While his Under 20 squad were wrapping up their campaign with a victory against Italy, a number of his former age grade players were simultaneously earning their spurs for Robin McBryde’s Test side, which took on Tonga and Samoa on a demanding two-Test tour of the Pacific.
Nine players earned their first cap against Tonga while ex-Wales U20 duo Rory Thornton and Adam Beard claimed theirs in the clash against Samoa. Of the 11 who made their bow, only four hadn’t come under Strange’s stewardship since he took up the reins in 2015 with Wales U20s.
Of those four, only Wyn Jones and Aled Davies hadn’t experienced any U20 playing time during their fledgling careers.
While the age grade system hasn’t always courted favouritism from a demanding Welsh fraternity, Strange believes the presence of so many youngsters in McBryde’s touring squad can only be a good thing for the future of Welsh rugby.
“I thought it was a great endorsement of not just the 20s but the whole pathway,” he said.
“Both nationally and regionally, it shows the pathway is working when you have players of 19 and 20 playing for your national team in Test match arenas and not just playing, but acquitting themselves extremely well.
“That’s a huge compliment to everyone involved in their development. Not only have they been given an opportunity, but they took it and did really well at such a young age.
“The reality is the majority of those players are not going to reach their peak for another two or three years – the earlier they can be exposed at the highest level, the better.”
Closer to home, Strange is confident his young group of players will learn from this year’s tournament in Tabilisi where pool defeats to Australia (24-17) and England (34-22) alongside a comfortable 54-20 triumph against Samoa then saw Wales contest the middle tier competition.
A surprise loss to Scotland (29-25) was then followed by a hard earned 25-24 win against the vastly improved Italians to ensure Wales finished seventh in the most evenly contested championship for some time.
And with 12 players still eligible for next year’s U20 World Championship, Strange is hopeful narrow defeats can be turned into victories.
“From an overall individual development perspective, which is what we always try and reflect on, there were some real positives in Georgia,” he said.
“Lots of individual performances were excellent, particularly from the younger players who have another year at Under 20s – Will Jones was excellent throughout the tournament, Shane Lewis-Hughes was another – those players really put their hands up against quality opponents – the likes of Will, Ben Jones, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Will Griffiths and Dane Blacker will all gain from the experience and return better prepared next year.”
“Results wise, if we look at the first two games in particular, both games were extremely competitive and close – a couple of critical errors proved the difference between winning and losing.”
Strange believes the standard of the World Rugby U20 Championship has improved dramatically across the board with New Zealand continuing to lead the way.
“What the tournament has shown more than anything, not just from a team perspective but also from an individual perspective, is how high the standard has become – New Zealand in particular – and that is something we need to aspire to.
“Aside from New Zealand who were head and shoulders above any other team in the tournament, from second to probably eighth position, I don’t think there was a great deal to choose between any of those sides.
“The difference between winning and losing came down to composure and clinical execution during high pressure moments, if you’ve got players who can achieve that at a young age, then it can make a huge difference.”
With Strange and his fellow management already preparing for next year’s tournament, he has thrown down the gauntlet to his players to match their expectations.
“I’m really encouraged for next season – with the number of players we’ve got coming back, the experience they have gained from this year’s World Cup and Six Nations can only stand them in good stead.
“They also understand that we’re not just looking at the World Cup. More importantly, the preparation starts now to get the standards, expectations and processes right in the lead up to the Six Nations and World Cup next year.”
