Welsh rugby's winners and losers as new X-factor Wales teen outshines Springboks
Warren Gatland will have been a nervous man this weekend, with no fewer than eight of his Six Nations squad in action the other side of the Severn Bridge.
The likes of Dafydd Jenkins, Freddie Thomas, Tomos Williams and Tommy Reffell, among others, found themselves in the thick of it in the English Premiership. Gatland will be hoping the majority of them have come through unscathed.
There was also a full round of United Rugby Championship fixtures and it was another mixed bag for Wales' four professional clubs - Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets. Here are our winners and losers from another entertaining weekend of Welsh rugby.
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Tom Bowen
It's hard to believe the Cardiff wing is only 18 given the impact he has already had at the Arms Park. Cardiff ultimately slipped to a 42-22 defeat to the Sharks at the Arms Park with the superior power of the South African outfit the biggest difference between both sides.
But Bowen was arguably the best player on the pitch. The Wales U20s wing is electric with ball in hand and has the pace to scare any defence.
Bowen's attacking threat was on show from very early on when he rounded the Sharks defence before slicing inside to lay the platform for Alex Mann's opening try. He also touched down for two of his own with two tremendous finishes.
Bowen is pure X-factor and has a big future ahead of him both with Cardiff and with Wales at senior level.
Justin Tipuric and the Ospreys
This is the last stand for Tipuric who will hang up his playing boots at the end of the season to become the new Ospreys defence coach. But if Friday night is anything to go by he still has plenty to offer as a player.
The 35-year-old was outstanding and played a pivotal role in the Ospreys' 43-0 demolition of Benetton on Friday night. Tipuric's work rate was through the roof with one line break and a sumptuous offload to wing Dan Kasende resulting in a try.
The former Wales backrower was into everything, while his vision and distribution is still streets ahead of most backs let alone forwards. History will remember the man from Trebanos as one of Wales' greatest forwards.
He will also have been delighted by the Ospreys' reluctance not to concede a single point. After a slow start to the season the Ospreys have turned a corner and are beginning to thrive under Mark Jones.
Toby Booth did a terrific job but former Wales wing Jones seems to be building on his good work.
Josh Macleod
The Scarlets captain has become a regular fixture in the winners section of this column. Macleod was immense yet again as the Scarlets withstood a late onslaught from Edinburgh to secure a vital 30-24 victory in Llanelli.
The 28-year-old put in an all-action display which included nine tackles while he led from the front in an extremely physical encounter at Parc y Scarlets. Yet again Macleod benefitted from the Scarlets' impressive driving lineout to score his ninth try in as many matches.
But arguably his most important intervention came in the 78th minute when he won a crucial penalty at the breakdown to halt Edinburgh's momentum and seal an important win for the Scarlets which was in serious danger of slipping through their fingers. If Macleod wasn't playing in such a competitive position he'd be in the Wales squad but if injuries were to occur his chance will surely come.
Tomos Williams and Max Llewellyn
Gloucester against Leicester Tigers in the Gallagher Premiership on Saturday had no fewer than seven Wales internationals on show. The Cherry & Whites came out on top 38-31 in an absolute thriller at Kingsholm.
Gatland will have been happy with the performance of Wales scrum-half Tomos Williams who terrorised the Leicester defence around the base of the scrum and the ruck. Williams will be a key player for Wales over the next couple of months and he they will need him at his best.
One player who was on fire at Kingsholm was Max Llewellyn. A surprise omission from the Wales squad, Llewellyn, playing on the wing, caused havoc with his pace and power.
One scything run in-field and a delicate offload put Williams over for a crucial try.
Losers
Dragons RFC
This was another tough weekend for the Welsh club who got resoundly beaten 38-19 by Munster at Rodney Parade. The home faithful didn't have much to sheer about with Munster remarkably scoring 21 points within the first four minutes to hold an unassailable 31-0 lead at the interval.
It was a terrible first-half for the Dragons who lose the physical battle and were torn apart out wide. This season is already a write-off for the Gwent outfit and the club are in dire need of a strong recruitment drive this summer both on and off the field.
Hopefully there will be a revival next season when the new owners have had more of a chance to stamp their authority on the squad but unfortunately there is still more pain to come for the Dragons faithful.
Ospreys crowd
The Ospreys have turned the corner after a frustrating start to the season and played some lovely stuff in a six-try 43-0 humiliation of Benetton at the Swansea.com Stadium. But the official attendance of 2,832 was extremely disappointing and Mark Jones' side deserve more support than that.
Yes, the game was played amid weather warnings just a week before the Six Nations against a severely understrength Benetton outfit but such a pitiful attendance is extremely worrying at a time when Welsh rugby is under extreme pressure. But at least the Ospreys have plans to improve matters with their move to St Helens next season expected to improve attendances.
Makazole Mapimpi
The 34-year-old has long been seen as one of the best wingers in the world but Saturday night at the Arms Park was not his finest moment. Mapimpi found himself embroiled in a tussle with replacement Cardiff hooker Efan Daniel who somehow managed to drag the Springbok wings shirt off his back.
The double Rugby World Cup winner reacted by aggressively squaring up to Daniel with his fingers making contact with the Cardiff hookers eyes. There was no excuse whatsoever for Mapimpi's fingers to have gone anywhere near Daniels eyes and it would be a shock if he was not cited for his actions.
WillGriff John
The 32-year-old would have been over the moon with his selection in Wales' Six Nations squad after a three-year absence. But, given he is based in England John was required to play in Sale Sharks' Gallagher Premiership defeat to Bath on Sunday.
He would have been a long-shot in terms of selection for Wales' Six Nations opener against France in Paris this Friday anyway given the five-day turnaround. But now John will almost certainly be ruled out of Wales' first two Six Nations fixtures after the big tighthead failed a HIA after taking a nasty knock to the head.
