The same old story

It's the same old story, we don't have the strength in depth to put out the seconds and get a thumping win. There will be gnashing and gnawing of collective teeth at the selection of so many "brave" selections. Not only did some of the wild cards not perform, like the front row and Dafydd Jones, but some of the so called main picks like Andy Powell and Henson failed to live up to expectations. Again Powell, running back ball like an American Football rookie running back or punt returner waiting for the ball to be stripped from their flimsy grasp. It's so unpredictable. Contrast him with Paresi's immense display. What a shame there isn't a Europe team going to South Africa this Summer. He'd be an ideal candidate at No 8.
Anyway, back to the game. Wales should have, and I'm not going to blame the coaches because the team was announced very early and in addition Gatland was bold enough to broadcast that there would be wholesale changes after the Friday night in Paris. Should we expect that this team should have been good enough to beat Italy by more? My answer is YES. Today, we expect our international players to take their chances. They've been part of the squad system for a couple of years now with this management team. In addition, our regions are doing well enough in the Magners League, Heineken Cup and the EDF. So why did the likes of John Yapp, Huw Bennett, Dafydd Jones, Rhys Thomas, Mark Jones and Charteris (to an extent) stuff up against an Italian side that had not performed at all in it's previous games? Well, part of it is the expectation. Gatland and Edwards are right to demand that their game plan is implemented. The main men need to have understudies in case of injury and the tough latter stages of a World Cup or grueling tour in the Southern Hemisphere. Secondly, we've always been seen as a big rugby country and everybody feels as if they can knock us off our perch. As Six Nations and Grand Slam Champions we're there to be shot at. So where do we go from here?
We need a strong team and a strong bench to face the Irish. I would go for -
15. Lee Byrne 14. Lee Halfpenny 13. Tom Shanklin 12. Jamie Roberts 11. Shane Williams 10. Stephen Jones 9. Mike Philips 1. Adam Jones 2. Matthew Rees 3. Gethin Jenkins 4. Ian Gough 5. Alun Wyn Jones 6. Jonathan Thomas 7. Martyn Williams 8. Ryan Jones (capt) with Gavin Henson, James Hook, Wayne Fury, Rhys Thomas, Huw Bennett, Charteris or Dafydd Jones and Andy Powell on the Bench.
Can we beat the Irish with this team. YES. Will we manage to claw back the points difference to win the championship. No. But we could have made our job far easier. Firstly - we have conceded too many needless penalties and tries in relation to last year. Secondly, and more importantly - we have failed to convert our try opportunities against all our opponents to date. I can think of at least three try scoring opportunities against Scotland where we could have made the margin of victory more convincing, likewise, we should have put another twenty points on poor English team and Henson should have given the pass in the last minutes for try in the corner which could have been the biggest upset in years. In addition, today, Hook had an opportunity to feed Henson in the first half and the introduction of the subs should have been made ten minutes earlier. So let's see what Warren will do and how we as a nation react to his selection and how we handle next week's game against the Irish. If they are able to play in the manner they did in the second half against the Jock's we may see us loose confidence, the crowd at the Mill Stad get up themselves and a Grand Slam could be theirs.
In addition some Lion's places and reputations are at stake - Ryan Jones in particular.