Barbarians 31, Wales 33: Mixed bag for Wales as George North steals the show

Simon Thomas

As a Wales legend bowed out in style, so the current crop in red produced a mixed bag performance as they quite literally warmed up for the Nations Championship.

Making a fairytale farewell appearance before retiring, George North grabbed a brace of tries at a sweltering Twickenham and, just for good measure, landed a conversion with his final act as a rugby player.

It really was a case of life coming full circle for the winger who had also marked his first international outing with a try double – as an 18-year-old against South Africa in 2010.

That was on his Test debut for Wales and now he’s brought down the curtain on his glittering career by starring against them in the colours of the Barbarians.

You really do have to wonder who writes his scripts!

North thought he had played his last game before the invitation from the Baa-Baas came through.

So this was a real bonus and you could tell from his tearful post-match interview with S4C just how much the whole occasion meant to him, with his family and friends watching on.

He certainly rose to that occasion, showing that, at 34, there was still life in the old dog.

What Wales would give to have a 24-year-old North available to them right now.

But, of course, life moves on.

So what will Welsh head coach Steve Tandy make of the display from those players who he does have at his disposal?

For this non-cap out-of-window match, that didn’t include any of the 13 members of his summer squad who play for clubs in England and France.

So that meant a home-based selection which in turn provided opportunities for some fringe figures.

Second successive win

The end result was a second successive victory, following up the Six Nations success against Italy in March, and that isn’t to be sniffed at given the preceding barren period.

But it also pointed to the need for significant improvement ahead of the upcoming Tests against Fiji, Argentina and South Africa in the new Nations Championship.

All in all, it was perhaps best summed up by the try count which finished five apiece.

Some positives from an attacking perspective then, but also concerns on the defensive front, amid 26 missed tackles. leaving issues for the coach now overseeing that department – Peter Murchie – to address.

There was also some sloppiness as Wales got sucked into the inevitable looseness that comes with a BaaBaas contest.

When they played their own game, carrying hard and direct with real purpose, they looked effective.

But when they lost their focus and forced things, they came unstuck in the mid-afternoon heat of south west London.

It was 32 degrees at kick-off which meant no complaints over the hydration breaks which have been so maligned at the football World Cup.

It also meant sweaty hands and a slippery ball, making precision and accuracy all the more important.

Turnovers

All too often, that eluded Wales as they conceded 16 turnovers, something which is all the more dangerous against opponents intent on counter-attacking at every opportunity.

On the individual front, it was again something of a mixed bag.

As for the plusses, Aaron Wainwright was once again a shining light at No 8. He was his team’s top carrier with 12, while he also put in 13 tackles and chased remorselessly, with his all-round efforts earning him the Player of the Match award.

Scrum-half Kieran Hardy would have pushed him hard for that prize, having scored one try and shown excellent vision to set up two more.

His half-back partner Dan Edwards dovetailed well with him to cross twice, while Blair Murray proved an increasing threat with his elusive running from full-back.

Murray’s menace was encouraging to see with the No 15 jersey potentially up for grabs amid Louis Rees-Zammit’s recent move back to the wing for Bristol.

It was also good to see a number of players returning to action.

Skipper Dewi Lake hadn’t played since March due to shoulder surgery, but he really hit the ground running on his comeback.

He twice burst through the Baa-Baas lines, his first foray paving the way for Hardy’s early sniping try while his second would have delivered another score had his pass not dipped low on Wainwright. In addition, he connected with his targets at the lineout as he led by example before handing the captain’s armband over to Jac Morgan at half-time.

As for flanker Morgan, it was his first appearance for Wales since damaging his shoulder in scoring a try against Argentina in November.

He wasn’t quite as omnipresent and influential as he was for the Ospreys during the tail end of the season, but he still managed to top the tackle chart along with lock Ben Carter on 21. It’s good to have him back.

The same goes for Teddy Williams who hadn’t played a game of rugby since suffering a serious foot injury in October.

Considering that eight month lay-off, he acquitted himself well and he adds athletic depth to the second row options.

There was also a return to the international arena for Dillon Lewis with the prop wearing the three feathers for the first time in more than two years.

With fellow tightheads Tomas Francis, Archie Griffin and Keiron Assiratti all sidelined, the 57-cap Lewis has a big role to play over the coming weeks.

Echoing the theme of the day, the scrum was something of a mixed bag during his first half outing, but he did make his presence felt in the loose and at the breakdown.

As for the new faces among the subs, it was another prop who had the biggest impact with loosehead Rhys Barratt producing a storming 20 yard break ahead of Wales’ final try from winger Ellis Mee.

Strong start

Looking at how the contest progressed, Tandy’s team made a strong start, opening the scoring after just five minutes.

It was a bright beginning based on hard carrying, suggesting it was going to be business rather than pleasure for them in this traditionally carnival-like fixture, with hooker Lake involved twice in the build-up and Hardy stepping inside for the sharp close-range finish.

The response from the Barbarians was equally prosaic as they won a scrum penalty and kicked to the corner, with No 8 Nathan Hughes twice rumbling forward off the resulting lineout ahead of prop Vincent Koch forcing his way over.

But it wasn’t long before they started on the party pieces with one scintillating passage of play seeing Faf de Klerk collecting his own chip over the top, fellow South African Jeremy Ward flicking the ball between his legs and France winger Virimi Vakatawa passing out of the back door.

There was plenty more fun and frolics to follow from the invitational league of 12 nations, including setting up a midfield lineout maul off an Elliot Dee tap penalty!

Returning to the score sequence, Wales produced another no-nonsense effort for their second try.

Off a Taine Plumtree lineout take, centre Joe Hawkins delivered the big midfield carry, with Wainwright then rolling his way up towards the whitewash before Hardy sent out a long scoring pass to Edwards.

Hardy showed further vision for Wales’ third score early in the second half.

Spotting that the BaaBaas’ Aussie wing Andrew Kellaway was injured and out of position, he realized there was no-one at home and put in a box kick for the gleeful Edwards to run onto.

Once again, it was a case of the Ospreys half-backs being very much on the same wavelength.

That made it 19-5 to the men in red who looked to be moving nicely into gear.

But enter George North.

The 121-cap winger received a huge ovation when he took the field and within two minutes he had reeled back the years with a trademark try.

It was a score that summed up the power and predatory nature which has characterised his career as he burst through the attempted tackles of Edwards and Mee to touch down.

He’s still got it!

Wales responded with replacement scrum-half Reuben Morgan-Williams crossing after producing a dummy which just about the whole stadium bought.

But there were to be further Baa-Baas scores which exposed defensive lapses, as centre Alex Nanvikell benefited from a tackle busting burst from lock Yoan Tanga and North cantered over for his second after a couple of offloads had created an overlap.

Mee – who was denied two other tries by team-mates blocking and pushing respectively – did manage to get on the scoresheet to make the victory safe, but it was the men in black and white who had the final word in trademark fashion as Uruguayan scrum-half Santiago Arata rounded off a flowing move.

North had played his part in that score with a long pass and he had the honour of ending the game and his career with the conversion.

It was a fitting end to a fantastic rugby journey for the man from Anglesey.

As for Wales, they will now be reinforced by the likes of Rees-Zammit, Tomos Williams, Rhys Carre, Dafydd Jenkins, Nicky Smith and Adam Beard for the serious business to come.

They will be needed, while the coaches will be well aware that there is much to work on.