Warren Gatland just isn't convinced by one player but he is now rapidly running out of excuses

Morgan Morris signs autographs after the win over the Dragons -Credit:Gruffydd Thomas/Huw Evans Agency
Morgan Morris signs autographs after the win over the Dragons -Credit:Gruffydd Thomas/Huw Evans Agency


In the last two months, Morgan Morris has played nine matches and been player of the match in three of them.

In terms of a Wales audition, the Ospreys No. 8 is just about doing all he can.

The 25-year-old has yet to receive a call-up by Warren Gatland, despite generally having a monopoly on awards - be it player of the match gongs, Ospreys' player of the season or even the Welsh Rugby Writers' Young Player of the Year.

That's one of many things in Welsh rugby that leaves you scratching your head. Size is often bandied about as the reason behind his non-selection - with one of Morris' former team-mates suggesting he put a put a 2.5kg plate in his boxers before weighing himself in the morning.

Even those handing out the awards are a little bemused by it all. Former Wales wing Shane Williams, days after admitting he was baffled Morris didn't have a Wales cap yet, had little choice but to hand the No. 8 another player of the match award after the Ospreys' win over the Dragons in Swansea on Saturday.

"I'm fed of it," joked the Premier Sport pundit after once again opting for Morris as his pick of the bunch. "Even my wife thinks there's something going on with me and Morgan.

"He's just been superb. Credit where credit is due. We're in that transition in Welsh rugby where we need to be looking at new players to come in and compete.

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"You saw Aaron Wainwright who was fantastic. It's great if you've got that competition of two great players going head to head. If you had those two on the pitch in the Six Nations, surely that's a great impact and an influence on the rest of the team.

"What I like about Morgan Morris is the fact that he hasn't been selected in the Welsh team and it looks like Warren Gatland isn't interested at the moment, but he still keeps his head up in training week-in, week-out and puts in the performance.

"It's the only way you can prove a coach wrong. You've got to proud and happy of the fact he's been doing that every week. He's been great."

Those at the Ospreys have been equally baffled for some time about Morris' lack of Test involvement. He recently signed a deal to stay in Swansea - a boost for the region given English clubs have been doing their due diligence on the player for some time.

At times, it's felt like there's been a lack of feedback as to why Morris wasn't getting picked. However, as the performances kept coming, that seems to have changed slightly.

It seems now that the Ospreys know what Morris needs to do. On the face of it, he's doing it and that could be enough ahead of the summer tour of South Africa.

"The first thing is he's got to stop his mum giving the awards out every week," joked Booth on Premier Sports after the Dragons win. "That would be the first thing.

"We produce a lot of players who get into Wales and we're very proud of that. Morgan Morris is a person who we feel is getting closer all the time. That's come down to the work he's put in. He's got physically fitter. Simon Church has done a great job with him.

"The big challenge is, if you're not a set-piece forward in the modern game, you've got to be good on both sides of the ball. If you look at Jac Morgan, he's good on both sides of the ball. Justin Tipuric in his day was good on both sides of the ball.

"Even in last week, when you're playing against the very best - we were effectively playing against Ireland - you saw Morgan Morris on the defensive side of the ball.

"There was some good defence in there. So he knows you can't collide with the ball and not collide without it. It's work in progress for him, but we're starting to see the fruits of his labour.

"Consistency and trust are absolutely massive to coaches. He absolutely have a lot high trust in our players. You can only control yourself. We've sought feedback. Personally, I've been around long enough to know what people want. Visibility both sides of the ball. We're starting to see that.

"We're trying to be an attack-based team. If he's not putting the red shirt on and he's putting the white shirt on, we know what he's going to deliver."

Whether all that is enough to change Gatland's mind remains to be seen. But don't rule out another player of the match award in Judgement Day - just days before Gatland names his summer squad - as he does all he can to push his case.

There's little in the way of excuses left for Morris' continued omission now.