France are on course for a Six Nations grand slam having already beaten Italy, Ireland, and Scotland, respectively. And test centurion Davies believes the breakdown is an area Wayne Pivac’s side must get right if they are to overcome Les Bleus.
“They are big heavy men, and for us it’s making sure our speed to the breakdown is right, and that we don’t give them any opportunities to get over the ball,” said Davies. “I think when there’s separation with the carrier they are very quick to get their hands on the ball, and because they are such big men they are hard to move off it then.
“For us it’s about making sure we don’t give them the pictures they want to see so then you negate the threat before it even happens.” Despite slipping to a narrow defeat at Twickenham last weekend Wales showed plenty of promise as they outscored England by three tries to one.
And Scarlets centre Davies insists there is plenty for Wales to build on ahead of facing France in Cardiff. “We want to play with tempo and at speed but with that you have to be accurate,” he said.
“I thought for periods of that second half when we had control of the ball it was pretty positive. We did some good stuff but inevitably it’s a results based game, and we didn’t get the result in the end.
“When you break down the game and you look at areas we can improve on and keep building I think you can take some positives on how we played with the ball in the second half. Barring that try they scored they didn’t have many chances to score so that was good from our defence, but it’s all about winning.”
For the majority of his international career Davies has been a permanent starter for Wales, but has had to make do with a place on the replacements bench so far this championship. Naturally, Davies would prefer to be in the starting XV, but the 33-year-old is happy to do his bit for the greater good of the team.
“For me it’s new territory,” he said. “I would love to be playing more but it’s about doing whatever is best for the team.
“That’s helping the boys prepare for test match rugby. It’s all about getting results.
“I want to be involved as much as I can but at the moment this is my role, and I’ll do it to the best of my ability.”
