:00:09. > :00:18.2016 was a year like no other a year in which we lost some of our
:00:19. > :00:22.brightest, most creative talents. And a year in which Wales came
:00:23. > :00:25.second in the Six Nations and a record-breaking win over South
:00:26. > :00:31.Africa left the fans wanting much more. A disconnect between the Welsh
:00:32. > :00:36.team and their public. It is a strange act to follow by 2017 has
:00:37. > :00:42.the potential to be even more confounding, even more historic. Can
:00:43. > :00:47.Wales recover their attacking Mojo? Can the Lions pull off Mission
:00:48. > :00:51.impossible down under? And will this trophy be engraved once more with
:00:52. > :01:00.the name of a Welsh team? Welcome to Scrum V. Welcome to 2017.
:01:01. > :01:04.We are just eight days into the New Year and it has already thrown
:01:05. > :01:08.plenty talking points, not least the new directives on the tackle laws.
:01:09. > :01:12.Jonathan Davies and Sean Holley have plenty of strong opinions on those.
:01:13. > :01:17.But we start tonight with the Ospreys and a bid to return to the
:01:18. > :01:18.top of the Pro12 table. They were hosting defending champions
:01:19. > :01:36.Connacht. Good strength from the Bridgend
:01:37. > :01:40.product. Sam Davies at scrum half. Alun Wyn Jones at scrum half this
:01:41. > :01:46.time. A lovely angle from Hanno Dirksen. Just about holds onto the
:01:47. > :01:56.ball. And that is a try, Dan Biggar over the line. Relentless pressure
:01:57. > :02:01.from the Ospreys. -- Dan Baker. That is good, clean ball from the
:02:02. > :02:05.Ospreys. A monstrous charge from Sam Parry. Just smashes the Connacht
:02:06. > :02:11.defender out of the way. The Ospreys have really up the intensity. That
:02:12. > :02:14.is another break and he is going to go all the way to the line. That is
:02:15. > :02:22.a fantastic try for the blindside flanker.
:02:23. > :02:27.It goes to Lloyd Ashley at the front. Tom Habberfield. Justin
:02:28. > :02:34.Tipuric in support. Six or seven yards out. Cracknell.
:02:35. > :02:40.And that is desperately close now. The Ospreys. That is over the line.
:02:41. > :02:53.It is another drive. Connacht looking threatening. Sam
:02:54. > :02:57.Davies takes him down but he could be in trouble here, the fly half.
:02:58. > :03:03.Under the new directives, that is high. Is it reckless? John Lacey
:03:04. > :03:08.thinks it is. That is ten minutes in the bin for Sam Davies. Desperation
:03:09. > :03:11.from Connacht. It is a speculative kick. Eventually dealt with by Dan
:03:12. > :03:23.Evans. Sean O'Brien picks up. It is messy
:03:24. > :03:29.ball. He is not going to get stopped and he is over the line.
:03:30. > :03:37.Four yards out now for the Ospreys. Desperate stuff this. Connacht
:03:38. > :03:41.defending. Dan Biggar up with the floated pass out to Ashley Beck.
:03:42. > :03:45.That is the bonus point for the Ospreys. They have secured the
:03:46. > :03:50.maximum five points against the defending champions.
:03:51. > :03:56.They got the bonus point despite going down to 14 men for the last
:03:57. > :04:01.ten minutes of the game. Real spirit to do that. I think they are doing
:04:02. > :04:05.exceptionally well. Very clinical. I like the way that the forwards are
:04:06. > :04:10.ball-handling, getting over the gain line. They are going really well at
:04:11. > :04:15.the moment and Cracknell is going well, but for me it is Alun Wyn
:04:16. > :04:19.Jones. He is playing at a different level to everyone else. If you talk
:04:20. > :04:23.about Lions and captains, he has definitely put his hand up. Jonathan
:04:24. > :04:29.mention Olly Cracknell, but if you look at the back row riches in
:04:30. > :04:35.general, yesterday Justin Tipuric and Dan Baker, but they have also
:04:36. > :04:41.got James King, Joe Bearman. So many back row options. Steve is rotating
:04:42. > :04:45.his squad really well. The style of play is outstanding. They are
:04:46. > :04:50.scoring a bucket full of tries, especially at the Liberty Stadium.
:04:51. > :04:55.You will see the forwards handling, lots of different try scorers. They
:04:56. > :04:59.are in a good place at the moment. And Sam Davies orchestrating things
:05:00. > :05:04.from ten at the moment. Over the Christmas period playing fullback,
:05:05. > :05:08.that is a no-go for me. Doesn't contribute anything. For me he is a
:05:09. > :05:17.ten and it is a straight choice between Dan and Sam. We saw him play
:05:18. > :05:23.at fullback, Dan Evans on the wing. For me, it is a no-go. Dan Evans is
:05:24. > :05:27.the best 15. It is a straight choice. They have got injuries in
:05:28. > :05:33.the wing position but they must have one in the region. He is either a
:05:34. > :05:36.ten order on the bench. He spent ten minutes in the sin-bin and we will
:05:37. > :05:41.talk about that later because it has been a bit of a theme this weekend.
