Why the Back Line Has Been Wales' Biggest Disappointment of RBS 6 Nations

Wales are still in decent shape for the 2016 RBS Six Nations as they look ahead to their visit to Twickenham on March 12 to face England.

The stadium where they blew England's World Cup to smithereens will see them battle the only side with a 100 per cent winning record in this year's championship.

However, after a drab win over France, Wales and their supporters know they need to be better if they are to derail Eddie Jones' side's Grand Slam bid.

The game against France did see captain Sam Warburton back to somewhere near his best on the openside flank, while scrum-half Gareth Davies further enhanced his budding reputation.

But legendary former Wales No. 10 Barry John was far less impressed with what went on outside of the No. 9 jersey, per WalesOnline: "There is a flatness and dampness about the whole setup. Behind the scrum there is no spark, creativity or magic or the ability to break down opposition defences with a touch of subtlety sadly lacking."

This area, which erupted into moments of brilliance against Scotland, needs to find more of that explosiveness John is talking about, and it was by far the biggest disappointment of a poor contest against the French.

It isn't a case of singling out one man to blame for the insipid nature of the Welsh attack last Friday.

Rather, we can learn where it's going wrong by examining the back line's strategy as a whole.

Too many passes went down against France for Wales, and it combined with some bad decision-making to kill a number of chances.

Wales have big men who can cause untold damage if they are fed passes they can run onto straight and hard.

And as they try to move away from the tried-and-trusted formula of smashing holes close to the ruck with their big runners, they need to improve their accuracy of deed and thought if they are going to succeed.

The Guardian's Paul Rees summed it up best when comparing Wales's struggles with finding space out wide to that of England's performance against Ireland, when they did the hard yards before moving it quickly into the green grass where Anthony Watson and Mike Brown could score tries.

Rees wrote: "Their passing is letting them down, both in its timing and execution. ... [The] team’s attack needs cultivating. What was most disappointing about Friday night was that the match turned into a slog not through a lack of will to go for it but poor decision-making and unforced errors. Change takes time."

Jamie Roberts was mightily effective against Scotland, and he remains one of the best weapons Wales have at their disposal.

But perhaps the Harlequins centre has been used too much by this team as the focal point of the attack. When it comes to looking beyond the No. 12 for a way to break through an opposition defensive line, Wales struggle.

Gerard Meagher wrote in the Guardian: "[For] all the piano-shifting performed by Jamie Roberts, there remains a glaring lack of incisiveness in the Wales back line."

A lightning break from Gareth Davies or some magic from Jonathan Davies outside Roberts are both viable options.

Jonathan Davies is beginning to look like his old self after missing the Rugby World Cup, and he can provide that extra creativity in the three-quarter line, but it needs Dan Biggar to get the ball to him rather than rely on Roberts to clear a path.

Gareth Davies showed how dangerous he can be against France with that break at the end of the first half, but he eschewed the option to pass to full-back Liam Williams and kicked the ball instead.

Davies is not alone in putting too much boot to ball, though, and Wales are not unique in passing up opportunities to keep the ball in hand.

Indeed, when you have the best kick-chasing fly-half in the business, it is often a useful tactic, but they will not truly expand their game plan if they continue to kick as much as they currently do.

In a column for WalesOnline, former Wales and Lions prop Graham Price wrote:

There has been some evidence Wales are trying to adapt, to vary things more in attack. But they have also reverted to type as well, as we saw in the closing stages of the match against Scotland.

Too often for my liking Wales look content to play comfort rugby based on defence, Dan Biggar’s kicking game and their simple power-based game-plan.

This gets to the heart of the issue with the way Wales play at the moment. Their supporters—and the neutrals for that matter—want nothing more than to see the danger men with ball in hand.

Jonathan Davies can weave magic, George North can cause mayhem, but to see more of that, Wales need to give them more ball.