sport news DAN BIGGAR: How my 100th cap for Wales turned into a nightmare trends now
In 2022, I captained Wales on my 100th cap against Italy in Cardiff.
Alun Wyn Jones made his 150th Test appearance for his country on the same day. It was supposed to be a celebration. It turned into a nightmare.
Looking back on it now, too much was made of mine and Alun Wyn’s milestone games. I’m not sure we were as focused as we should have been on the task at hand.
We paid the price. Italy fully deserved to win.
Two years on, they will arrive at Principality Stadium once again with much of the focus on George North after he announced the match will be his last.
Dan Biggar captained Wales in his 100th cap but it was a match that did not go as planned
Paolo Garbisi's conversion of Edoardo Padovani's try sealed the win with the very last kick
George will retire from international rugby after the game. Both George and Warren Gatland have already said they don’t want his departure to distract from the job in hand.
That was a good message because as soon as I heard about George’s retirement, I did wonder if the news would make the team lose focus.
George has been a truly incredible player for Wales, one of the best in the country’s history. I was fortunate to play alongside him for so long and admire what he could do.
All I had to do was give him the ball and then I could sit back and watch!
I wish him all the best on his final game.
But I hope this Wales team doesn’t make the same mistakes we did in 2022. They have to beat Italy.
If they don’t, Wales will finish bottom of the Six Nations table for the first time since 2003.
That would be really tough to take for everyone in Welsh rugby.
George North will retire from international duty after Wales' clash with Italy on Saturday
The last time they were in Cardiff, Italy consigned the Wales team I’d led to a humiliating defeat one-point defeat. Paolo Garbisi’s conversion of Edoardo Padovani’s try with the last kick of the game sealed a famous Azzurri win. It was a really low moment in my career. Paolo was my opposite number. We both got drunk in Cardiff that night but for very different reasons!
Paolo and I won’t be facing each other this weekend, but we are now team-mates at Toulon and it was great to catch up with him this week to look ahead to ‘Super Saturday’.
I had to remind him how obliging I was to him and his team on my 100th cap!
‘We knew in the week it was your 100th and Alun Wyn’s 150th. Our mood was to try and have our own party. We knew for you it was a big event,’ Paolo told me, looking back on 2022.
‘Two years ago we hadn’t won for 36 matches in the Championship across seven years. That’s why it was so special. And we’d never won in Cardiff before!
‘We are excited to be back there again. I know the people there will be 100 per cent behind Wales. I honestly didn’t want George to announce his retirement because now the Welsh boys are going to be even more motivated. We need to take this into consideration and not be surprised at the start of the game by the pace, physicality and intensity Wales are going to put into it.
‘George is an unbelievable player. All he’s done over the last decade tells you that. I hope we’ll be able to defend him properly. It’s going to be a crazy, crazy atmosphere.
‘If we can control our emotions we will have a chance.’
Wales have lost all four of their games so far this year. When you’re on a run like that, the pressure builds up. And Italy will be full of confidence. I thought they were impressive in their win over Scotland last weekend. There is a better balance to their game under new coach Gonzalo Quesada.
Biggar and Garbisi are now team-mates at Toulon two years on from Italy's win over Wales
‘I saw you’ve interviewed Siya Kolisi and Jonny Wilkinson,’ Paolo said.
‘What am I doing here?! Of course we are very happy with what happened last weekend. It was different to Cardiff in 2022 – two different types of joy.
‘I think we deserved the victory. It was the first time we played in front of a sold-out stadium at home for 10 years. Now we’re straight back to work. It’s going to be a tough challenge with Wales.
‘We need to move on to the next game quickly and concentrate else we’re going to be pumped! If we manage to get a win in Cardiff, which is what I hope of course, it would be the best Six Nations ever for us. We’ve had two wins in the past but not two wins and a draw.
‘It would be big for the supporters. Winning helps the interest in rugby in Italy to grow. It’s something we need. We’re not as popular as I think we should or could be.
‘Hopefully we can keep doing good things. We drew
