I WAS THERE – Nicky Robinson and Wales v Fiji 2005

The 38-34 defeat in Nantes was the first of four meetings at the Rugby World Cup and there is another one to follow in France in 2023. This weekend will be the fifth meeting between the two teams at Principality Stadium and, from the previous four encounters, one moment stands-out.

It was the drop goal from Nicky Robinson that salvaged victory from the jaws of defeat in stoppage time in 2005, making it 11-10 on a bleak night for Welsh rugby. Michael Owen had driven over at the base of a Welsh scrum for the first Welsh try in two-and-a-half hours, yet the Fijians looked the most likely to take the win until Robinson intervened.

WELSH DROP GOAL HEROES

1922       Scotland 9 – 9 Wales                      Islwyn Evans (Llanelli)
With two minutes to go at Inverleith, Scotland led 9-6. Wales were running out of time before Islwyn Evans dropped a goal from 20 yards to force a draw. It helped Wales to go through the Five Nations Championship unbeaten and win the title outright for the first time since 1911.

Viv Jenkins

1935       Wales 10 – 6 Scotland                    Viv Jenkins (Bridgend)
It was two tries apiece at the Arms Park with the game seemingly drifting towards a draw when the Welsh full back, Viv Jenkins, added to his mounting reputation by dropping the goal that won the game for a home side reduced to 14 men when Cliff Jones left the field with a wrenched elbow. Two games earlier, against Ireland, Jenkins had become the first Welsh full back to score a try.

1954       Ireland 9 – 12 Wales                       Denzil Thomas (Llanelli)
Viv Evans had kicked three penalties to keep Wales in touch with the Irish in Dublin, but couldn’t get their noses in front. Pipped 9-6 at Twickenham the previous month, it looked like being another frustrating away day for Wales. Then Denzil Thomas crowned his debut at centre with a last minute, match winning drop goal. His reward? He was dropped and never played for Wales again.

1968       England 11 – 11 Wales                   Barry John (Cardiff)
England led 11-3 at half-time and looked to be on course for their first win over Wales at home since 1960. But a Bobby Wanbon try, converted by Keith Jarrett, cut the gap to a single score and allowed Barry John to drop the second of hi then Welsh record 10 drop goals from 30 yards to force a draw.

1981       Wales 9 – 8 Ireland                         Gary Pearce (Bridgend)
Picked ahead of Gareth Davies, Gary Pearce conceded a try from a charge down kick on his debut, but ended up winning the game with a drop goal with his weaker left foot 10 minutes from time. It meant the Irish were still left searching for their first win in Cardiff since 1967.

2001       Scotland 28 – 28 Wales                 Neil Jenkins (Pontypridd)
He ended up with 23 of Wales’ 28 points at Murrayfield and it was his three drop goals in the first half that enabled his side to lead 18-3 at the break. The Scots hit-back, but those three drop goals salvaged a draw in the end and remain a Welsh record in a match.

2005       Wales 11 – 10 Fiji                             Nicky Robinson (Cardiff Blues)
It was all going horribly wrong against the south seas islanders until Nicky Robinson conjured up a drop goal to save his side’s blushes in front of a 73,000 crowd on a Friday night.

2016       Wales 33 – 30 Japan                       Sam Davies (Ospreys)
There were only eight seconds left on the clock when Sam Davies, with less than 30 minutes of international rugby under his fledgling belt, stepped back into the pocket to conjure up the match winning drop goal from 25 metres.

Sam Davies wins game v Japan in 2016

THE NICKY ROBINSON STORY

The former Cardiff Blues outside half enjoyed many highlights during a career that earned him 13 caps. Scoring the matchwinnning drop goal in front of a 73,035 crowd at the Principality Stadium should surely be one of them.

Not in Robinson’s eyes. He may have saved Wales’ blushes on 11 November, 2005, in a tight squeeze against the Fijians, but he doesn’t rank that amount among his greatest achievements.

“That moment has stuck with me and every time we play Fiji I always get mentioned and asked about it. It’s a bit like Adrian Hadley every time Wales play England at Twickenham,” he explained.

“Because he scored two tries there way back in 1988 he gets trotted out every two years during the Six Nations when Wales play there. It has become a bit like that for me with Fiji.

“Don’t get me wrong, I was delighted that my drop goal went over and that Wales won 11-10 in the end, but it wasn’t one of my better performances. There were definitely mixed emotions for me coming off the field.

“It could have been a lot worse, we could have lost, but in my eyes it was a missed opportunity for me. I was handed a chance to show what I could do and it certainly wasn’t my greatest day in a Welsh shirt.”

The fact he was able to put the drop on the Fijians, and deny them a famous win in Cardiff, was a relief all round. The previous weekend New Zealand had been in town and the atmosphere was totally different to the Friday night feel for Fiji.

“It really was a no win situation for us. The fans turned up hoping for a try-fest and the Fijians came smelling blood,” he added.

“The coaches told us to stick to our processes, wear them down and assured us we would get there in the end. The problem was we almost didn’t get there.

“When the drop goal chance came it wasn’t pre-planned, it was more instinctive. I was never a prolific scorer with drop kicks during my career. The chance to attack and score tries was always uppermost in my mind.

“Yes, we all remember Jonny Wilkinson’s matchwinning drop goal for England in the 2003 World Cup Final. That will ever be etched in the minds of English fans and the history of the game, along with Joel Stransky’s shot in the 1995 final that won the game for South Africa against New Zealand. By comparison, my kick against Fiji didn’t have quite the same impact. It helped us to win the game, so that was important.”

Having played the final few minutes of the defeat to the All Blacks the previous weekend, Robinson knew he was going to get his chance against Fiji. There was a short turn-around and a lot of expectation.

“The problem with a game like that after facing New Zealand is that you are expected to win. Fiji were a dangerous side and we had a lot of changes, which made it hard to gel,” he added.

“The crowd was different to the previous match, a lot more families and children, and there wasn’t the same edge. When things didn’t go according to plan, there was just a hum rather than a booming noise from the stands.

“All of that came through to the players and we were probably guilty of trying a bit too hard. I know it sounds strange, but it was almost a game you wanted to avoid playing.

“I’m sure that won’t be the case today and the Welsh players will have to banish any thoughts of that being the case. Prepare well, stick to the plan and execute as well as possible.”

Ironically, Robinson’s two idols when he was growing up were two of the masters of the drop goal, Jonathan Davies and Neil Jenkins. Yet as he followed them into the coveted No 10 jersey for Wales that form of scoring was probably the last option in his mind.

“The preferred option these days is to kick to the corner or to find other ways of staying in the opposition 22. Seven or five points is preferable to three,” he said.

“I’m not sure if the drop goal has gone out of fashion, but you can always recall great exponents like Wilkinson and Ireland’s Ronan O’Gara. At the right time it can still be a matchwinner.”

Thankfully that was the case 16 years ago and nobody is going to let Robinson forget it!

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