James Botham reveals Ian Botham’s FaceTime reaction to Six Nations mistake

Wales flanker James Botham has revealed how a costly Six Nations mistake brought a wordless but telling reaction from his famous grandfather, cricket legend Lord Ian Botham.

The Cardiff back-rower admitted his “gut-wrenching” error against Scotland last month prompted a knowing smirk from the England cricket great during a FaceTime call from the other side of the world.

Botham was partly to blame for the Darcy Graham try that helped swing the Cardiff clash Scotland’s way and dashed Welsh hopes of a first Six Nations victory in three years.

Botham and wing Gabriel Hamer-Webb were caught off guard by Finn Russell’s restart kick, with the ball landing between them and allowing Graham to pounce and score.

The 28-year-old says the moment has brought plenty of “stick” — including from his own family.

“Even grandad said something from the other side of the world. He always has a little say,” said Botham.

“I kind of knew it was coming and I was trying to avoid the call a little bit. But no, the FaceTime popped up, and I saw him, and I was like, ‘Oh, here we go!’.

“It was more the look, because I was on FaceTime, he didn’t really say too much.

“He just looked at me, kind of with his head down and smirked. I knew exactly what he was on about but, to be fair, he was very chuffed for me that I had been able to get back out there and play.”

Botham followed in the footsteps of his father Liam Botham by representing Cardiff and made his Wales debut in November 2020.

He made three appearances from the bench as Wales won the Six Nations Championship and Triple Crown in 2021, but later fell out of favour before being recalled for the 2024 tournament.

Surprise

He was again overlooked when Steve Tandy named his first squad in the autumn, but says the call to return to the national side came as a welcome surprise.

“It doesn’t feel like a year since I last played – it kind of felt like yesterday,” said Botham.

“When Steve called me, initially I thought it was a call to say I was not involved.

“So my heart sank a bit when I saw it and then he told me it was good news.

“It was an amazing feeling to get back into it, especially playing in front of that full crowd.

“I don’t think I’ve ever felt and heard that kind of crowd before, because my first cap was during Covid and then we had that summer (of restricted crowds).”

Wales head to Dublin on Friday as heavy underdogs to face Ireland, hoping to end a run of 14 consecutive Six Nations defeats.

Botham says the match offers another opportunity for the side to show progress.

“I know we’ve not won for several years out there, so it’s another marker for us,” he said.

“We need to put in another performance and show what we’ve got. It’s all improvements every game, and everyone’s excited for it.”