By Graham Thomas
Dwayne Peel is a man under pressure, but he has got used to that.
The Scarlets coach takes his team to Cardiff Arms Park on Saturday, still seeking a first win of the season after three rounds of the United Rugby Championship.
That wouldn’t be so bad – they have managed one draw away to Benetton – if they had won plenty last season, but they earned just five out of 18.
Before that, only six. And before that, it was eight.
In all, across 57 league matches in charge, Peel has won 19 of them – one third.
That’s not how it used be in Llanelli. Back in their pomp, they won a lot more than they lost and although the decline in one of the most famous rugby clubs in the world began long before the former Wales scrum-half took charge, it has been Peel’s job for the past three seasons to prevent that slide from steepening.
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So far, it’s proving a difficult task.
On Saturday, the trip to the capital represents both an opportunity, but also a pause for rueful reflection.
Just prior to Peel being appointed as Scarlets coach, he was about to be appointed as Cardiff coach – or, at least, as their attack coach.
His head was turned when his former region told him he was the man they wanted to replace Glenn Delaney.
If Peel had gone to Cardiff, he may well have succeeded Dai Young as coaching director, but could he have prevented them from the struggles that have afflicted all four regions over the lost three years?
That’s doubtful. But maybe the pressure would feel different, less personal.
At the Scarlets, Peel is regarded as one of their playing greats – a nine-year career featuring memorable highlights in Europe, a Celtic League title, plus Grand Slams and Lions tours as a reliably classy scrum-half.
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But that status means there are fans who have expected more from him as a coach than he has so far delivered.
A fourth match without a win – and a second defeat in three weeks against Cardiff following a 24-15 setback at home – would tighten that pressure another notch.
In his own defence, Peel insists his team’s losses this season have been narrow and performances have been more encouraging than the results suggest.
“We could easily be sitting here with wins under our belt,” he insists.
“When I go through the metrics of our performance, are we getting better? Yes we are and if we continue to progress on that line we will turn those narrow defeats into wins.
“That is how I am looking at it, we have got to be positive around that. You don’t get carried away with a lack of confidence or overconfidence, whatever it is, it is about whether we are getting better week-on-week on certain areas we are focusing on.
“If we are not, we need to react on the training field and get it right. That is how I am looking at it.”
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The bookmakers are looking at Saturday’s Welsh derby like this. Unsurprisingly, the winless Scarlets are underdogs, even though Cardiff lost at home last week in a 13-try match against Glasgow.
DragonBet have Cardiff as 4/11 favourites to win, with Peel’s Scarlets ranked as 9/4 outsiders.
In the handicap betting, the Scarlets are given a seven-point start, which perhaps reflects their current tendency to hang on in there, but eventually lose without getting badly beaten.
It may be the solidarity and support among rival coaches, but Cardiff head coach Matt Sherratt believes Peel’s Scarlets are not the pushovers results may indicate.
“They were three or four minutes away from beating Treviso away and then three minutes from beating Connacht, and then it’s a completely different outlook,” says Sherratt.
“It doesn’t mean they’ve played terribly or brilliantly. It could have gone either way on those games, and at some stage they’ll get one if they keep in those.
“When they’ve come here in the past, they’ve tried to move the ball around a little bit and play the way the Scarlets have traditionally played.
“We’ve planned on them coming here and being at their absolute best.”
Elsewhere, the Ospreys are 9/4 outsiders to beat the Bulls at the Swansea.Com Stadium, with the South Africans priced at 4/11.
The Dragons are also underdogs – at 11/4 – against South African opposition, as they host the Lions on Sunday, who are 3/10.
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