Thomas leads battle of Wales number 10 rivals - Hook

Warren Gatland's search for a first choice fly-half took him from Bristol to Llanelli and then Bridgend this week and he must have been pleased with what he saw.

Remarkably four of the six candidates for Wales' number 10 shirt were in action at Parc y Scarlets.

Callum Sheedy offered a calm guiding hand as Cardiff came from behind to beat Scarlets with four tries, including one scored and another created by Ben Thomas.

The Cardiff pair got the better of Ioan Lloyd, though he still impressed at full-back, and Sam Costelow, who created a try but missed two straightforward penalties to leave Scarlets empty-handed.

Former Wales fly-half James Hook said: "Tactically Sheedy was excellent, Lloyd went well but those two missed penalties by Costelow really took the wind out of the Scarlets’ sails.

"Ben Thomas went really well at 12, in what some people would argue is his best position.

"He created the last try with real heads-up rugby. I was impressed with his kicking but also defensively, he was excellent.

"Tactically it's a big thing to play fly-half but the Welsh management want a 10 who is defensively strong.

"Ben punches above his weight and even though he had Johnny Williams and [second row] Alex Craig coming down his channel, he dealt with them really well."

It was a good weekend for Welsh outside-halves as Dan Edwards completed a 'full house' - try, conversion, penalty and drop-goal - for Ospreys in a 20-point haul against Stormers, while fit-again Gareth Anscombe was a try-scorer for Gloucester at Bristol.

"Dan is really maturing and starting to put some performances together for Ospreys," Hook added.

"He's only going to get better and I'm sure that will put him in the mind of the Welsh coaches."

Macs Page scored the quickest United Rugby Championship (URC) try in four years when he raced over with just 14 seconds on the Parc y Scarlets clock.

Cardiff tried to catch Scarlets off guard with a switch at kick-off but Tom Rogers was alert to set the centre up to score for the second game in a row.

The Wales Under-20s centre is already looking a prospect this season with his Scott Gibbs-type qualities of a low centre of gravity, allied with speed and strength, but will have learned plenty defensively after being given the run-around by Cardiff's veteran Ray Lee-Lo.

Another young player learning from the 37-year-old Samoan at Cardiff is Mason Grady, but not for the reasons people may naturally assume.

Lee-Lo's handling skills have made him a mainstay at Cardiff for almost a decade but it his defensive work that is proving invaluable for the Wales wing.

"He's a legend and I couldn't ask for anyone better to mentor me," said 22-year-old Grady.

"Defence is one of my biggest work-ons this season and he's one of the best defensive 13s around.

"It's about staying calm, making reads and spotting cues at how opposition play."

He added: "Every year is apparently Ray's last, but I think he'll be going longer than me!"

Ospreys may have opted to move to St Helen's in Swansea next season but Bridgend is proving to be a happy hunting ground after three wins in three games.

Last season saw a New Year's Day victory in the mud over Cardiff before Challenge Cup success against Sale Sharks.

Toby Booth's side added Stormers to the list of sides they have overcome in Bridgend with a 37-24 victory.

The game might have been played in front of fewer than 4,000 fans, but the atmosphere at the old style ground beats the more luxurious but soulless Swansea.com Stadium nonetheless.

Booth believes the rough and ready Dunraven Brewery Field embodies his team.

"This is a really great ground for a player and coach to be around," he said.

"It sort of represents us, with our sleeves rolled up and prepared to do it tough.

"We might not be aesthetically pleasing at times but we get the job done. If we can get bonus-point wins along the way, all well and good."

Ospreys will return to Bridgend on 26 October to host Edinburgh.

Reuben Morgan-Williams celebrated his 100th appearance for Ospreys by scoring a try and creating two more in a man-of-the-match display in front of Wales coach and former scrum-half Rob Howley.

Ospreys have more experienced Test half-backs waiting to return from injury in Owen Williams and Kieran Hardy, but Morgan-Williams and Edwards thrived.

"It was a very mature performance from the pair of them and that bodes well for us for the future," said Booth.

"Often when you celebrate a milestone, it doesn't go your way. To see Reuben deliver a performance like that, in a very big game in front of his family, I'm delighted for him."

At the other end of the scale, Aled Davies' kicking display for Cardiff may have piqued Gatland's interest, even if the former Saracens player is now 32.

A six-day turnaround before facing Leinster at the Aviva Stadium was always likely to prove a stretch for Dragons and so it proved.

Dogged Dragons were just 10-6 down at the break, but Leinster stretched clear in the second half, albeit aided by officiating decisions, to win 34-6 in Dublin.

“We got off to a good start but the six-day turnaround was tough," said captain Ben Carter.

“Physically we matched what we needed to but then a couple of their tries really damaged our momentum.

"The target now is to play games at that level for the full 80 minutes and being smarter discipline-wise."

Leinster are without a trophy since 2021 but with Springbok RG Snyman and All Blacks centre Jordie Barrett joining soon, their rivals have a battle to defeat this star-studded squad, who top the URC on points-difference over Cardiff.

Gareth Anscombe was not the only Wales international to thrive in the Guinness Premiership over the weekend.

Half-back partner Tomos Williams and wing Max Llewellyn also shone brightly for Gloucester against Bristol as well as Welsh-qualified lock Freddie Thomas.

Leigh Halfpenny also rolled back the clock, with the veteran full-back among the try scorers for Harlequins.

It's been a long wait for Josh Macleod to get back playing after suffering a serious knee injury at Clermont-Auvergne back in January.

During the flanker's return against Cardiff on Saturday, referee Christopher Allison asked if he had cramp.

"Yeah, for nine months!" came the reply.