Tom Rogers delivered a man-of-the-match display at full-back for the Ospreys against the Dragons on Friday night, staking a strong claim for a Wales recall and handing defence coach Steve Tandy a selection headache.
The 27-year-old, who has won all 13 of his Wales caps on the wing, moved to the Ospreys in the summer with playing full-back top of his agenda. He was handed the 15 jersey for the first time in a competitive match against the Dragons and impressed throughout the high-scoring Welsh derby.
Man-of-the-match performance
Rogers carried the ball more than any other player in the match, showing his running threat from kick returns. He also forced a knock-on from Dragons No. 8 Harri Keddie as the last line of defence.
Ospreys head coach Mark Jones was full of praise for the former Scarlet, revealing that when Wallabies star Marika Koroibete was forced off half-an-hour into his debut, he moved centre Evardi Boshoff to the wing rather than shifting Rogers.
"I thought Tom Rogers did a great job in the backfield, bringing back loose kicks and getting us back into the half, putting us on the front-foot," said Jones.
Hybrid role
Jones insisted Rogers was as much a wing as a full-back, saying: "We signed him as a hybrid. I had a good conversation with Tom before he came about how he saw himself."
"He said he played full-back as a young player before going to the wing. I see him playing both positions equally well."
"I said to Tom that you'll get an opportunity, it's up to you to make the most of it. As a coach, you want to pick the best players because it gives you the best chance of winning. He staked a good claim tonight with his quality. Obviously the standard has been set."
Jones added: "I really loved the way that he beat the first man almost every time to get us on the front foot. Other than one speculative chip, his decision-making about when to bring it back and when to kick it was spot on."
Wales selection implications
Rogers had been desperately close to making Wales' Nations Championship squad this summer, with some sources suggesting he would have been brought to Argentina and South Africa had there been an extra spot on the plane. He narrowly missed out following a below-par outing against the Barbarians.
Having not featured in a Test since his hat-trick of tries against New Zealand almost a year ago, the positional switch could well be the difference to making the autumn squad or not.
