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I hate manufactured photo shoots for rugby, somehow they just don’t seem to work, and today’s 6 Nations Captains’ gathering did nothing to change my mind.

They were on the BBC news – so well done for the PR – but as the camera angle turned to show their backs I spotted something worrying – or am I paranoid?

The Scottish captain had a number 9 on his back, the English Captain had no number on his back – cos he’s might not be there – but Ryan Jones (the Welsh captain) had no number on his back either!

FFS: Ryan is the best No 8 in the UK! There almost needs to be a monopolies commission investigation into his Man of the Match performances for the Ospreys since he recovered from the North America and Lions tours.

But it just shows that when someone plays to his strengths he performs, no: out-performs and places himself above the competition.

So if your name is Warren Gatland and you are reading this blog: make sure that there’s a No 8 on Ryan’s back at Twickers next week. And if you’re not WG, tell him is you see him!

The Welsh team performance was not great last night against Samoa, but the Welsh Captain, Ryan Jones, certainly put in a man of the match performance that was really pleasing.

In September I wrote that Wales needed him and suggested that he should stick to playing No 8. Since then – was he listening I wonder – he has lead the Ospreys well and only as a No8  and has delivered at least 3 Man of the Match performances for them. Last night he did it for Wales.

It is such a shame for seemingly so nice a guy that he was not allowed to shine on the global stage as a Lion this summer.

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I’m not Cardiff born, nor am I Cardiff bred, but I do live there and have done so for 16 years or more. And for many of those years I’ve followed Cardiff, and sometimes the Blues in all their efforts. But tonight I was faced with the choice of Cardiff v Glasgow on S4C, or Harlequins v Bath on Sky both at the ridiculous time of around 6pm.

S4C is kinda the default option for our house especially when the Blues are involved. And I started watching, but gosh: it was dull, just as previous games have been.

But this was made worse  often by quite stupid decisions by players who frankly ought to know better.

So channel surfing: what a game between Bath and Quins! Passion, speed, determination, commitment, pace, passing, tackling, aggression – it was great to watch.

The Magners League has been diluted to a dull event whilst the Guinness league gets my vote from hereon. It definitely touches every corner of the game in such a positive way and as a result draws good crowds with great atmosphere.

Given the choice it’s Guinness for me when it comes to choosing matches on the box.

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The Ospreys may have won tonight but they are still not fulfilling their potential and dominating a game as their strong squad ought to. However there was one pleasing thread through the whole game and that was the return on Ryan Jones.

He definitely deserved his man of the match award not only for his individual performance but also for his captaincy.

It amazes me that he has bounced back in this way having had such a miserable time of injury and selection problems earlier in the year.

He is the only class act at Number 8 in Wales and needs to tell both his regional and national coaching team he plays 8 and nothing else. Then hopefully we will see him return to the force he was 3 or 4 years ago. Well done Ryan.

The results of a deliberate attempt to harm

Whilst sometimes sport can thrill it too can sometimes disappoint. Rugby has always been a great game for me and now for my sons too, but sometimes it can be ruined by stupidity.

Last weekend one of my clan was leading a team at the annual Aberaeron 7’s, a small weekend festival in the most fantastic setting on the West Coast of  Wales. He’d gathered a team of mates who had travelled from Merthyr, Coventry and Birmingham to play in the competition. They came becasue they love playing rubgy and love all that normally goes with it.

Around the country other ad-hoc teams were coming together for similar reasons and with the intention of having a good time. And with a Youth Festival and a Women’s tournament too, it has always had the makings of a good weekend in Aberaeron.

But not everyone approaches the game in the same way. The last few months have seen acts of savagery perpetrated by “Stars” around the world. Some of the most respected men in rugby have been cited and found guilty of the most horrendous foul play and brought the game into disrepute.

Sadly, some of that nastiness cascaded down to Aberaeron 7’s last weekend. When I saw my son the morning after the tournament he could only hobble. His left knee had been stamped on, deliberately. He told me that he’d been tackled and as a ruck developed he’d protected his head with his arms only to see someone stamp – deliberately – on his knee. He didn’t see the face, or the number of the stamper. He then could only hobble off and miss the rest of the game.

