But the reference to Wales full-back Ioan Davies proved no laughing matter. Yes, he may wear a headguard like Halfpenny, and yes, he may possess a similar running style to that of the Wales and British & Irish Lions goalkicking machine, but the Cardiff Blues product produced another eye-catching performance against Fiji to leave the Santa Fe venue victorious, unlike the Junior Wallabies who were defeated by the young red rose brigade.
“It’s not the first time I’ve heard the comparison,” he said from the foyer of the team hotel in Rosario. “It must be the headguard,” he laughs.
“Those sort of comments are nice to read and hear about but you have to keep your feet on the ground. You analyse your own game and know exactly how you played after every game,” adds the quietly spoken medical student.
Standing at just 6ft and tipping the scales a shade over 13stones in old money, Davies isn’t the biggest back by any stretch of the imagination, but his fearless defence coupled with his attacking instincts have made him a pivotal part of head coach Gareth Williams’ game plan.
With Wales’ pool games completed in the World Rugby U20 Championship in Argentina, no other Welsh player had more carries (28) than Davies. With 175 metres made against Argentina, France and Fiji, he is a country mile ahead of his nearest teammate in that sector while his deft footwork and alertness in attack has seen him beat 11 defenders – Ospreys midfielder Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler is his nearest challenger with five. Added to that he has made five clean breaks – only Thomas-Wheeler is ahead of him in the queue with seven.
Anyone who has watched the youngster’s rise through the ranks wouldn’t be surprised with his performances in South America as he has had a habit of standing out from the crowd.
In last year’s U18 international at Sardis Road between Wales and England, his courageous defence denied England at least three tries while his brilliantly well-taken try was a highlight in what was a crushing defeat for the home side.
He began his rugby journey as a six-year-old with Cardiff club St Peter’s and went through the age groups where he started off as a centre before a move to Ysgol Glantaf eventually saw him end up at full-back.
He went through the Cardiff Blues system at U16 and U18 level and has represented his country at U16, U18 and U20 level.
Davies reckons his defensive positioning is one of his strong points along with that of his attacking game but he is determined to improve in other areas as his career continues to flourish.
“My first instinct is to run the ball back but I am starting to develop a kicking game to add another string to my bow,” he says.
He will no doubt have to summon all of his courage when facing the daunting prospect of New Zealand in the 5th-8th play-offs at Rosario’s Racecourse Stadium on Monday.
“I’m really excited about taking on New Zealand – I’ve never played them before and it will be a brand new challenge but a challenge I am looking forward to.
“We haven’t got anything to lose – we have a chance to go out there and express ourselves and I hope we can show the momentum we have developed over the last three games.”
Davies was one of six try-scorers against Fiji in a thrilling 44-28 victory in Santa Fe in Wales’ last group match of the campaign to set up the showdown with the Baby Blacks.
“It was a big score-line from an attacking point of view against Fiji and it’s definitely going to build some momentum but on the other hand we had a lot of points scored against us so we will have to look at that.
“As a squad our maturity has improved a lot since the Six Nations – our decision making is a lot better and alongside our game management it will hopefully stand us in good stead.
“We’ve just got to go into the game against New Zealand with confidence and stick to the game plan that we’ll develop over the next couple of days and enjoy the moment,” he added.
“We won’t be going into the game cocky or anything like that as we know the challenge we are up against but they are in the same boat as us – we really want to finish as high as possible – we missed out on a top four finish and this is our second chance to show what we are capable of.”
