Wales 54
Uruguay 9
WARREN GATLAND’S INJURY worries continued in Cardiff, as three of his side limped out of Wales’ facile win against Uruguay.
Wales ran in eight tries during the 54-9 win, but the sloppy first half display, coupled with knocks to Paul James, Liam Williams and hat-trick scorer Cory Allen, means it won’t go down as a day to remember for Welsh fans.
There were call for referee Romain Poite to “blow it up” after just a minute, when Felipe Berchesi slotted a first minute penalty for the Uruguayans which had been conceded by Justin Tipuric.
Berchesi tried his luck from 56 metres just two minutes later, but this time his attempt was well short of the posts. However, a high tackle from Luke Charteris gave the out-half another chance to extend the lead, and he made no mistake to make it 6-0.
The lead lasted until the quarter of an hour mark. Wales got their maul going, and it was Samson Lee – playing for the first time since tearing his achilles in March – who touched down. Rhys Priestland’s conversion put the Welsh ahead by a point.
It was soon 14-6. Rhys Priestland chipped through midfield, and it was Cory Allen who flew onto the ball to touch down under the posts.
However Uruguay were frustrating Wales at the breakdown, and continued to plug away at the gap.
A second high-tackle, this time from Jake Ball, gave Berchesi yet another shot at the posts, and he was content to dot it over, and reduce the gap to five, with 25 minutes on the clock.
As the half wore on, Wales’ superiority did begin to show, and Cory Allen in particular was looking sharp. Scott Williams broke well to feed Allen for his second try, and it was a third for Allen on the stroke of half time, wrapping up a bonus point before the break despite a frustrating opening stanza.
It looked like Justin Tipuric had crossed for try number five on 48 minutes, but the flanker spilled the ball as he dived for the line, following a dominant rolling maul.
It wasn’t long before they did cross for their fifth though. A superb break from scrumhalf Gareth Davies opened up the space, and Hallam Amos was able to glide through to touch down. Priestland’s fifth conversion from five attempts made the score 35-9.
The impressive Davies got a try of his own with 20 minutes to play, dotting down after another strong maul. Priestland was off target with the conversion, a first missed kick of the day.
Uruguay showed enormous battle around the pitch, but they couldn’t cope with the maul, and as the life seeped from the game, Wales added points, which could prove crucial come mid-October.
Try number seven arrived just under 10 minutes from time, as Tipuric finished off another easy drive towards the line, before the maul once again contributed for the final try, as Davies scrambled over for his second of the day.
There were positives for the Welsh despite a frustrating performance. Their lineout and maul was never troubled, while Gareth Davies, Cory Allen and Tipuric looked sharp throughout.
Often his downfall, Rhys Priestland also looked sharp off the tee, slotting seven of eight conversions, but overall, it was a far from inspiring win for Warren Gatland’s side.
Wales scorers:Tries: Cory Allen (3), Gareth Davies (2), Samson Lee, Hallam Amos, Justin Tipuric (1 each)Conversions: Rhys Priestland (7)Uruguay scorers:Penalties: Felipe Berchesi (3)
Wales: Liam Williams; Alex Cuthbert , Cory Allen, Scott Williams, Hallam Amos ; Rhys Priestland, Gareth Davies; Paul James, Scott Baldwin, Samson Lee, Jake Ball, Luke Charteris, Sam Warburton (capt), Justin Tipuric, James King.
Replacements: Ken Owens, Aaron Jarvis, Tomas Francis, Dominic Day, Dan Lydiate, Ross Moriarty, Lloyd Williams, Matthew Morgan
Uruguay: Gaston Mieres; Santiago Gibernau, Joaquin Prada, Andres Vilaseca, Rodrigo Silva; Felipe Berchesi, Agustin Ormaechea; Alejo Corral, Carlos Arboleya, Mario Sagario, Santiago Vilaseca (capt), Jorge Zerbino, Juan Manuel Gaminara, Alejandro Nieto, Matias Beer.
Replacements: German Kessler, Oscar Duran, Mateo Sanguinetti, Franco Lamanna, Agustin Alonso, Juan De Freitas, Alejo Duran, Francisco Bulanti.
