Dragons head coach Dean Ryan was positively purring at the performance he saw from Wales back row man Aaron Wainwright when he came on as a second half replacement against the Ospreys.
Having been held back from the starting line-up he came on and made an immediate impact – just what Ryan had hoped for and expected from one of his biggest stars.
“We don’t need to rush and get loads of minutes under his belt. We know where he can play and he is hungry to come in and influence things,” said Ryan after Sunday’s 20-20 draw against the Ospreys.
“Aaron came into the game in the second half and looked really sharp. He looked as though he could make an impact at any moment and that’s where we want him to be.”
No fewer than 15 of his 21 caps came in 2019 and when he added three more in this year’s Six Nations campaign it made it 18 internationals in 13 calendar months.
“It was a very, very long year from the previous Six Nations, the World Cup camps, going to Japan and then coming back,” said Wainwright.
“We played the Barbarians, then straight into the regional derbies over Christmas and then the Six Nations. I definitely felt some of the strain of that.
“My body was quite tired, but after having so much time off I’m feeling very fresh and fit and really excited to get back out there. I hope I can still catch people by surprise!
“If people have sussed me out, hopefully, I can do something to change that or catch them off guard again. We’ve got new coaches at the Dragons and I hope I can work with them to see how we can go about improving my strengths and making my weaknesses my strengths – I definitely hope a second season syndrome doesn’t kick in.”
At the start of the 2017/18 season, Wainwright was a student at Cardiff Met University and it took an injury crisis of biblical proportions for him to be given a chance at the Dragons. One player’s misfortune is another’s gain!
After impressing first in the Guinness PRO14, he was a shock selection for Wales’ 2018 summer tour and he made his Test debut as a replacement in the 23-10 win over Argentina in San Juan. He remained a player few outside of Wales had heard of despite featuring in Wales’ Six Nations Grand Slam of 2019.
That all changed in the build-up to the World Cup and in Japan where Wainwright became a firm favourite of then head coach Warren Gatland. With Taulupe Faletau injured, Wainwright usurped his Dragons team-mate Ross Moriarty in Gatland’s starting line-up.
A series of tenacious performances followed which belied his tender years. He featured in every game in the Far East leaving Gatland impressed to such a degree that the man who will lead the British & Irish Lions in South Africa next summer has tipped him as ready to face the current World Cup champions.
“If I keep playing well, and assert myself in the Welsh squad and the starting line-up, then who knows? Hopefully it can happen – I obviously want it to happen – and I’d be over the moon if I got the chance to go on the Lions tour,” he added.
“But the main thing for me is helping the Dragons, playing well for them, and doing well in the European Challenge Cup. If I want to get selected for Wales then I have to do well for them.
“With not much to do in lockdown I have had the chance to reflect on the past 18 months and what I’ve done. It’s been quite nice, but at the same time I’ve still been chomping at the bit to get back out there.
“There is definitely a good feeling at the Dragons with a couple of new signings. They’ve settled in really well so far.
“I’m excited to start playing with them and they’ve been really sharp in training so far. Hopefully we can all start to get some game time together.”
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We’ve got new coaches at the Dragons and I hope I can work with them to see how we can go about improving my strengths and making my weaknesses my strengths
