Jonathan Davies says Wales are “boxing clever” going into the autumn international campaign and, no matter that first up are their nemesis Australia, the Lions’ man of the series in New Zealand believes the home side are capable of producing something special in Cardiff.
“The advantage the teams have coming over here is that they have just come off a tournament and been together for months,” says the Wales centre. “It is difficult and a challenge but we had a good first week in training, boxing clever and getting some good things done.”
Wales have tended to start autumn international campaigns even more slowly than an ancient bus wheezing its way up a steep gradient. It is nearly eight months since they played together as a team with the summer matches against Tonga and Samoa used for development. On Saturday they face a Wallabies side who after the end of the Rugby Championship played New Zealand and Japan.
Australia have won the past 12 Tests between the sides and are, for the fourth time in the last six tournaments, in the same pool in the 2019 World Cup. Most of the matches have been close but not in Cardiff a year ago when the Wallabies had all but secured victory by half-time.
“There has been disappointment in recent years after the Australia games. It is about getting the work done on and off the field that is needed to make sure we are prepared and up to speed. Australia are a smart side who take their opportunities: last year they created four chances and took them all. If you are passive against southern hemisphere sides, they pick you off. We have to put them under pressure.”
Wales have talked about shaking up their backline this month, moving from power to stealth by having playmakers at 10 and 12. Davies saw the benefit of that in the final two Lions’ Tests in New Zealand when he operated outside Jonathan Sexton and Owen Farrell.
“I enjoyed playing alongside two midfield generals,” he says. “It opens the whole width of the field and teams are going that way. Australia now have Kurtley Beale at 12 and having an extra playmaker is the way the game is going. It is an exciting trend and the philosophy of our game is that we want to play with tempo and get our best athletes on the ball.
“Once ball is slowed down, the defence is on top. It is about delivering quick ball and filling the field: in the past we have tended to overload one side and been easy to defend against.
“When you look at New Zealand, all their front five are comfortable with the ball in hand and we have worked on that: to have a prop who is able to pass or change the point of attack rather than just carry gives you another dimension.
“You have to be comfortable with the ball in your hands and not just hit rucks. You have to be a complete player. It is no good if you go through 20 phases and you are still on the halfway line and haven’t gone anywhere. You have to be dynamic with the ball and build momentum. It is a big thing in rugby these days being able to keep the ball because the ball in play time is much higher now.”
Davies is one of Wales’s senior players and for the first time is in a squad that does not include his long-time midfield colleague Jamie Roberts: they have started 49 Tests together. “It is about developing new relationships,” says Davies. “Competition for places is fierce and it will be a new 23 against Australia. The World Cup is around the corner and a good autumn would take us into the Six Nations feeling confident. It starts with Australia and, while we have not beaten them for a while, we have the talent to get the results we want.”