:05:42. > :05:46.We will talk about that later in the programme. The West William rivals
:05:47. > :05:49.the Scarlets were hoping to stay in the top four and the Ulster work
:05:50. > :06:08.visitors to Parc y Scarlets. Got it away to Jacob Stockdale and
:06:09. > :06:12.that is far too soft for the Scarlets.
:06:13. > :06:22.Ken Owens seeing how close that try line is. In go the backs as well to
:06:23. > :06:29.join in. A dozen Scarlets players in there. Aled Davies gets it loose,
:06:30. > :06:35.comes to the blindside. He hasn't got the ball to ground. Sean Reidy
:06:36. > :06:42.with the all-important tackle saves the day for Ulster. I thought he was
:06:43. > :06:48.in here but he glows for glory. That has got to be looked at. Is that a
:06:49. > :06:58.high tackle? Is it a penalty try? Is it a yellow card? All sorts of
:06:59. > :07:03.questions are going to be asked her. It is a penalty try, a yellow card,
:07:04. > :07:09.and that is a big break for the Scarlets.
:07:10. > :07:17.That is such a harsh call. The Scarlets will take it though. It has
:07:18. > :07:22.put them back ahead. The player was going low as well so what are you
:07:23. > :07:29.supposed to do? He was diving for the try line. I think he is looking
:07:30. > :07:41.at Jake Ball for a high tackle now. Here we go! We will be here all day
:07:42. > :07:46.now! Was that any worse? It is a yellow card. He has gone again.
:07:47. > :07:51.Where row we going? Where are we going?
:07:52. > :07:59.As a rugby man, do you have any sympathy for the boys who got yellow
:08:00. > :08:03.card? On the try line, if he hadn't gone hi, I think you would have
:08:04. > :08:09.definitely scored the try. Jake Ball, the new rule, we talked about
:08:10. > :08:12.it before the game, zero tolerance. Congratulations to the Scarlets on
:08:13. > :08:15.what could be a significant win but the talking point worth the yellow
:08:16. > :08:20.cards. The new laws on the high tackles. I am going to come to you
:08:21. > :08:26.in a minute. Let's clarify what those new directives are. Will Grigg
:08:27. > :08:47.Bizet, -- world rugby say... Accidental tackle is the second one
:08:48. > :09:18.and this is the interesting one. We saw three incidents on Friday
:09:19. > :09:22.night, we were all there, the first, arguably, the most contentious
:09:23. > :09:27.because this is arguably decided the outcome of the game. Aled Davies
:09:28. > :09:32.lunging for the line, he is tackled. Possibly a swinging arm by Andrew
:09:33. > :09:37.Trimble. It was a yellow card and a penalty try. That followed moments
:09:38. > :09:41.later. And this one we saw in the opening match will stop Sam Davies
:09:42. > :09:48.spent ten minutes in the bin for that one. Jonathan is having a
:09:49. > :09:51.chuckle. I think I know what he thinks. Let's take them in order.
:09:52. > :09:59.The first one decided the outcome of that game. The first thing, nothing
:10:00. > :10:01.has really changed. Now that the referee is being scrutinised, the
:10:02. > :10:06.inexperienced refs have gone berserk. They have gone to the
:10:07. > :10:12.letter of the law, no empathy, and it has gone crazy. We are all going,
:10:13. > :10:16.the letter of the law and everything, but common sense to
:10:17. > :10:22.prevail. I have got a cousin who has been in a coma for four years. He
:10:23. > :10:26.has got brain damage. He made a legitimate tackle under the hip and
:10:27. > :10:30.he has got injured. Now we are worried about the ball-carrier, not
:10:31. > :10:34.the tackler. If you are going down and leading with the elbow or the
:10:35. > :10:40.knee or the hip, the tackler is in danger as well. It is just common
:10:41. > :10:45.sense. But all of that is about player safety. Do we not have too
:10:46. > :10:50.broad a move that is at least trying to avoid the number of concussions?
:10:51. > :10:55.Yes, and if you watch the Saracens game yesterday, there is a dangerous
:10:56. > :10:59.effort there. But for coaches and players, he has tried to prevent the
:11:00. > :11:05.score, which is ultimately his job. It is a good tackle. It is not even
:11:06. > :11:10.a penalty. Andrew Trimble's is the dangerous one. As for Jake Ball and
:11:11. > :11:15.Sam Davies, we are going to switch people after the game if we are
:11:16. > :11:20.going to be sending people that. You know a high shot, you know a cheap
:11:21. > :11:23.shot, you know a fair shot, and the referees have got to understand the
:11:24. > :11:29.difference as well. The first one, I don't think it is a penalty. Andrew
:11:30. > :11:34.Trimble, that is a yellow card. Maybe a penalty against Andrew
:11:35. > :11:39.Trimble. I agreed the Jake Ball one is nonsense. And then the Sam Davies
:11:40. > :11:42.one, he goes into the tackle, the player is falling because he is
:11:43. > :11:47.being dragged down, and it is a yellow card? It will be interesting
:11:48. > :11:51.to see if something like that crops up England against Wales, say
:11:52. > :11:55.England scored a try and Wales have a player sent off for ten minutes
:11:56. > :11:59.and lose the game, there is going to be absolute ructions. And the point
:12:00. > :12:04.is, these are coming in midway through the season. At the start of
:12:05. > :12:09.the season, teams have a chance to get used to them. Is it too much to
:12:10. > :12:14.ask to tell players overnight, this is the new law? No, but they are
:12:15. > :12:18.ingrained in multidimensional facets of play. Things happen really fast.
