The question that does remain however, is whether Welsh fans should be happy about that position. And the answer is entirely dependent on your age. If you were lucky enough to grow up watching the Welsh teams of the late 1960s and ‘70s, you probably still believe that Wales could do better – you’ll almost certainly think that Wales should be more creative.

If you were unlucky enough to grow up watching Welsh rugby in the ‘90s, like me, you’ll be very happy with the progression of Welsh rugby. If you have grown up watching Welsh rugby in the late noughties and beyond, you’re probably a little underwhelmed that Wales didn’t make the final.

"We realised the desire the Japanese people had and the welcome that they’d given us so we wanted to display our thanks"@WelshRugbyUnion captain Alun Wyn Jones explains just how incredible the Japanese people have been throughout #RWC2019 pic.twitter.com/mWet6PFPiQ
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) October 27, 2019

It may seem like some weird pop-psychology to suggest that Wales’ success is entirely dependent on your thoughts and not the performance of the players, but it really is. The titles, stats and key performance indicators prove that Welsh Test rugby is the best that it has ever been.

Even the heavily lauded squads of the seventies couldn’t beat New Zealand. It may be that some supporters need to adjust their attitudes, rather than purely focusing on the attitudes of the players and coaches. It’s something worth thinking about.

SpiderCam Scaries

‘View-rachno-phobia’ is a new phenomenon which has struck Rugby World Cup viewers in 2019. It is the fear of SpiderCam. As a sport, rugby has adapted many new bits of tech in recent years and most have genuinely added to the experience.

However, SpiderCam isn’t one of them. Our game isn’t suited to these cameras. The lateral movement from the top to the bottom of the pitch makes tracking the ball a very unpleasant experience. Unlike in the NFL, where the tech has been a success, rugby doesn’t only move forward – it regularly jumps backwards.

The jolting feeling from following play on SpiderCam can, in some cases, leave you with mild motion sickness. Which is the last thing you need when you’re up at 9am in the morning watching a Semi-final and having not slept for 36 hours whilst two empty cans of Guinness rest at your jangling feet. Rugby needs to take a massive digital newspaper and give SpiderCam a good smack.

Dean’s Dragons Get the ‘Dub’

Dragons win over Glasgow was massive for the region and its supporters. Historically, the size of the squad, quality of players and off field issues have meant that ‘Ws’ have been hard to come by. In fact, ‘W’ has been more frequently been followed by a T and F.

🌶 @dragonsrugby spicing it up 🌶

Started with the most casual of no-look passes 👉 the raw speed 👉 composure in the red zone 👌#GuinnessPRO14 pic.twitter.com/KBwKatzBLr
— PRO14 RUGBY (@PRO14Official) October 29, 2019

The victory over Glasgow really shouldn’t be underestimated. Firstly, it was a dominant victory. There was no reliance on a freaky intercept or game-changing yellow or red card – Dragons won using stable possession and territory. Richard Hibbard carried superbly and was flanked by Ollie Griffiths and Taine Basham – who may not yet be the equivalent of Sam Underhill and Tom Curry, but are on a similar trajectory.

With clean sustainable possession, Sam Davies was able to do his thing by pinging accurate passes and kicks. But perhaps the most pleasing aspect of the Dragons’ performance was Ashton Hewitt. Wings at the Dragons don’t always have it easy. When possession is slim, wings suffer more than most. But that wasn’t the case against Glasgow and Hewitt was able to focus on his attacking skillset.

Peoples’ eyes will roll out of their sockets if I say that this could be the start of something good for Dragons, but it could. With Aaron Wainwright, Ross Moriarty, Cory Hill and Elliot Dee to return, Dragons have a spine around which to build.

Not to mention they have Dean Ryan’s at the helm, a man who helped place England’s young stars into the pipeline for Test success.

From Flutter to Shudder – It Was a Thriller Out West

There were many beautiful things on show during last weekend’s Guinness PRO14 fixtures and not just Richard Hibbard’s lustrous hair blowing as he carried the ball. Edinburgh shredded the Scarlets to a level that means they may not even need to wash their kit this week and Zebre somehow managed to reduce Leinster to just three points.

Luas lasrach ó Rhyno Smith & úd ag na Cheetahs! #CONvCHE @PRO14Official ar @TG4TV

Serious pace from the prolific Cheetahs fullback as he scores yet another try!@ballsdotie @BHHooker @RugbaiBEO pic.twitter.com/0gIXn3bZuE
— Spórt TG4 (@SportTG4) href=“https://twitter.com/SportTG4/status/1188148444071976974?refsrc=twsrc%5Etfw”>October 26, 2019

But, as you may expect, it was Connacht against Toyota Cheetahs that made rugby’s eyes flutter. There were a total of 71 defenders beaten. Yup, you read that right. The cynics out there may point to poor defence as the reason, but both kept their defensive percentage over 80%.

Niyi Adeolokun made his customary array of line-breaks and Rhyno Smith created another contender for individual try of the month. But aside from all the beauty, it was the ugly that decided the match. With a sizable lead, and minutes to play, Dries Swanepoel not only decided to ‘play’ the scrum-half at the base of the ruck, but he doubled-down by executing a half-hearted flying headbutt that earned him a red card. Go to the back of the class, Dries.

Eddie’s Gainline Gods

England’s performance against New Zealand was stunning. To beat the All Blacks, at all, is a feat that many teams haven’t done for 50 years. It’s something that most will never do. To reduce the All Blacks’ forwards and backs, to a panicky, shapeless mess is rarer indeed.

Monster shot from Sam Underhill on the @AllBlacks captain Kieran Read.#ENGvNZL #RWC2019 #WebbEllisCup

Find out where you can watch at https://t.co/z0BgdPH0sf pic.twitter.com/oO8TGgAFhv
— Rugby World Cup (@rugbyworldcup) October 26, 2019

In this World Cup we have already seen gainline dominance dictating victories, but England have taken it to another level. With Mako Vunipola, Jamie George, Maro Itoje, Courtney Lawes, Billy Vunipola, Manu Tuilagi and Owen Farrell, England have eight carriers ready to ‘bang’ at any one time. More importantly, with so many military grade carriers at their disposal, it means that at least three will be on their feet at any one time.

Add that to Tom Curry and Sam Underhill, who have made England’s ruck ball move more smoothly than a commute during half-term, and you have the most devasting gainline machine in the competition. England completed 15 attacking turnovers against the ABs, that’s almost three games worth of ball pinching.

Well played England, it was a joy to watch.

Paul’s Picks – Guinness PRO14 R5

Glasgow Warriors v Southern Kings – Home win

Leinster v Dragons – Home win

Ulster v Zebre – Home win

Scarlets v Toyota Cheetahs – Away win

Ospreys v Connacht – Away win

Benetton v Edinburgh – Home win

Cardiff Blues v Munster – Home win

For each round of the Guinness PRO14, Paul will aim to predict the winners of all seven games – but if you think you can do better why don’t you prove it? Download the Guinness PRO14 app on the Google Play Store or App Store and play the predictor game now where you can win great prizes, including a trip to hospitality for the Final in Cardiff on June 20.