SM
Man Utd vs. Newcastle: 14 hrs 56 mins
Upcoming predictions and previews

Wales

Nick Tompkins understands frustrations over abundance of kicking

:Headline: Nick Tompkins understands frustrations over abundance of kicking: ID:424404: from db_amp
Wales went down 24-13 to England in Llanelli.

Wales centre Nick Tompkins says he can empathise with rugby fans' frustration over an abundance of kicking and apparent attacking paucity pervading the game.

The current Autumn Nations Cup tournament has proved a damp squib in terms of entertainment value.

There was precious little of it on show at Parc y Scarlets as England ground out a 24-13 victory over Wales to book a Nations Cup final appointment with France next weekend.

Nick Tompkins feels for rugby fans (Adam Davy/PA)

Kicking again dominated, while both sides struggled to make an impact in attack, and it was often tedious to watch.

"I would say that I totally understand where they (fans) are coming from," Tompkins said.

"Myself, I want to attack and get ball in hand and pass and play, but at the end of the day we are playing Test rugby to win.

"We do that however we can do it, and sometimes maybe the rules shift and this happens. It ebbs and flows. We have to adapt.

“I want to attack and get ball in hand and pass and play, but at the end of the day we are playing Test rugby to win”
- Nick Tompkins

"I understand exactly where that argument comes from because I have felt it sometimes myself.

"We have to keep looking at these rules and making decisions to make sure everything is fluid, and we should be able to change things. Just as much as we bring them in, we should be able to take them out.

"I believe the rules that have come in around the breakdown have made it a lot harder to attack.

"How the rules are and how quick referees are to give penalties away for holding on, you want to kick the ball away a bit more and put a team under pressure.

"You could argue that, or just say we have to get better at what we do in terms of retaining possession. It's a combination of a couple of things.

"It is frustrating from a backs' point of view, but you have to adapt and move."

Wayne Pivac has seen Wales lose seven of his nine tests (David Davies/PA)

Wales' latest defeat was a seventh in nine Tests under head coach Wayne Pivac, although it proved their best performance since running England close at Twickenham eight months ago.

They wind up the Nations Cup campaign with a home play-off against Italy next weekend, and Tompkins added: "We've got to take the positives out of the performance and can keep getting better, like we are.

"It sometimes feels we shoot ourselves in the foot and our mistakes are our undoing, but if we look at the positives, we are in these games.

"It's going to come. If we keep chipping away, the rock will crack. We just have to keep pounding at it."

amp_article__424404 : Database Data restored...  : 
last updated article - 2020-11-29 22:47:33:
html db last update - 2021-03-11 05:55:31 :

ex - 7200 : read : read cache amp html

Click here for more stories about Nick Tompkins

Click here for more stories about Wales

Share this article now:
Recommended Next on SM
Premier League Table
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
1Manchester CityMan City37277393336088
2Arsenal37275589286186
3Liverpool372310484414379
4Aston Villa37208976562068
5Tottenham HotspurSpurs371961271611063
6Newcastle UnitedNewcastle361761379572257
7Chelsea361691173611257
8Manchester UnitedMan Utd36166145256-454
9West Ham UnitedWest Ham371410135971-1252
10Brighton & Hove AlbionBrighton361212125458-448
11Bournemouth37139155365-1248
12Crystal Palace371210155258-646
13Wolverhampton WanderersWolves37137175063-1346
14Fulham37128175159-844
15Everton37139153949-1040
16Brentford37109185461-739
17Nottingham ForestNott'm Forest3789204766-1929
18Luton TownLuton3768235081-3126
RBurnley3759234076-3624
RSheffield UnitedSheff Utd37372735101-6616
Scroll for more - Tap for full version


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
AL
Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!

Loading ...

Failed to load data.



. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .