Howley: Shanklin will bounce back

Apr 11 2008 by Simon Thomas, Western Mail

ROB HOWLEY believes Tom Shanklin has the quality and maturity to bounce back from his Heineken Cup stinker.

Grand Slam hero Shanklin had a game to forget during the Blues’ Heineken Cup quarter-final defeat in Toulouse last weekend.

He gave away a try within 60 seconds when his kick ahead was blocked and he was also guilty of a number of handling errors.

The Wales centre was taken off midway through the second half and has been dropped down to the bench for tonight’s Magners League meeting with the Scarlets at the Arms Park.

But Blues and Wales coach Howley is convinced that Shanklin will move on from his Heineken horror show.

“Every player goes out to play to their best, no-one goes out to play badly,” said the former Lions scrum-half.

“Obviously Tom Shanklin would be a classic case.

“He was an absolutely outstanding player for Wales in the Six Nations, but last weekend he had one of those performances that we all want to forget.

“It was the same for Chris Paterson against Munster the day before. He hadn’t missed a kick in the Six Nations and then misses a couple of sitters for Gloucester.

“That’s sport at the highest level. When you make mistakes against the best opposition, you are punished. That is what happens on the day when you are not at the races.

“Everyone has stinkers. Tom has put his hands up and apologised.

“What can you say? A player has gone out and for whatever reason it just hasn’t happened.

“He’s dropped a couple of ball, made unforced errors, which we all know we don’t associate with Tom Shanklin.

“He just had one of those afternoons that all players like to forget. I thought it summed up his day when he had to jump over one of their back three to score, after their quick throw-in went wrong, and he was just brought down a yard before the line.

“It just summed up what was meant to be on the day. How quickly he moves on is down to Tom. I’m sure he’s good enough and mature enough to do that.”

Howley is quick to stress that the 52-timed capped Shanklin wasn’t the only player to have an off-day during the 41-17 defeat in France.

“For us to win, all 22 players had to play at their top level and unfortunately we didn’t come up to that level,” he said.

“The players know that. They are frustrated and disappointed.

“This game against the Scarlets provides an opportunity for them set the record straight about their own personal performances in Toulouse and it also gives an opportunity for those who were left out.”

After the high of the Grand Slam, last weekend was something of a come down for Welsh rugby, with the Ospreys also bombing out at the quarter-final stage of Europe.

But Howley, who played his part in that Slam success, rejects any notion that the good work in the Six Nations has been undone on the regional front.

“Last year we didn’t have any sides through to the quarter-finals, so we’ve gone one step further,” he said.

“We have moved forward and hopefully next year we’ll have three or four teams in the last eight.

“No-one thought we’d make the quarter-finals in the first place, with Stade Francais in our pool. We came through that and that’s a building stage.

“It was the first time we’ve done it for seven years. Now we have to learn from that quarter-final experience, in terms of the intensity of the game and the whole party atmosphere Toulouse created which was outstanding.

“I am sure if we reach that stage next year we will be much better prepared for what is going to come.”

The immediate target for the Blues is to try and match last season’s second-place finish in the Magners League and to stay on course for that they need to beat the Scarlets in this evening’s clash between the sides lying second and third in the table.

“We want to finish as high up the league as we can,” said Howley.

“If we win our four remaining games, we could well end up second and the players deserve that because they’ve worked extremely hard. To finish second in the league and get through to a Heineken quarter-final would be a progression from last season and seasons before that.

“From coaches and players alike, if you are seeing progression and seeing foundations put in place then you are doing something right.”

The Blues show nine changes, one of those positional, from the side that lined up in Toulouse, with Jamie Robinson replacing Shanklin at outside centre and his fit-again younger brother Nicky making his first start for four months at fly-half.

Wales prop Gethin Jenkins and wing Jamie Roberts are both sidelined with ankle injuries, while Martyn Williams takes over the captaincy from Xavier Rush, who moves to the bench.