Here are the latest rugby headlines on Thursday, January 26.
Gatland makes a difference
Wales prop Wyn Jones says Warren Gatland has already made a difference to the squad following his return.
Gatland has had his players in camp for the past three days, with the emphasis on strong communication with his stars ahead of the Six Nations opener against Ireland on February 4. The Kiwi is expected to give the Welsh team a clear identity going forward, one that is likely to be founded on fitness, hard work and doing the basics right.
Asked if he was making a difference already, Jones said: "Yeah. The boys are on their toes wanting to impress. It's always the case in camp. It's a very competitive environment and everyone is just trying their best.
"He's a real good leader. He's very direct with his messaging. He knows what he wants from everyone and we know what he wants from us. It makes it pretty simple then."
Jones is hoping to nail down the Wales number one jersey after a difficult couple of years under Wayne Pivac, which saw Gareth Thomas usurp him in the international pecking order amid injury and perceived fitness issues.
Farrell's Lions hopes get boost
Andy Farrell will have the “full support” of the Irish Rugby Football Union should he be approached to lead the British and Irish Lions on their 2025 tour to Australia.
Farrell, currently the leading candidate, worked as Warren Gatland's Lions defence coach on the tours of Australia in 2013 and New Zealand four years later but was not available to take a role for the 2021 tour to South Africa.
Speaking after a Lions board meeting in Dublin on Tuesday, IRFU chief executive Kevin Potts said Farrell would have the governing body’s backing if were offered the job.
“I think if Andy Farrell or any Irish coach was to have the honour of being selected as head coach for the Lions, Irish rugby would of course be honoured,” Potts told The Telegraph. “I think any coach or assistant coach or player to be stepping up to Lions would be seen as a good thing for Irish rugby.
“We’ve had people – logistics people, administrative people, and they’re asked, and we say, ‘of course’, it’s never a question of saying that they can’t do it. The Lions are the pinnacle of our sport.
“And if Andy Farrell or anybody else, of course, they’d have our blessing and full support and it would be an honour for us to have somebody associated with the Lions. I’m sure this is not a topic that’s at the forefront of Andy’s mind at this point.”
Farrell would become the first Ireland head coach to be involved with the Lions since Eddie O’Sullivan was part of Sir Clive Woodward’s sizable coaching team for the tour of New Zealand in 2005.
Date set for Wales star's return
Owen Watkin has returned to training after recovering from the knee injury which has sidelined him since Wales’ autumn Tests. The 36-cap centre has been handed a potential return date, with the Ospreys hoping to see him back for the away United Rugby Championship clash against Munster on February 17.
Watkin was injured in the 13-12 defeat against Georgia and subsequently underwent surgery. But he is well down the road to resuming playing action, with Ospreys head coach Toby Booth reporting that the 6ft 2in, 15st 8lb player has taken a significant step forward.
“Owen Watkin ran around [on Wednesday],” said Booth. “We like to get them out there and involved in parts of the session just to feel part of it. It also psychologically helps players to realise that they’re close to returning. You also see how they respond and you build that up over a few weeks. We’re hoping he can play a part against Munster.”
Watkin would now look to build his fitness base, said Booth. Dan Lydiate, by contrast, has yet to return to training, so he was some way from resuming, the coach added.
Who will win Wales v Ireland? Cast your vote now
Australia star 's***ting himself' over playing under Eddie Jones
Australia scrum-half Nic White has said he is "s***ting himself" over playing under new coach Eddie Jones.
Jones, who previously coached the Wallabies from 2001-2005, was appointed head coach after Dave Rennie was sacked earlier this month following a poor calendar year of results which yielded just five Test wins from 14.
The ex-England boss will now take charge of his home country in a World Cup year, and is known for his intense approach.
"Eddie Jones, [is] an amazing coach, a guy who a lot of us admire what he's done and are pretty excited," he said on Channel 9's Australian Open coverage, via MailOnline.
"Excited and I guess everyone is kind of quietly s***ting themselves about Eddie coming in. Mate, he's a world-class coach so there is a bit of excitement there but he is also a whole lot of unknown for us players. It has been a ride."
Welsh success vital to URC, says boss
United Rugby Championship chief Martin Anayi says it's vital for the competition the Welsh regions build on their recent European success.
He also confirmed qualification for the top tier European Champions Cup is set to be purely on merit from next season, rather than the guaranteed place Wales has at the moment. That will mean Welsh sides will have to finish inside the top eight going forward to take on the best of the best, as the Ospreys are doing right now by reaching the last 16.
Anayi said: “Where we still need to improve in terms of perception is in Wales and that comes with results. We have a lot of games free-to-air there and we are doing our best to promote the message of the BKT URC.
“Having successful teams in Wales makes a huge difference. You saw that in the year the Scarlets won the league, you saw it when Cardiff won the Challenge Cup. It has an effect on crowds and engagement. We’ve just not seen that success for the last few years, but this season, my goodness, we are starting to see some real runs being put together, notably in the Champions Cup with the Ospreys, with incredible victories against Montpellier and Leicester.
“We’ve also had the runs the Scarlets and Cardiff have put together in the Challenge Cup. Hopefully they will build that momentum back into the league.”
So, as he looks to the future, what are the next set of objectives?
“We have still got a bit of a job to do with teams 16 to 14, potentially up to 13, in terms of are they as competitive as they can be,” he replied. “There’s a lot to do commercially to make the game bigger and a lot to do to bring new fans into the grounds.
“By no means are we done. It’s not a finished article. It’s definitely a work in progress, but the building blocks are there more so than when it was the PRO12 or the PRO 14. Next season, most likely we will go back to straight meritocracy, with the top eight going through to the Champions Cup.”
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