:12:19. > :12:23.Loads of runners, stopping people on the gain line, they are very
:12:24. > :12:27.physical. You are going to have incidents in a contact sport all the
:12:28. > :12:30.time. What will be interesting is southern hemisphere Super Rugby,
:12:31. > :12:37.South Ireland players, they are used to doing that. They have just
:12:38. > :12:41.pointed it out and they are being scrutinised now. Nothing has
:12:42. > :12:45.changed. You know if there was a high shot before, great if we are
:12:46. > :12:49.going to scrutinise it and make it a point, but it has got to be managed
:12:50. > :12:54.properly. It is a brilliant directive but it is not being
:12:55. > :12:58.referee is properly. Experienced referees will make better judgment.
:12:59. > :13:03.It will sort itself out but not much will change. It is simple, if it's a
:13:04. > :13:10.reckless high tackle, it's a straight red. We all knew that
:13:11. > :13:15.playing. When Jake Ball does that tackle, you watch every player
:13:16. > :13:20.involved in the next ruck or the tackle, the tackler, the plane being
:13:21. > :13:27.tackled, not one player pauses or says anything. It wasn't a tackle
:13:28. > :13:30.worthy of a yellow card. One more to show you, this one from Hanno
:13:31. > :13:38.Dirksen didn't. Was that the right decision? For me, it looks worse
:13:39. > :13:43.than it actually is. He is trying to smother his arms from behind to
:13:44. > :13:47.prevent an off-road or a kitten. It is a legitimate tackle you would
:13:48. > :13:52.coach. It gets a bit high because the player is falling. If I am the
:13:53. > :13:55.guy getting the ball, I would rather Hanno Dirksen tackle me around the
:13:56. > :14:01.shoulders than drill me into my lower back. That is the safety of
:14:02. > :14:05.the player. That is not a yellow card, it is a penalty. I have a
:14:06. > :14:09.feeling we are going to revisit this over the coming weeks. I had a new
:14:10. > :14:13.beer sit down with the new chief executive of the W IQ, Martin
:14:14. > :14:23.Phillips. We talk about an awful lot. -- of the WRU.
:14:24. > :14:27.What about the regional game, it is no secret that since the regime has
:14:28. > :14:31.changed here, the relationships seem a lot more cordial between you and
:14:32. > :14:37.the regions. Is the current model sustainable? In terms of the
:14:38. > :14:40.relationship, that is good. We work very closely together. We are
:14:41. > :14:46.interdependent and neither one of us can be successful without the other.
:14:47. > :14:50.The regions are in very different places. They are very strong at
:14:51. > :14:54.certain things and they need support with the others. What we are working
:14:55. > :14:57.on is to see what we can do collectively to help each region to
:14:58. > :15:00.be as strong as it can be and then what are the things we can do
:15:01. > :15:05.together that make sense to do together. We want to be within the
:15:06. > :15:10.Pro12, we want to be getting to the latter stages of the European cup
:15:11. > :15:17.editions. Money is a factor but I think great coaches can get great
:15:18. > :15:20.things out of teams. Hence our focus on coaching. We are at the place
:15:21. > :15:24.where we are getting into gritty conversations.
:15:25. > :15:33.Money not to be all and end all, but when your competitors operate on
:15:34. > :15:37.budgets that are sometimes millions more, it's a significant factor.
:15:38. > :15:41.Yes. At the moment if you look at successful sides in most sports,
:15:42. > :15:45.it's down to money. A lot coming through the academy, but they need
:15:46. > :15:51.the money and I think the money will come. It won't come from the
:15:52. > :15:57.benefactors so it has to be from the WRU. The relationship is a lot
:15:58. > :16:01.better between the two sides. I think the money will come and it
:16:02. > :16:05.will hopefully benefit the regions as well. If there's to be further
:16:06. > :16:09.investment, they need a guarantee money will be spent wisely. Are the
:16:10. > :16:15.relationships good enough that the mutual trust has been as Mike is
:16:16. > :16:20.getting better. When I was coaching regional rugby 12 views ago there
:16:21. > :16:25.was no relationship. In have guys willing to engage in some sort of
:16:26. > :16:29.relationship. We need a coaching structure we haven't had the ten
:16:30. > :16:35.years or so in Wales and it's showing now. Ultimately what makes
:16:36. > :16:42.great coaches? Great players. You look at attendances. They are trying
:16:43. > :16:46.to get them up. In all my travels around the world, the attitude of
:16:47. > :16:53.those sporting bodies and teams outside Wales is get the media in,
:16:54. > :16:59.get PR, marketing, allow players to do interviews and promote the brand.
