Ben Thomas says he’s “trying not to overthink” his new position as Wales fly-half forward of Saturday’s second Take a look at towards Australia.
Thomas was a shock choice at No 10 for the opening contest of the two-match collection as Wales went down 25-16 in Sydney final weekend.
The 25-year-old performed nearly all of his membership rugby final season for Cardiff at inside-centre, however has been chosen over Sam Costelow by Warren Gatland for each video games in Australia.
Saturday’s second Take a look at in Melbourne, reside on Sky Sports activities Motion at 10:45am, will likely be only a fourth worldwide look for Thomas, with final weekend having been his first begin for Wales after two substitute appearances in 2021.
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Watch highlights of Australia’s opening Take a look at win of head coach Joe Schmidt’s tenure towards Wales in Sydney
“It’s been pretty good,” he advised Sky Sports activities Information.
“I’ve had a number of assist, to be honest, from the coaches the final two weeks, as a result of it has been a reasonably new problem, however one I’ve loved. It has been actually good.
“I believe there is usually a lot that comes with the Welsh 10 jersey, so for me it is about appreciating what’s come earlier than but in addition making an attempt to not overthink it.
“It’s still rugby even though it’s a Test match. So, for me, it’s trying to keep a balance.”
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Wales labored their manner again into the sport courtesy of a penalty strive
Thomas made only one begin at fly-half for Cardiff final season, along with his different 16 appearances coming within the 12 jersey, however he believes the character of his position for his membership has ready him properly for this chance.
“I’m pretty comfortable. The way I play for Cardiff in the 12, I find myself a lot at first receiver, so it’s not a massive difference for me,” he mentioned.
“You definitely have a lot more time at 12, but I think probably for me, at 10, it’s about finding a balance between bringing that playmaking role but also driving the team around the field and putting us into the right areas.
“I believe that is most likely going to be the problem at 10, the game-management aspect of issues. However I’ve loved that problem and it is one thing I hope to maintain bettering on.”
‘Wales trying to flip losing habit’
Last Saturday’s defeat extended Wales’ losing streak to eight matches, a run that started with their final fixture at last year’s Rugby World Cup.
Several of those losses have been by tight margins, and the reverse in Sydney was the latest example of Gatland’s side coming up short in a fixture which they appeared capable of winning.
Thomas says that it’s “non-negotiable” for Wales to put an end to the streak on Saturday to break the “behavior” of dropping.
“I think we were all massively frustrated with how we let last week’s game run away from us,” he mentioned.
“We had ample opportunities to win that game and ultimately we weren’t clinical enough. So this week it’s non-negotiable for us to win.
“I believe that is most likely the principle factor. If you begin dropping video games it might probably develop into a little bit of a behavior, so we’re making an attempt to flip that on its head and make successful a behavior.
“So, I think we need to get over the line firstly and then hopefully we’ll start to learn how to see out these close games.”
Wales play Australia within the ultimate Take a look at of the collection on Saturday, reside on Sky Sports activities Motion from 10.30am (10.45am kick-off) – with England vs New Zealand reside on the identical channel simply prior. Stream rugby’s summer time internationals in 2024 and extra with a NOW Sports activities Month Membership. No contract, cancel anytime.
