Yahoo News Wales star reveals 'frustration' at continued selection snub amid years of 'radio silence'
Wales international Jarrod Evans has labelled his continued omission from Warren Gatland's squad "frustrating" and says he has been met with "radio silence" from the Welsh set-up for the last three years.
The 27-year-old, who left Cardiff to join Harlequins last summer, has learnt he is still eligible to play for Wales despite playing in England with fewer than the required 25 caps. That is due to a clause in the 25-cap law which states a player plying his trade outside of Wales can remain eligible for international duty if he received no offer from a Welsh region or was "lowballed" and didn't receive a credible offer.
But while he was as surprised as anyone to learn his Wales career had not been put on hold after all, Evans has been left frustrated by a lack of contact from Gatland and his coaching staff. He claims he has not heard anything from them since winning his last cap against Argentina in July 2021, despite Wales being left light at fly-half following the retirement of Dan Biggar and Gareth Anscombe's injury issues.
SIGN UP: Get the new exclusive Inside Welsh rugby newsletter for full insight into what's really going on around all the big issues. This special offer will get you full access for the entire year for just £10 instead of £40.
After a debut season with the Quins as the second-choice 10 behind Marcus Smith, Evans was once again left out of Gatland's plans for the summer tour of Australia, with the Wales boss electing to take one specialist fly-half in Sam Costelow and Cardiff duo Ben Thomas and Jacob Beetham as cover. While the Pontypridd-born star admits the decision is out of his hands, he remains confident in his own ability and says it would be "unbelievable" to pull on the red jersey once again.
“If I am being honest, it is frustrating for me,” Evans told Nation Cymru. “The reason why you pick up a ball when you are a young lad is you want to play rugby at the highest level for your country. That’s one of the goals.
“I would love to still play for Wales, but, at the end of the day, it’s out of my control. I suppose the coaches have got their plans in place. Harlequins have given me the opportunity up here and it’s about controlling the things you can control. If the call came from Wales, that would be unbelievable. But it’s not my decision. It’s probably not a question for me in terms of the selection because I am not the one picking the team.
“There’s not an awful lot I can say on it," he added. "Because I haven’t been given any contact. It’s been pretty much radio silence since I won my last cap against Argentina. I haven’t heard anything since the end of that series really.”
Of course, Evans was under the impression that his international career with Wales had been put on hold when he left Arms Park for the Stoop last summer. The news that he was still eligible therefore took him by surprise but even with that development, he knew he was unlikely to be in the frame for a recall ahead of the Australia tour "because of the lack of contact".
“As a 10, as an organiser, as a leader, you would think you would normally hear off the coaches a while before the squad gets picked, so you can get as best prepared as you can. There is always that hope, but it’s hope rather than expectation," he added.
Quizzed on the saga around his eligibility, he admitted: “I wasn’t aware about the credible offer situation. I was under the impression that I was making myself ineligible, but I wasn’t getting picked anyway, was I?”
While Evans is brutally honest about his current chances of being recalled to the squad, he countered "damaging" claims that his game management and kicking ability have held him back when it's come to selection in the past. Pointing at his own form book, he reaffirmed his desire to play for Wales again, claiming he has "five to seven years" left in rugby.
“Obviously, the power of making a statement is quite damaging at times. Once someone says it, it’s almost like it’s gospel in Wales, isn’t it," he said in response to those claims. "That’s what everyone believes once it’s been said I feel like I am kicking well. I have found a routine which suits me.
“My goal-kicking has been pretty good. I was third in the Premiership this season in terms of success rate. “I can only do what I can do up here. I’m not picking the Wales squad. It’s out of my control.
“My goal when I was younger was to play for Wales and that’s still the case now," he added. "But sometimes it doesn’t always work out like that. I am hoping I have got another five to seven years left in the game and I just want to try and get as many experiences as I can."