:17:00. > :17:03.We are slightly behind in Wales. Slightly negative, the relationship
:17:04. > :17:07.between the media and the regions has to be better. There is a
:17:08. > :17:11.knock-on effect because of the interest shown from that Fassett,
:17:12. > :17:17.more people can watch the game. That has to benefit the regions. One of
:17:18. > :17:21.the things we talked about was the appointment of the Wales coach is to
:17:22. > :17:26.go on the Lions tour. I asked him if that was wise given the way let --
:17:27. > :17:31.Wales are trying to change the way they play. We know some of the
:17:32. > :17:35.backroom staff will be joining them. He said the experience they get will
:17:36. > :17:41.benefit Wales in the longer term. Might Wales shuffle in the sort --
:17:42. > :17:44.shorter term? They might, but you can't blame someone like Rob Howley,
:17:45. > :17:50.it's the pinnacle of your coaching career. It will be a massive tour. I
:17:51. > :17:54.can't blame them for that. It's what they are doing with the summer and
:17:55. > :18:03.the Six Nations that I question. If we want to bring on young Welsh
:18:04. > :18:06.coaches, maybe we should be doing that, not Alex King, an English
:18:07. > :18:10.coach. I've worked with great young coaches. English men. What are we
:18:11. > :18:16.doing in the short term to help Wales and help Rob Howley? What's
:18:17. > :18:21.done is done. They are going. It's contractually done. I don't agree
:18:22. > :18:25.with it, but it will benefit those individuals, but will it benefit
:18:26. > :18:29.Wales? Wales is the priority if you're a Welsh coach or assistant
:18:30. > :18:34.coach. Interesting to see how the Six Nations goes. The proof of the
:18:35. > :18:38.pudding will come up soon. To the Premiership first because it was a
:18:39. > :18:42.critical weekend, the last week of fixtures before the league splits.
:18:43. > :18:45.The last opportunity to get your place in the top eight. 17 's had
:18:46. > :19:00.done so and it was a shoot out between Cardiff and Deborah Vale.
:19:01. > :19:03.-- seven teams. Our reporter went to avail to see if they could sneak in.
:19:04. > :19:09.Plenty of big games in the Premiership, but none bigger than
:19:10. > :19:12.the east Wales derby. It's the must win game for Ebbw Vale. Lose and
:19:13. > :19:18.Cardiff might take their place. I'm looking forward to this one.
:19:19. > :19:33.The crowd is up for this one. A lot of fans getting behind their boys.
:19:34. > :19:48.Attacking scrum. Penalty given by the referee, Craig Evans. Points
:19:49. > :19:55.mean prizes. Josh Lewis chips it over and Ebbw Vale are on the board.
:19:56. > :19:59.Top eight, bottom eight, what's all that about? We looked at the
:20:00. > :20:02.Premiership at the start of the year and had a discussion in terms of
:20:03. > :20:08.adding excitement and jeopardy at certain times of the year. Over
:20:09. > :20:12.Christmas and New Year we definitely added excitement in terms of media
:20:13. > :20:17.attention and players and countries. The teams are trying to play, but
:20:18. > :20:21.there's a lot on it. To be in the top eight and win the principality
:20:22. > :20:28.Premiership. Good to see you back, you have a big reem it. I love the
:20:29. > :20:32.job and I'm happy to be back. My glasses or was half full. We have
:20:33. > :20:38.the Six Nations, a tour in the summer, the under 20s, the seven is
:20:39. > :20:41.doing well, youngsters playing, women's World Cup coming up. Next
:20:42. > :20:45.year we have the Commonwealth Games. We do need to make the product
:20:46. > :20:50.better, but that's why I came back. The glass is always half full. Good
:20:51. > :20:54.to see you back. I thought the glass was always half full because you
:20:55. > :21:00.were waiting for somebody to get the next round! Lewis will need to give
:21:01. > :21:04.this somewhere Lee. The halfway line. He's given it a fair old farm.
:21:05. > :21:25.Has it got the legs? Yes! I say! Over the 22, out to Josh Lewis.