The result is not life threatening, but it is uncomfortable and limiting. Ordered to rest for 2 weeks, lots of bruising and a feeling that maybe, just maybe the game isn’t the matching of man-on-man that I’d told him it was for all those years.

As for the stamper: he gets away with it and will no doubt do it again whilst representing the people of Kidwelly. I wonder if they are as proud of him as I am of my son?

Saturday is my wedding anniversary: 28 years ago tonight I was still single. But I just can’t look forward to Saturday.

No: it’s nothing to do with my marriage, which is fine/great/wonderful etc etc, it’s because bloody Kick Ball is back.

Even before I’ve managed to get my shirt off in the garden or on the beach, the winter sport returns to our radio and TV screens and I have to wonder: Why?

At the highest level it is a beautiful game. But outside the Premiership it is not. It is a magnet for the exploitation of people who want to follow. To follow a “team” that is in fact a bunch of similarly dressed individuals, to follow a crowd who can find nothing more worthwhile to do and follow matches on the tele too many nights each week.

But because there is so much money in this game it’ll invade our TV screens before the 4th Test is complete and before I’ve had to reach for the After-Sun.  And that, IMHO,  destroys what used to be called “Summer”.

There are 2 very important announcements coming next week, within 24 hours of one another. On Wednesday we will hear the Chancellor’s plans for the economy and the day before the touring squad of British and Irish Lions will be announced for their tour of South Africa. I know which one I’m looking forward to most.

When the Chancellor gets to his feet he’s on a bit of a hiding before he starts as the Government appears to have lost the confidence of the people, certainly business people and there will be an expectation of spin, and a veneer that things will get better. Also, we really don’t know what he is trying to do. Whilst the Government needs to “fix” the economy, they also need, or is that want, to get themselves re-elected at the looming election. Consequently they have potentially diverging objectives, some of which are not clearly communicable and they can’t get people to rally around them

On the other hand, when Ian McGeechan announces his squad for what is expected be a huge challenge in South Africa he will be listened to avidly and attentively. His selection will be analysed and dissected and yet, almost certainly will be unanimously supported. And the reason for such support is clear: people will believe him, He has a record of success, he knows how to build a team and he has the clear goal of beating the ‘Boks. His team know that the challenge is huge both mentally and physically but they will also know that their goal is to win their 3 test matches. That is all that matters and every ounce of blood sweat and tears will go to fulfilling that objective.

When we look back in a few months or years and review the announcements made and their relative success I have no doubt that even if the Lions lose they will have given their all. They will have focused on the goal, yet may have been beaten by a better team. Sadly, due to unclear focus I suspect our economy will still be struggling.

The Welsh rugby team were beaten well last night, but there was a great piece of marketing by their main sponsors, Brains and Co, brewers in Cardiff which has to go down as a victory.
For those not aware of advertising regulation in France: it is unacceptable for a sport to be supported by booze. As a result the Heineken cup is known in France as the “H Cup”, and last year the Wales rugby team removed the word “Brains” from their shirt and replaced it with “Brawn”.
Last night however they were in bilingual clever marketing when the shirt front read “TRY Essai” and Essai, as far as I recall is French for Try.
Sounds OK so far: but the really clever part is that one of Brains’ beers is called Brains SA (locals in Cardiff think that SA stands for Skull Attack) so the sponsors were encouraging their market to “try SA” – a very neat juxtaposition. Well done Brains.
In retrospect, maybe they should have stuck to the Brawn for last night in what was a tough bruising encounter.

Not only is Martyn Williams a great flanker, possibly the best No 7 in the world at the moment, but he is also a really nice guy. I had the pleasure to meet him recently at a small reception in Cardiff and was really impressed with his sense of fun as much as his brilliant rugby which I had seen over the years.

It’s therefore marvellous to see that he’ll become the most capped Welsh rugby player on Friday when he steps out against France in Paris. We are slowly getting rid of the memories of the golden 70’s and this significant record will push those sweet, but truly irrelevant records to one side.

Martyn is also one of the few players to be certain of a starting position for the Lions this year, and I wouldn’t be too surprised if he was also a candidate for Captain.  A true rugby giant, with a great sense of fun.