Will Steve Tandy reward regional form?
Keiran Williams of the Ospreys slices open the Bulls defence(Image: Getty Images)
When a particular national coach forms a strong opinion on an individual player it can be very difficult to change.
Playing out of his skin for the Ospreys on a weekly basis, it must have felt like running into a brick wall for Keiran Williams who could never quite do enough to persuade Warren Gatland he was good enough to get a shot for Wales. But the beauty of a new coaching team is that the slate is wiped clean and it will be interesting to see if Steve Tandy takes a different view on Williams to Gatland.
The explosive centre has started the new season with a bang and was outstanding for the Ospreys as they went down fighting at altitude against the Bulls in Pretoria.
While they ultimately lost, scoring 40 points at the home of last season’s beaten finalists and picking up a losing bonus point is not a bad day’s work.
Williams was outstanding, carrying hard over the gainline through his explosive power, while also using his passing game to put others through gaps.
The 27-year-old made 14 carries at Loftus Versfeld, the highest from an Ospreys player and second out of everyone on the pitch. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby.
He also scored two crucial tries and excelled in his head-to-head against South Africa international Jan Serfontein and the highly-rated David Kriel.
The question mark has always been whether Williams is quite big enough to punch holes at Test level and if he has enough strings to his bow.
It remains to be seen whether he does or not but if he continues his form against the Bulls over the course of the next month Tandy will at the very least have to seriously consider Williams.
Another Ospreys player who might benefit from a new national coach is second-row Rhys Davies.
The 6ft 6in second-row has won three caps for Wales and while he has struggled with injuries he was never really fancied by the previous management.
Considering Wales’ struggles up-front in recent times an enforcer like Davies should come into the equation.
Davies is a physical player who likes to put it about and finished the game in Pretoria as top tackler with 17, while he also won the lineout well.
Another player who will surely come under serious consideration is Davies’ second-row partner James Fender.
The 24-year-old was rated highly by the previous management who wanted to bring him into the squad to take a look at him but injuries got in the way. Join WalesOnline Rugby’s WhatsApp Channel here to get the breaking news sent straight to your phone for free
Fender is another physical lock who makes a lot of tackles, has a high work rate and does well at the lineout.
Neither Davies or Fender make that many carries so Wales will need to find that dimension elsewhere but it would be a surprise if neither lock won caps over the next year to 18 months.
Ross Moriarty was another who fronted up well and could make Tandy’s autumn squad, while Morgan Morse was excellent in Pretoria.
There was a huge amount of negativity surrounding Morse’s omission from Wales’ summer tour of Japan but surely the 20-year-old will get capped within the next year.
The backrower’s speed off the back of the scrum, his footwork, dynamism and explosive power mark him out as an international star of the future. Get the latest breaking Welsh rugby news stories sent straight to your inbox with our FREE daily newsletter. Sign up here.
With a fresh coaching regime on the horizon, players like Williams, Davies, Fender and Morse are no longer knocking on the door — they’re hammering it down.
Performances like the one in Pretoria don’t just catch the eye; they demand attention. If Wales are serious about evolving, it’s time to reward form over familiarity.