:21:26. > :21:34.Flash and dance from Lewis, can he make the line? That's it, Ebbw have
:21:35. > :21:38.secured the last place in the top eight of the Welsh Premiership. Left
:21:39. > :21:45.it late, it was hard work, but they did it. You must be very proud but
:21:46. > :21:49.also relieved. Very relieved. We've left ourselves a lot of work to do
:21:50. > :21:53.with our performances earlier in the season but we've come through. A lot
:21:54. > :21:58.of jeopardy in this new league and we were at the forefront of that. A
:21:59. > :22:04.tough Christmas. Our last four games we knew we had to win at least two
:22:05. > :22:08.and we've eventually done it. In the rest of the Premiership action,
:22:09. > :22:14.Cardiff's American import can do and scored a hat-trick but it wasn't
:22:15. > :22:20.enough to stop Adam Williams from securing the win. First against
:22:21. > :22:25.third here. A half-break by James Garland and an neat inside ball to
:22:26. > :22:30.Joe Thomson Reeves helping the wizards to the win. A thumping
:22:31. > :22:34.victory for our GC against Pontypridd. Sam Jones coming off the
:22:35. > :22:39.wing to weave his way through the defence and supply Aaron Evans with
:22:40. > :22:43.one of the tries. Carmarthen Quins consolidated their top eight finish
:22:44. > :22:48.against Bridge end. Josh Barrett cup with a pass and Gavin Tomlin is with
:22:49. > :22:50.a chip. Lee Williams with the finish. A regional derby in the West
:22:51. > :22:58.as clear Nestl squeeze as clear Nestle squeeze through.
:22:59. > :23:03.Jones with a chip ahead and a defensive error allowed Jones to
:23:04. > :23:15.pounce. Llanelli one of the big names missing out on the cut.
:23:16. > :23:23.Our GC have had an impressive debut season in the top-flight. -- our GC.
:23:24. > :23:29.Baba Rahman -- Aberavon probably wish they could fast forward a few.
:23:30. > :23:35.Congratulations to Ebbw and all the teams who made the cut in the top
:23:36. > :23:40.eight. Some sad news this week. David Thomas, the former Abrar Osman
:23:41. > :23:46.chairman, who both these guys knew, Dave -- died this week at the age of
:23:47. > :23:52.75. There he was scoring against Fiji for Wales. He was a bit of a
:23:53. > :23:56.character. Yes, I played with his son Gareth. When you grow up in the
:23:57. > :24:08.town, you talk about the legends like Alan Martin Ama Maxwell Sheard,
:24:09. > :24:12.John Bevan. And Thomas, who used to like the soft centres in a box of
:24:13. > :24:19.chocolates. We used to have great derbies and I came across a couple
:24:20. > :24:24.of times. Lovely guy. Commiserations to his family. Great to see that try
:24:25. > :24:29.against Fiji. The fixtures for the next round of Premiership action are
:24:30. > :24:33.coming up over the next few days. Let's go somewhere else. For many
:24:34. > :24:38.clubs at the grassroots of Welsh rugby its weekly struggle to even
:24:39. > :24:42.get 15 players on the pitch. Phil Steele visited an iconic Cardiff
:24:43. > :24:44.club that after a few troubling years it's beginning to find its
:24:45. > :24:48.feet. When I was growing up and playing
:24:49. > :24:58.rugby in Cardiff the kayaks were always a team to be reckoned with.
:24:59. > :25:00.Founded 70 years ago in the docks area, Cardiff internationals this
:25:01. > :25:04.letter club have always been a proud multiracial team. Their most famous
:25:05. > :25:08.son, Billy Boston, was given the BBC Wales lifetime achievement award
:25:09. > :25:13.recently in terms of his legendary rugby league career. There were
:25:14. > :25:16.others such as Carl Smith who played 239 games for Cardiff and was one of
:25:17. > :25:24.the best back row forwards of his generation. Now the club are bottom
:25:25. > :25:30.of the league with no points and struggling to find players. A lot of
:25:31. > :25:36.it is to do with the massive change that's happened on the docks. And
:25:37. > :25:42.the influx of different culture that are just not interested in rugby.
:25:43. > :25:49.Football has completely taken over in this area now. It is a struggle.
:25:50. > :25:54.It's constant messages, e-mails, texts, to other clubs and the boys.
:25:55. > :26:00.We tried to rope in a few others. But it is really, really hard work.
:26:01. > :26:08.What help her view had from the WRU? None. None at all. They've been more
:26:09. > :26:12.on ask for not fulfilling fixtures, for not getting in touch with
:26:13. > :26:17.players and the other team to let them know we don't have a team. We
:26:18. > :26:22.don't know whether we have a team by the Thursday. We are still trying to
:26:23. > :26:28.get a side. We've been penalised for trying the hardest we can't and not
:26:29. > :26:34.succeeding. People on Facebook, Twitter, advertising boards as well.
:26:35. > :26:39.You've had influence with the WRU to try to get college boys down here
:26:40. > :26:44.who want to play, but can't get a game with their own clubs. They take
:26:45. > :26:54.them to other clubs but don't send any down here.
:26:55. > :27:01.We've done as much as we can in terms of advertisements, going to
:27:02. > :27:06.local schools. That's the way to do it. A couple of seasons ago we had a
:27:07. > :27:14.junior side, but it fell away. We are trying to do it again.
