Rees-Zammit thriving on wing as Wales prepare for All Blacks test

Nation.Cymru staff/agencies

Louis Rees-Zammit says returning to his preferred position on the wing has helped him rediscover his confidence as Wales prepare to face New Zealand.

The Bristol player made five line breaks and gained 121 metres during Saturday’s 28-21 Nations Championship win over Japan, scoring his 16th international try.

Having played at full-back for Wales last season, Rees-Zammit welcomed the opportunity to return to a more familiar role.

“I was only ever used to playing on the wing really,” he said.

“I wouldn’t say it was an experiment because as a back-three player it’s very interchangeable.

“So if I’m asked to play there I’ll play there, but my favourite position is playing on the wing.”

Rees-Zammit returned to international rugby 12 months ago after spending two years pursuing an NFL career. He acknowledged during the summer that readjusting had taken longer than he wanted.

But his performance against Japan offered evidence of his growing assurance.

“I’m playing with a smile on my face, playing with confidence, and always feel I can beat defenders,” he said.

Wales now face New Zealand and Australia in Cardiff over successive weekends after securing their second victory from four Nations Championship matches.

The All Blacks have won their last 34 meetings with Wales, including a 52-26 victory in Cardiff last November when Rees-Zammit was among the try scorers.

“We were in that game for 60-odd minutes. It’s about hard work, putting your body on the line against those boys,” he said.

“It’s always special playing the All Blacks, but no matter who the opponent is we want to win games.”

Head coach Steve Tandy acknowledged that Wales would need to improve substantially after struggling to put Japan away.

Josh Adams scored twice, with Archie Griffin and Rees-Zammit also crossing, but a late converted try from Kenta Fukuda left the hosts defending a seven-point lead.

“There was really good stuff from us, in terms of the line breaks and how we opened Japan up. But we weren’t ruthless enough and we didn’t finish those off, making them pay when it counted,” Tandy said.

Missed opportunity

The result was Wales’s fourth win in 13 Tests under Tandy, although they remain fifth in the competition’s northern hemisphere standings.

Japan coach Eddie Jones felt his side had missed an opportunity to claim a first victory in Cardiff.

“We had three opportunities but we didn’t take chances and Wales did. Their points-per-entry was higher than ours,” he said.