Rhys Williams, Gethin Jenkins, Gavin Henson, Stephen Jones, Gavin Jones and Gareth Cooper also went over as Romania found they had no answer to the free-flowing rugby from the home side. Five of these ries came in the opening thirty minutes; against a Romanian side who needed an intercept for their only points of an evening under a closed Stadium roof.
It was Gareth Thomas’s first win as Captain, and he was glad to rid himself of an unwanted 100% record of two losses out of two. Thomas made three breaks in the opening five minutes, giving his side the position to set up the game’s first try for centre Shanklin, who threw a barely disguised dummy and jogged over the line. The five-pointer increased Welsh confidence; and their error rate, before right winger Rhys Williams joined the line at a perfect angle to make the score 14-0 after fourteen minutes.
Fly-half Stephen Jones added to his two conversions with a third of his own try, before prop Gethin Jenkins bulldozed his way over the line for his first Test try on the half-hour mark. Shanklin, who is battling with Sonny Parker for a place in starting lineup against the All Blacks, scored his second after some great work from winger Hal Luscombe and a one-sided match was in danger of becoming a tedious romp.
The Welsh players began running the ball from everywhere and it cost them almost straight away. A loose pass fell into the hands of winger Ioan Teodorescu and he popped the ball up to scrum-half Lucian Sirbu for the visitors’ first try, but they went into the half-time break trailing 7-35 and with the game already out of their grasp. The Romanians began well in the second half, but the home side ground their way back on to the attack, and centre Gavin Henson; a two-try hero against the Springboks last weekend, opened his account.
Both coaches began clearing their benches before the hour mark, and it was the Romanian reserves who made the most of their opportunity. Replacement hooker Razvan Mavrodin was a man inspired as his side stemmed the Welsh tide for ten minutes. It was never going to last, though, and a Romanian turnover on the Wales 22m line cost them dearly. Quick ball, including a brilliant flick pass from Henson, gave Shanklin an inch of space on the lefthand touchline and he took it to complete his hat-trick, and had his fourth barely two minutes later.
The Romanian forwards refused to give up, though, and spent five minutes hammering on the home side’s tryline. Some terrific work from replacement flanker Martyn Williams and a lineout steal by the veteran Gareth Llewellyn saved their side’s blushes, but only a close offside call prevented Romanian winger Teodorescu from scoring a deserved try. Wales went back on the attack, and some skilful work from Gareth Cooper and Martyn Williams put backrower Dafydd Jones over for his side’s ninth try.
Cooper made it a round ten with the final act of the match and 35,000 Wales fans were celebrating a 59-point victory.