:27:15. > :27:20.You can't fault the effort, but sometimes when we are turning up to
:27:21. > :27:25.games with 13 players, there's not a lot you can do. It's been hard. But
:27:26. > :27:30.we enjoy the game and that's why we're trying to keep the club going.
:27:31. > :27:32.There was no problem with player numbers yesterday, although not
:27:33. > :27:40.quite the same multiracial balance as teams of the past. We were called
:27:41. > :27:46.names that blatantly wouldn't happen now because they all got respect for
:27:47. > :27:53.one another. We lost by two points, but for me it was a win. The closest
:27:54. > :28:02.score we've had is 60-0. Definitely one of the best performances we've
:28:03. > :28:08.had. Still capable of breathing and standing, I'll be here supporting,
:28:09. > :28:13.working for the CIACs. I can't see us going backwards, only forwards.
:28:14. > :28:19.That's the way to keep going, keep climbing up the hill until we get to
:28:20. > :28:22.the top. Great story and congratulations to the CIACs for
:28:23. > :28:26.getting their first league points, albeit in a losing cause. They are
:28:27. > :28:31.also looking for a coach so if you fancy it, get a coach.
:28:32. > :28:36.Look no further for inspiration than this story. 12 years ago Rob Davies
:28:37. > :28:41.was backing down for Hezbollah bid Brecon RFC but collapsed scrum led
:28:42. > :28:47.to a devastating neck injury and he was told he would never walk again.
:28:48. > :28:49.As of last week, he was a member of the British Empire and Paralympic
:28:50. > :29:04.in. Pretty amazing year between
:29:05. > :29:08.everything. Getting married next year as well so a lot to look
:29:09. > :29:13.forward to as well as this year being pretty amazing. Going to see
:29:14. > :29:17.the Queen hopefully next year. I'm assuming your fiance will watch so
:29:18. > :29:23.that will probably eclipse the other events, your wedding? Yes. I think
:29:24. > :29:27.that's the right answer. Well done! Can you even begin to put into words
:29:28. > :29:33.how you felt when he won the medal? Didn't think it was real and when it
:29:34. > :29:38.actually happened, it was an amazing feeling. A fair change from a few
:29:39. > :29:42.years ago, playing rugby, able-bodied and then being in that
:29:43. > :29:47.final, playing in a wheelchair. I got over a lot to be in that
:29:48. > :29:52.position. Lots of ups and downs, but made it worth it in the end. It was
:29:53. > :29:57.while playing in the front row over Brecon that he suffered his life
:29:58. > :30:01.changing injury. Remarkably, at the exact moment he broke his neck, his
:30:02. > :30:05.twin brother was involved in the serious car crash en route to the
:30:06. > :30:10.game. The air ambulance was called for both of them. While Rob refuses
:30:11. > :30:21.to dwell on the past, his memories remain vivid. I still have a really
:30:22. > :30:24.good memory of what happened. I tend not to think about it much now. When
:30:25. > :30:27.I first had my accident, I was constantly thinking of it, but you
:30:28. > :30:31.have to keep moving forward and make things better. Be positive. You
:30:32. > :30:35.would be forgiven if your passion for rugby had disappeared given
:30:36. > :30:41.what's happened. I just missed it, I just wish I could do it. I played
:30:42. > :30:45.since I was four. It's been my life. It's made me who I am, team sport,
:30:46. > :30:50.camaraderie, lifelong friends because of it.
:30:51. > :30:58.Take us back to where this table tennis journey began. A member of
:30:59. > :31:04.the Paralympics GB invited me into having not. First of all, I told her
:31:05. > :31:08.to go away in no uncertain terms because it was a bit of a girly
:31:09. > :31:13.sport, or so I thought. I thought I was going to get back on my feet and
:31:14. > :31:18.play rugby again. But it wasn't to be. A few months later I got in
:31:19. > :31:23.there and gave it a go and use that as my rehab, almost, and I haven't
:31:24. > :31:28.stopped since. What next? Retire at the top? I am number one as well at
:31:29. > :31:32.the moment so I want to stay there as long as I can. I am looking to
:31:33. > :31:36.try and win the European Championship for the third time in a
:31:37. > :31:41.row in September so that is my next goal. We wish you all success in
:31:42. > :31:44.defending your European title and holding onto that number one spot as
:31:45. > :31:51.long as possible. Thank you very much.
:31:52. > :31:55.A top bloke, Rob, and thank you very much for Brecon for their kind
:31:56. > :32:00.hospitality. An inspirational story and very best luck with the wedding,
:32:01. > :32:04.not least the stag do as well. Back to the Pro12 now and the Blues had a
:32:05. > :32:14.very tough away assignment in Glasgow last night.
