gavin henson

[ALLBLACKS]

Yea physically Henson is up there, People like to call him apretty boy, But physically hes solid, He took out English center Matt Tait out not once, But twice ...Two big tackles. During the Lions series he made a great Covering tackle on Gear where Gear just bounced off and went into touch. He wasnt afraid to put the shoulder on Umaga either.

He doesnt read the game very well though, Seems real relaxed at 1st 5 Just slots in a throws a pass or kicks, Its like hes playing touch rugby. He has the biggest boot in Rugby though, Can kick 22 to 22 without the ball bouncing it seems. Im not sure if he is a "STAR" player though, Hes more like the guy who just does his part from the looks of things in recent weeks.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

Yea physically Henson is up there, People like to call him apretty boy, But physically hes solid, He took out English center Matt Tait out not once, But twice ...Two big tackles. During the Lions series he made a great Covering tackle on Gear where Gear just bounced off and went into touch. He wasnt afraid to put the shoulder on Umaga either.

He doesnt read the game very well though, Seems real relaxed at 1st 5 Just slots in a throws a pass or kicks, Its like hes playing touch rugby. He has the biggest boot in Rugby though, Can kick 22 to 22 without the ball bouncing it seems. Im not sure if he is a "STAR" player though, Hes more like the guy who just does his part from the looks of things in recent weeks.
[/b]

You've pretty much got Henson nailed on the head there, mate.
He's not a "star" i always believed he had the potential to be, especially after the 04/05 season with Ospreys and Wales, but things have gone downhill since then and he's trying to do his best to make a comeback. He is still only 24, so there's plenty of time for him yet.

Henson has a massive boot on him.
One of my favourite memories was when he was about 19/20 years old playing for Swansea (before Ospreys had been created) against Newport (I think). It was a horribly rainy night, the rugby was ugly, everything was unappealing. Quality of ball delivery was terrible all night and off the back of a line out Henson eventually received the ball about 15 metres from his own try line. He booted the ball to safety only to hear the thousands watching gasp as the ball carried on drifting. It didn't land til it reached the oppositions 22 metre line and with one bounce hurled itself over into dead ball territory.
A scrum was therefore awarded to the opposition about 15 metres from the try line. Henson simply wiped his hands dry and got back into position as if nothing had happened. The commentators couldn't stop going on about that kick for about 5 minutes.
It was unbelievable.

 

[Caledfwlch]

i take what i said back... gavin henson didnt play too badly against aus

yea, gavin henson has a huge boot...can kick further than anyone one...but he still hasnt got that something....i guess u win some and lose some....he has to work harder on his game awareness

 

[Cymro]

Henson is Wales true Welsh Full Back.

For me on saturday I thought they would take Kevin Morgan off, put Thomas into center, Mark Jones on the wing and Gav at full back, they chose not to.

 

[loratadine]

nah f*** tht son, hes good at fb, but his best position is inside centre, someone with his play making skills needs to be involved, you wont get the best from him at fb.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

nah f*** tht son, hes good at fb, but his best position is inside centre, someone with his play making skills needs to be involved, you wont get the best from him at fb.
[/b]

I agree with you there, mate.
Regardless of what Lyn Jones says, and yes Henson IS a good full back, his best position is inside centre.
I just wish they would play him there with the Ospreys:

10. Hook
12. Henson

It's an obvious choice for me...

 

[el_tk]

I think Wales need Henson in midfield to act as the second playmaker when they go wide. His offload to Shanklin while being hit by Tuquiri was sensational.


The first time I really thought he was going to be good was when I saw him play for Swansea against Leinster in the HEC about 5 years ago. Swansea got hammered by over 50 points but Henson scored a full house, including a great try. He was far too good for that Swansea team that night.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

Yeah, those were the days when Henson looked like a creep with his hair slicked back, but he performed consistently well for his team.
Unfortunatlely he's struggling to find it these days.
I just hope the autumn internationals help him a bit.

 

[Cymro]

nah f*** tht son, hes good at fb, but his best position is inside centre, someone with his play making skills needs to be involved, you wont get the best from him at fb.
[/b]

What best at inside center, i dont think so. He lacks a good rugby brain to play there.

 

[loratadine]

i dissagree, henson has a tremendous pass, and he has an ability to create space for others around him which is crucial in the modern game, at fb he is far too out of the game, and doesnt really have as much imputous on the outcome, wales need his distribution skills in the midfield.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

I still remain in agreement with Lora.

Henson has an amazing boot on him, and this is used tactically in our favour.
With the strength he has, he shows that he can be devastating when picking a straight line and breaking through the defence.
His passing and some of his minor touches are great when being implemented in our backs play. His awareness of the game seems to give him an eternity with which to use the ball and in centre (maybe fly half more) you REALLY need that...more so than at full back.

I feel he benefits Wales far more at inside centre than at full back.
But that's not to say he is incapable of playing 15.

Multi-talented, that lad...

 

[shtove]

He still has to make his mark. He's got the nerve, but has he got the guts? He defends ok, and his attack against the Aussies was good. I'd say 12 is his position, rather than 10. Not fast enough to show his talent at 15. He's turned matches upside down, but only through penalty kicks.

 

[Rugby_Cymru]

I think that's the one major factor both he and his fans understand has to be extablished:

Henson's got to make his mark - globally...and in a rugby sense.

He's working his arse off to make sure that's gonna happen for him.