15. Leigh Halfpenny – 7
Took over kicking duties from the wayward Rhys Priestland and held his nervy excellently. While at full back he never looked entirely comfortable under the high ball but defended well on the whole.
14. Alex Cuthbert – 5
Disappointing debut from the 21-year-old. Exposed for Rory Best’s try before being withdrawn for James Hook at half-time.
13. Jon Davies – 8
Quick, energetic and strong. Took both tries very well and is proving to be a top class international centre.
12. Jamie Roberts – 7
One of his more quiet games for Wales but Roberts is incredibly important for Wales, both in defence and attack. Reliable going forward, he will improve as he continues his return from injury.
11. George North – 9
Fantastic performance from the winger. Showed great strength and guile in his assist for Jon Davies’ second try and then capped off his performance with an effort of his own. Man of the match.
10. Rhys Priestland – 6
A performance that swung from one extreme to the other as he battled with his kicking demons. Excelled with ball in hand, particularly for Jon Davies’ first try, but had to be relieved of his kicking duties.
9. Mike Phillips – 7
A typically fiery performance from the Bayonne scrum half. Occasionally involved rather too much at the breakdown but a solid game nonetheless.
1. Rhys Gill – 7
Good performance on his first Six Nations start. Solid in the scrum and showed up in the loose too.
2. Huw Bennett – 5
Will take the brunt of the blame for Wales’ poor lineout but performed admirably in the loose. The ill-functioning lineout will stick in the mind though.
3. Adam Jones – 6
Typically reliable performance from the tight head. Ensured parity in the scrum and was his usual busy self in the loose.
4. Bradley Davies – 6
Made his presence felt as a ball carrier early on and showed great pace on one particular burst from a line-out. Should have seen red for a reckless, off-the-ball spear tackle.
5. Ian Evans – 6
Ran hard and hit each ruck with great tenacity. Formed an effective second row combination alongside Bradley Davies.
6. Ryan Jones – 7
Fantastic talismanic performance that echoed the days when he led the side. Dan Lydiate may miss the Scotland game anyway but Jones more than justified a place for next week.
7. Sam Warburton – 6
Performed well in the face of a fearsome Irish back row but failed to dominate as he did in their World Cup encounter.
8. Toby Faletau – 7
Didn’t make the sort of impact in the loose to which spectators have become accustomed, but topped his side’s tackle count and turnover count for the day.
Replacements:
James Hook and Justin Tipuric both had the whole second half to make an impact and performed well without impressing too much.
by Tom James
I thought Tipuric looked pretty useful when he came on. Is says something when Wales hardly missed Warburton
Not much to argue about there .I’d take a point off Bradley on the basis that o matter how good the rest of your game if you make one almighty c***k up that could/should lose it then this needs to be reflected .
I would also disagree that Tipuric didn’t impress too much in fact we didn’t miss Warburton when he was off which is high enough praise so I’d give him a 7.
accurate ratings I’d say
i take my hat off to G north.
he is the modern complete winger. im not going to ask if he has a kicking game , because if he doesnt, who cares!!!
shoe in Lions player at the moment.
and he is only 19 !
I disagree i thought tipuric looked very sharp and turned over a couple of cruicial ball and looked a strong lineout option. I found that warburton was not missed at all in the second half and thought tipuric was very impressive overall.
Priestland just isn’t a good goalkicker. He’s an excellent footballer, but he shouldn’t be taking the kicks. I can’t understand why James Hook doesn’t start for Wales – he has always suffered from being able to play any position, but the fact is that he is sheer class. Halfpenny should move to the wing in place of Cuthbert and Hook should play at 15. He can relieve Priestland of the goalkicking duties and allow the yougn 10 to concentrate on his game management.
I also think they are fair ratings. My question is why does it take 2 days to get player ratings up on here?