:32:15. > :32:21.The Blues holding out again. Can they keep on doing so? Just one
:32:22. > :32:29.missed tackle could cost them dearly in this sort of situation. It is
:32:30. > :32:35.loose for Swinson. Swinson for the line. Could not quite stretch his
:32:36. > :32:39.six foot four. Glasgow hurdling bodies at the line and eventually
:32:40. > :32:44.the home side have got there. The pressure had to tell in the end. And
:32:45. > :32:54.the Glasgow pack producing the first try of the game. The cross kick. It
:32:55. > :32:58.falls for Blaine Scully. And when Cardiff Blues couldn't create, they
:32:59. > :33:06.have been handed a gift try a minute before the interval.
:33:07. > :33:17.Russell into midfield. Tommy Seymour into the line. Alex Dunbar. Just
:33:18. > :33:20.tackled short. Have Glasgow got the momentum? Forcing their way over and
:33:21. > :33:32.they have scored. And Seymour finding another lovely
:33:33. > :33:39.angle. In from the wing. Not held. Able to keep going. Two metres out.
:33:40. > :33:42.They should be a try here. It is another one for Peter Murchie, seven
:33:43. > :33:48.minutes after his first try. The Blues trying to drive it
:33:49. > :34:02.sideways. Here come the Warriors. The Blues in
:34:03. > :34:05.a little bit of disarray. And Glasgow have the bonus point try
:34:06. > :34:17.with 16 minutes to spare. The line-out throw is a poor one
:34:18. > :34:23.from Malcolm. Shingler with unexpected ball. Nicky Robinson
:34:24. > :34:27.flick set out to Rhun Williams and their teenage winger slides in four
:34:28. > :34:38.Cardiff Blues' second try. Glasgow are a very tough side and we
:34:39. > :34:41.saw what they are all about tonight. Far too many errors from is that
:34:42. > :34:45.gave them a lot of opportunities to build pressure and they are very
:34:46. > :34:49.clinical. A pretty sobering night for the
:34:50. > :34:52.Cardiff Blues and Glasgow as inventive as always in attack. But
:34:53. > :35:00.at times the Blues made it easy for them. They were totally outplayed in
:35:01. > :35:05.every part of the game. They are on a bad run at the moment and they are
:35:06. > :35:09.making far too many errors. Their defence is very passive so they are
:35:10. > :35:14.always on the back foot. They are not making the aggressive hits and
:35:15. > :35:18.getting turnover ball. And when they get it they just squander it. They
:35:19. > :35:23.have got to try and get that elusive win and get back on the horse. At
:35:24. > :35:27.times, the possession stats were overwhelmingly in Glasgow's favour.
:35:28. > :35:35.And the Blues just too porous at times. It is the first time I have
:35:36. > :35:40.had alarm bells with the Blues. Very easy to gain yards for Glasgow. And
:35:41. > :35:44.although this phase defence was good at times, some crucial line errors
:35:45. > :35:50.and we have picked out a couple. Glasgow will take advantage of
:35:51. > :35:53.those. Look at Seymour. Lloyd Williams is the inside defender so
:35:54. > :35:59.you have got an extra defender on this set piece. If somebody comes
:36:00. > :36:05.back into that channel, Shingler can slip off and allowed Lloyd Williams
:36:06. > :36:10.to take that guy. The extra man is Seymour. Halaholo is left high and
:36:11. > :36:16.dry. Either they all defend one way or they all drift inside. Look at
:36:17. > :36:21.Seymour. He gets the second marker and is a double pump and holds him.
:36:22. > :36:27.The outside guy, you have got to step in. Once one steps in, you all
:36:28. > :36:32.step in. Unfortunately, it is the same problem. One goes in, one steps
:36:33. > :36:43.out. Seymour has put his hand for a tour. I know Graham Steadman will be
:36:44. > :36:48.saying, you have got to step in. If they get on the outside of you then,
:36:49. > :36:52.they deserve to score the try. But they have got to communicate,
:36:53. > :36:56.otherwise, if one goes in and one goes out, there are going to be
:36:57. > :37:02.natural gaps and they are going to concede a lot of tries. So it is
:37:03. > :37:06.communication rather than attitude? I can't talk about attitude, you
:37:07. > :37:13.have got to go into the environment about that. But Seymour is ruthless
:37:14. > :37:18.at the moment. But some of their home losses were against some of the
:37:19. > :37:21.bigger sides and that was a little bit of alarm bells. I think Danny
:37:22. > :37:26.would have expected a little bit more. The Dragons were hoping to
:37:27. > :37:29.recover from two derby debates over the Christmas period. The visitors
:37:30. > :37:38.to Rodney Parade were Treviso. Elliot Dee to feed the line-up for
:37:39. > :37:52.the Dragons. Angus O'Brien goes vertical. It is a
:37:53. > :37:59.bit too vertical. And it is picked up by Tito Tebaldi who goes into the
:38:00. > :38:08.22. Get around his man. He scores! Out of the blue for Treviso.
:38:09. > :38:19.Adam Warren. Does well to step inside and get over the gain line.
:38:20. > :38:25.We are going to see a lot of this this evening. Phil Price this time.
