Scott Williams says fear of Shaun Edwards' debriefs motivates Wales
Wednesday 16 September 2015 22:44, UK
There may only be a tiny chance of Uruguay embarrassing Wales in their World Cup opener but centre Scott Williams says the squad fear being left red-faced by coach Shaun Edwards.
The defence coach is notorious for dissecting players' errors in post-match debriefs, no matter what the game result, even using video clips to turn the spotlight on individuals.
Williams said the approach means the players' deep desire not to be humbled by Edwards spurs them on to perform on the pitch.
"We will know if we have made some errors on Monday morning," Williams said.
"Shaun isn't scared of embarrassing anyone, which is good because it keeps you on your toes.
"We have a defence review and a team review. There are a couple of comments on each player, on how we've played, and if he has got a couple of video clips to show, he will.
"I think everyone has been on the wall of shame. We are only human.
"I think everyone has been on it at some point, some more than others, because no-one is the perfect player. Shaun wants to improve us, and his way of helping us is by embarrassing us!
"It's on the TV (screen), so you can't rub it out.
"You don't want to be the one up on the board on Monday morning for a defensive error, or you are going to have Shaun on your back for sure."
Wales begin their World Cup campaign on Sunday afternoon against the Pool A minnows, Uruguay, at the Millennium Stadium, and Williams said the squad knows the importance of getting off to a good start, with crunch games against England and Australia to follow.
"We have to keep our concentration for the full 80 minutes, keep our line-speed up and our discipline in defence. It's the little things that make a difference," he said.
The Uruguay match is effectively a points-accumulating exercise - one that could conceivably see Wales break their World Cup record win of 81-7 against Namibia in New Plymouth four years ago - which is a harsh fact of life when 5,000-1 rank outsiders tackle tournament heavyweights.
"The most important thing is we put a performance in that gives us something to build on. We haven't spoken about any points score," added Williams, whose midfield partnership with Jamie Roberts is likely to be pivotal in the England and Australia battles.
"We have to make sure we are on our game to get the performance we want. We have just got to make sure we do the basics well and keep the errors down.
"I am looking forward to the competition starting. It's exciting. Time has flown by, and I think we are all ready to go now.
"Hopefully, all the work we have done will pay off over the next few weeks."
