit. But they should be a lot tighter. A

from this, they got turned over. There were was a big momentum

changes. They have done well here. It is another 10 or 15 metres pass

back. They look a mini Cardiff Blues players are in that right.

The opposition have committed hardly any. It is a case of giving

the ball and allowing them to do something. But they had so many

defenders in front. Nobody was coming at the ball at pace. It is

easy to point the finger at the scrum, but everybody needs to have

The referee was a rubbish as well. If you are a player, you have to

will earn your stripes to be there. Referees do not have to do that. We

have to make sure the referees are good enough. The players have to

take responsibility about decision- making. If you are struggling in

the scrum, maybe you should change it. Perhaps you could use the

Channel one ball under pressure. They did not look like scoring

tries. They were down in the game and they did not take kicks at goal.

There was one opportunity for a try which they should have taken and

Leigh Halfpenny should have scored it. That shows you are coming back

into the game. The Welsh players now, in the past they did not have

to be the main men in the Cardiff Blues. Now, Jamie Roberts has to

adapt his game. They used him as a dummy a runner with Dan Fish in the

middle. They have to bring more influence into the game. Whatever

Leigh Halfpenny des he does it exceptionally well. He takes the

high balls and cakes well. But if you are a fullback and I look back

at Ben Blair, he would chip into the line and utilise his speed. He

has to come in and use those. Gareth Baber has to use those

internationals and make statements from the field. We must move on. It

was a real clash of the giants in fighting a war one. Leinster

started brightly. Richardt Strauss was given the benefit of the doubt

as to whether or not he did get the ball down. There was an element of

suspicion about Munster's first try as well. No not gone according to

the referee from Casey Laulala. Ronan O'Gara's boat kept Munster

ahead. But Ulster crossed over for It is the table. Let us have a

quick review of that. Ulster are still top of the table. The Dragons

Rick has been on the road again for that he has been to the valleys. He

caught up with a former Wales back One of the great traditions in

rugby is when a player who comes to the end of his time, he put

something back into the game as a coach. That is even more special

with an ex Welsh international. Former Wales flanker Geraint Lewis

is in charge at Aberdare. They are in Division Three south-east. They

have come to a sub tropical port in Do you think any side can make an

impression in the Heineken Cup this year contract I hope so. The Lions

is around the corner as well. Scarlets next week or at away in

France. It will be difficult down there. They need to come away with

some sort of result. That would be a big bonus for them. Llanelli

seemed to be the powerhouse at the moment. The Ospreys made a shaky

start. The Cardiff Blues have moved to their old ground. They are 18 in

the making. Next week, they are playing sale. How will it go go

smack they should do well. But the price I've seen them on the

television, they look poor. They This has got an anonymous feel

about it. They have a tactical passive scrum. It is controversial

because it is cheating. I think the Scarlets can raise their game. If

they want to win the Heineken Cup, they have to. I reckon you'll be

the busiest man on the field today. Simple passes and no silly of Lords.

They played well in the first half. I was happy with that. I thought it

was a fair reflection. We just should not let them back into the

Heineken Cup next week, for the Welsh regions, do you think any of

them have a chance this year? can be as good as anybody. We have

good sides. I am sure they will He has made a difference. It has

taken us a few games to get into or his style but now they are doing

We will concentrate on what we do. The boys have played really well.

This caught some tries and a on -- all in all we are very pleased. It

is a difficult place to come He was fairly optimistic about the

Welsh regions chances in Europe. tend to think if you look up the

Scarlets and the Cardiff Blues, the problems are up front. We always

know the big packs win. The Ospreys, a big front five with a lot of

experience. Dan Biggar kick the goals. They have to make the most

of that. The Ospreys have a tough group but they are our best chance.

What is it about this. We have won three Grand Slams in eight years

but we always seem to struggle in Europe? I wish I could answer the

question. The quality is there. The strength and depth we haven't got

when compared to the French or the Irish. Those kinds of signings can

make a difference in Europe. Leinster and not a traditional

Arabian powerhouse but they still won. There is hope therefore sides

without the dominant packs. Very briefly, the Dragons are in the

Amlin Cup again this year. They tried to play good football was a

bit will be a good achievement for them to come through. They will

struggle as well. They have to have a platform. If you have a base, you

can play off it. It will be tough. Thank you for your company tonight.

We will see you in a few weeks' time. We gave a few more questions

to Andy Fenby. You have more than two dozen followers. Josh has more

than 3,000 followers. Who is the more popular? Josh, but we have to

talk about the quality of the followers. I would like to think my

followers part of a better quality. You are and we're two stone lighter

than Pete Edwards. Is that an example of cooking the books?