By Graham Thomas
How do you solve a problem like Rubin?
Like Maria – the subject of the famous line in The Sound of Music – Rubin Colwill might be called a bit of a “flibbertigibbet”.
Not a “non-serious person” as the definition goes, but maybe a non-serious footballer.
Certainly, a succession of Cardiff City managers appear to have taken that view of the 22-year-old striker.
The prevailing opinion of Colwill since he broke through as a teenager with the Bluebirds seems to be that he’s okay to chuck on as a late substitute, when players are tired, but you can’t start with him and less still, offer him an extended run of matches.
So, as Cardiff prepare to visit Bristol City in the Severnside derby on Sunday, Colwill remains an enigma unresolved and, more practically, a far from guaranteed starter under interim manager Omer Riza.
He may have started four matches in a row, but you wouldn’t put a lot of money on him making the line-up again at Ashton Gate.
Even those who believe in Colwill concede that for all his talent and often breathtaking skill on the ball, there needs to be a grasping and shaping of his career by the player himself.
Maverick is a word well-used in football over the years and although those players can be loved by supporters, they often leave coaches exasperated.
Current Wales U21 coach Matt Jones is a big admirer of Colwill, but wants the Neath-born player to be fired with his own sense of destined determination if he is to fulfill his potential.
It’s a sizeable potential, too, according to Jones, who is happy to bracket Colwill’s possible status for Wales one day, alongside that of Aaron Ramsey and even Gareth Bale.
“Some see Rubin as a maverick,” says Jones.
“Well, you’ve got to treat mavericks differently in terms of maximising their performances.
“He really excites me. We engage in a lot of conversations, Rubin and I, and he knows that I’ve got his back and I’ll get the best from him.
“He has given it his all for the under-21s. He’s been a match-winner and has really influenced games.
“But you can also coach a maverick on those traits that are also needed, like defensive play. Often, mavericks don’t want to defend because they are so influential offensively on the pitch.
“But it’s about striking a balance and making sure the team doesn’t suffer.
“I’ve had those conversations with Rubin. I’ll have them on day one of our camp. Because I know I care and I want to get the best out of Rubin, so he can go and play for our international senior team and go and fill the boots of Aaron Ramsey and Gareth Bale.
In the immediate future for Wales, Colwill is not involved with Craig Bellamy’s senior squad but is part of the U21 group who are taking on the Czech Republic in Newport on Friday, 11 October.
They can make history by becoming the first Wales team to reach the finals of the European Under-21 Championship if they have a better result against the Czechs than rivals Denmark manage in their game against Iceland.
Even more pressing for Colwill, though, are his club concerns – trying to help lift Cardiff off the bottom of the Championship and build on their midweek victory over Millwall, which was the Bluebirds’ long-overdue first win of the season.
Before Sunday’s game, Swansea City have a chance to make amends for a disappointing slump in their form.
They host Stoke City on Saturday, off the back of a 1-1 draw with Bristol City in the first of those English-Welsh battles either side of the Severn Estuary, followed by a 1-0 midweek loss at Sheffield United.
That has stalled the Swans’ momentum, whereas Stoke started flying on Wednesday night, beating Portsmouth, 6-1.
Swans captain Matt Grimes insists his team’s stumble – which came after seven points were taken from three games – is not a reason for panic and says progress is still being made under head coach Luke Williams.
“We are making steps in the right direction, we have been since the manager came in, and we are going toe to toe with sides that many people are tipping for promotion,” says Grimes.
“We need to stick to how we are working and keep making strides forward.”
Swansea are 6/5 favourites to beat Stoke, with the visitors at 21/10 and the draw, 12/5.
