{"id":543925,"date":"2025-11-02T09:57:17","date_gmt":"2025-11-02T09:57:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/543925\/"},"modified":"2025-11-02T09:57:17","modified_gmt":"2025-11-02T09:57:17","slug":"wales-legend-identifies-one-player-who-is-absolute-gold-dust-and-why-hes-different-from-the-rest","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/543925\/","title":{"rendered":"Wales legend identifies one player who is ‘absolute gold dust’ and why he’s different from the rest"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wales legend Jamie Roberts revealed exactly why he thinks the big Welsh prop is different from the rest\"RhysRhys Carre (third from right) has been selected by Steve Tandy for the autumn internationals(Image: \u00a9 Huw Evans Picture Agency)<\/p>\n

Wales legend Jamie Roberts has identified Rhys Carre as the player he expects to shine the brightest this autumn. The Saracens loose-head has been included in Steve Tandy’s 39-player squad for upcoming Tests<\/a> against Argentina, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa.<\/p>\n

Carre has 20 caps for Wales, so prior to the announcement it was believed that he was ineligible for selection<\/a> due to the 25-cap ruling for players based outside of the country. However, his selection was permitted by the Professional Rugby Board and he is in line to earn his first cap since 2023.<\/p>\n

Just a day before the announcement was made, fans were calling for Tandy to find a loophole<\/a> thanks to Carre’s superb performances for Saracens in the Gallagher PREM.<\/p>\n

In an exclusive interview with WalesOnline, former British and Irish Lion Roberts was asked which player he thinks will shine this autumn.<\/p>\n

“Rhys Carre,” answered Roberts. “And I’ll tell you why, I think Wales have missed some ball-carrying ballast and don’t get me wrong, this is not a Wales team of 10 years ago when you had big, big players playing a power game.<\/p>\n

“This Wales side, I think, is going to be a bit more intricate, more movement of the ball. I think it has to be, with the tools at our disposal.<\/p>\n

“But equally, this is Test rugby and those players who can win you that extra metre in contact is absolute gold dust. And in Rhys Carre, I watch his lad play… okay, Warren didn’t pick him for some reasons that he’s made public around his fitness or whatever.<\/p>\n

“But when I watch Rhys play, there’s no props in Wales who can carry the ball like him, who can pick lines like him, with the grain, against the grain, identifies weak spots in opposition defenders.”<\/p>\n

In 2023, Carre was released from Wales’ preliminary World Cup training squad <\/a>for “failing to meet individual performance targets set at the end of the Six Nations<\/a>“.<\/p>\n

The decision to make this information public was widely criticised by rugby fans with many saying it was humiliating for Carre, who was playing for Cardiff<\/a> at the time.<\/p>\n

He played for Cardiff the following season but wasn’t selected in Gatland’s squad once. Carre would then move back to Saracens for the 2024\/2025 season and has drawn praise from English rugby fans ever since returning.<\/p>\n

\"RhysRhys Carre in training with Wales this week(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency Ltd)<\/p>\n

Roberts continued: “I watch him five metres out, I think he’s really, really destructive and can be a really, really great tool for this Wales side in the way they’re going to want to play. And I’ve seen the sides Matt Sherratt has coached and how they approach a game. I think Rhys Carre could be a really, really important part of the jigsaw.<\/p>\n

“And not to say he’s going to start, he might be a bench player, but equally, I don’t think we’ve got many ball-carriers like him. I’m super excited to see him come back in and, dare I say it, fulfil his potential, because I think he’s got a very, very high ceiling as a rugby player. It’s for sure very exciting to see him coming back in. I love that, I’m a midfielder and I’m picking a prop!”<\/p>\n

—<\/p>\n

Roberts will be working for TNT Sports during the Quilter Nations Series. Watch every match of the Quilter Nations Series live on TNT Sports and discovery+<\/a> from 1-29 November.<\/p>\n

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Watch the Autumn Nations Series on TNT Sports<\/p>\n

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The Rugby Autumn Nations Series gets underway on November 1 with Wales, England, Scotland and Ireland among the teams in action. Fans can watch every game on the TNT Sports Prime Video channel.<\/p>\n