With his performances for Exeter Chiefs so far this season, as well as the fact Wayne Pivac is clearly a fan, it seems a fair bet Christ Tshiunza will be in Wales' autumn squad next week.
Perhaps the only question is where the 20-year-old will feature in Pivac's plans. Tshiunza has often been talked up as a second-row/blindside hybrid early in his career. During the summer, he packed down at loose-head lock in all four of Wales' U20s matches alongside Exeter team-mate Dafydd Jenkins, providing some ballast behind loose-head prop Rhys Barratt.
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But his breakthrough with Exeter this season has come with a number seven on his back. Is there the chance that it could be on the openside that Tshiunza makes his mark this autumn?
Or will it be be on the blindside, or even in the second-row that we see him? In truth, the answer is fairly simple and it comes down to his playing style and how that compliments the teams that he's in.
Let's start with wearing the seven jersey for Exeter. In the framework that Exeter head coach Ali Hepher uses, two flankers in the mould of blindsides works fine.
There's no out-and-out jackal threat, or traditional openside, but that's not an issue for a side looking to prioritise lineout options and bulk in their back-row. Tshiunza brings that in spades.
For just as eye-catching as his two tries against Harlequins were recently, including the last-gasp winning score, it was a lineout steal with less than 60 seconds to go that set the platform for victory.
That steal comes, first and foremost, from a ridiculous ability to get off the ground quickly. Quins' lineout option is already in the air before Tshiunza is ready to jump, yet he still gets up - with minimal lift - and steals it.
Wales' lineout tends to struggle due to a combination of reasons. Hooker is always the public's go-to issue, but an overreliance on safe ball options like Justin Tipuric is just as important.
Few get off the ground as quickly as Tipuric, but having another credible lineout option is vital to Wales' lineout - particularly if it frees up Tipuric to play scrum-half or as a midfield playmaking option, as Jonathan Humphreys tried back in 2020.
Obviously, that lineout steal doesn't inspire headline writers as much as two tries, but what was interesting was how both tries came about: namely, Tshiunza operating in the wide channels.
Now, that's hardly a novelty in the modern game. Wales have utilised the likes of Taulupe Faletau and Tipuric in wider channels before now to good effect, while Alun Wyn Jones has also been toyed with in terms of holding width, but Tshiunza can certainly add some variables to Wales' balance in the pack.
Jones working in wider channels isn't something that has brought all that much in the way of rewards for Wales under Pivac. Often, it's hard to separate the image of Test rugby's most capped player by the touchline with Wales opting for a cross-field bomb after losing momentum in midfield.
Whether Tshiunza is packing down in the second-row or back-row, he certainly has the all-round skills, such as being able to get his hands free and offload, to thrive in those wider spaces. Simply the sight of Tshiunza's considerable frame in any semblance of space is enough to worry defenders.
Whenever Exeter have used him out wide, he's tended to draw two or three defenders to the tackle area - such is the threat. However, even with that numerical disadvantage, the defenders are scrambling, meaning Tshiunza is dictating contact and Exeter can take numbers out of the defence when they reload.
Those skills make him just as dangerous in the tight. Against Harlequins, he carried relentlessly. Opta recorded him as having made 124 metres from 11 carries against Harlequins.
That average gain of 11.3 metres - an average boosted by two tries from relative distance - was the most by any forward who had made 10 or more carries in a Premiership match since November 2010.
His carrying wasn't to the fore as much against Bristol Bears last week, but some impressive signs of his game remained.
Beyond the consistently impressive clearout work and a solid defensive outing - making 16 tackles - his smart work with ball in hand was demonstrated with a deft dummy to get beyond Callum Sheedy. Given how telegraphed tip-on passes can tend to look, having someone able to read the defence on the gainline and sell a dummy is by no means a bad thing.
His ability as a strong carrier was also obvious in the way that Bristol looked to deal with him. Early on, it became clear that there was an effort to target him.
Ellis Genge flew out of the line to put a big hit in after Tshiunza was forced to take a pass statically, following it up with a fairly animated celebration.
It was clear that Bristol wanted to stop Tshiunza's carrying at source, but that opened them up to being exploited. Minutes later, Tshiunza runs a credible running line and Exeter find the edge out the back.
In this instance, neither Genge and Harry Randall can drift off Tshiunza too soon. When it becomes apparent he's not getting the ball, Genge flies out of the line to try and target the pass recipient, while Randall pushes off to wider threats - leaving a gap.
When Wales have played their best rugby under Pivac, it's been when they've got Faletau and Tipuric working in tandem. To do that often means having someone in the back-row who can counter-balance what they are doing. Hitting rucks, doing graft work and targeting different areas of the field to that pair.
When Faletau and Tipuric want to roam towards the touchlines, Tshiunza can be the one to pick up the slack in the middle of the park - drawing defenders to him as he did with Genge above. But if they want to bring Tipuric and Faletau infield to pick at gaps around the fringes or in midfield, Tshiunza is capable of holding his width.
All of these abilities that have seem him excel so far this season in a seven jersey are what mark him out as the second-row/blindside hybrid Wales have been longing for. Gethin Jenkins has spoken about it on previous occasions, with the likes of Seb Davies and Aaron Shingler getting opportunities at times.
Tshiunza perhaps isn't quite as mobile as either of them, but he packs more of a physical impact while still offering what Wales want altogether from a hybrid.
Former Wales captain Sam Warburton, who helped to discover Tshiunza, recently said he would be surprised if he's not starting by France next year. And despite the number on his back in a white jersey, it's likely that his role in a Welsh one will differ slightly - even if the skillset remains the same.
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