:38:26. > :38:29.Sarel Pretorius picks up and he is over. Superb opportunism by Sarel
:38:30. > :38:43.Pretorius. That is the line of Treviso in the
:38:44. > :38:48.background. Elliot Lee now. And back in the pocket is Angus O'Brien. To
:38:49. > :38:52.try and take the Dragons two scores clear. And he does. Angus O'Brien
:38:53. > :39:08.neatly done. And here comes the caveman stuff for
:39:09. > :39:10.the Dragons. It is Nic Cudd. Lewis Evans gets the touchdown. And the
:39:11. > :39:20.Dragons are well clear. So a welcome victory for the Dragons
:39:21. > :39:25.and the Ospreys will end this jungle fixtures at the top of the pile in
:39:26. > :39:30.the Pro12. Hot on their heels are Munster and Leinster. Munster do
:39:31. > :39:34.have a game in hand. They had a bonus point victory over Racing in
:39:35. > :39:41.Europe yesterday in their rearranged fixture. The Blues remain seventh.
:39:42. > :39:43.And as you can see, six points adrift of the top six and that gap
:39:44. > :39:54.beginning to widen. On the Dragons, Martin Phillips
:39:55. > :39:59.hinting that the WRU may have no option but to take them over if the
:40:00. > :40:02.investment they are seeking does not come to fruition. Stuart Davies
:40:03. > :40:07.saying this week that they are people invested and we had Michael
:40:08. > :40:12.Owen, the former captain, saying in the week, take them over, turn them
:40:13. > :40:17.into a franchise and stick them in Pontypridd or North Wales. The first
:40:18. > :40:24.thing is, that is what the problem is. It is great to get a result. But
:40:25. > :40:28.I do think it is the investment and off the field is the priority for
:40:29. > :40:33.the Dragons at the moment. If they can sort that out. But is it Newport
:40:34. > :40:38.running the Dragons or Dragons running Newport? Sometimes I think
:40:39. > :40:44.it is a little bit mixed up and I am not sure who is running the ship and
:40:45. > :40:47.for what reason. Sometimes the board of directors and directors have got
:40:48. > :40:53.to sit back and decide what is good for the region. I saw something with
:40:54. > :40:55.Ben Jeffries in pottable, maybe you need a broad running the
:40:56. > :41:00.professional game, a board running the semiprofessional and a board
:41:01. > :41:06.running the amides. That is what happens in rugby league. Clear the
:41:07. > :41:09.muddy waters of what is going on in the Dragons and Newport. But they
:41:10. > :41:12.need to get that right. They need to get the investment right and if it
:41:13. > :41:17.is not the people there now, maybe it is time to step away and look
:41:18. > :41:22.elsewhere. And is the option of positioning the region elsewhere,
:41:23. > :41:26.Gwent is the biggest district, the strongest representations of teams,
:41:27. > :41:33.73 historic lives in Gwent, would it be a scandal? Yes, I was at Ebbw
:41:34. > :41:37.Vale there and it was a good crowd. They are good people, they have got
:41:38. > :41:41.a lot of young players. There has to be more positivity around the
:41:42. > :41:46.Dragons region. There is always negativity, whether it is the pitch,
:41:47. > :41:50.the team isn't good enough, they are not winning. The coaches are working
:41:51. > :41:55.really hard. It was great to see them get a win. They need some
:41:56. > :42:02.positivity, better facilities, and as you say, it is a big area. It is
:42:03. > :42:06.a big area with great history. A region has got to be there. Once
:42:07. > :42:10.they get people buying into that region, it could be one of the
:42:11. > :42:13.strongest because having played at Ebbw Vale and Cross Keys and all
:42:14. > :42:18.those clubs, it is a difficult place to go wherever you go. If they can
:42:19. > :42:22.combine and everyone go in the same direction, it could be a very
:42:23. > :42:25.successful area. I think it is all down to what is happening off the
:42:26. > :42:31.field and not what is happening on the field. It is not all about money
:42:32. > :42:36.but unfortunately most of it is. Wise words from Jonathan. At the
:42:37. > :42:42.other end of the table, the Ospreys looking in fantastic form. Champions
:42:43. > :42:47.elect? I think they could make the top two, which is really important.
:42:48. > :42:52.They need to get a home semifinal. The Scarlets knocking on the door of
:42:53. > :42:55.the top four. The Blues losing touch because Ulster have a game in hand
:42:56. > :43:06.and they will be Treviso with five points. The shakedown is going to be
:43:07. > :43:12.intriguing. Thanks for your company. Scrum five takes a little bit of a
:43:13. > :43:15.break now. European action. When we return, we will be previewing the
:43:16. > :43:18.greatest tournament of them all. I can't wait, neither can these two.
:43:19. > :43:25.I'm sure you can't either. See you soon.
:43:26. > :43:31.To put the cream on the Grand Slam Kate!
:43:32. > :43:46.A second Grand Slam for Wales! And George North all the way
:43:47. > :44:01.himself. This is the most dangerous,
:44:02. > :44:06.the most despicable human being