He didn’t disappear in a puff of smoke, but Bridgend RFC’s backs are probably still wondering what happened when they were on the wrong end of some Jay Baker magic in an Indigo Premiership clash at the Brewery Field last season.
Receiving the ball wide on the right, the Aberavon wing skipped outside the first line of defence before befuddling the next would-be tackler by manufacturing a low kick to the left and running to the player’s right.
There was still one man to beat, only for the Wizards’ wide-man to make the job look easy. Dinking the ball behind him, Baker gathered and made the touchdown.
If there was a better solo try in Welsh rugby’s semi-professional tier last season, someone really ought to tell us about it.
The touchdown involved imagination, skill and finishing prowess – qualities the Aberavon man has in abundance.
Injuries have hampered him in recent years, but he has banked a strong pre-season and is a player who is likely to be there or thereabouts on the list of the Premiership’s top try scorers at the end of the new campaign.
The key for the 31-year-old will be to stay fit. Do that and the tries should flow.
But he isn’t alone in posing a strike threat for Aberavon.
The club also have on their books Stef Andrews, another player with the talent to ruin an opposition defence coach’s day in the blink of an eye.
A few seasons ago, Aberavon’s website carried a glowing write-up on Andrews which read: “He is the Shane Williams of the side in that his trickery with or without the ball is top class, as is his change of pace, bravery and ability to pop up at scrum-half when needed.”
Let’s just say there’s a serious compliment or three tucked inside that single sentence.
He is another who is understood to have trained well in readiness for the new season.
Aberavon will hope he can bag a significant haul of tries.
Other clubs have serious strike weapons, as well, none more so than Cardiff with the dangerous Dewi Cross on their books.
The 23-year-old made countless clean breaks last season but he also ripped across for 20 regular-season tries, finishing miles ahead of his nearest rival in the touchdown stakes.
Not only is he an excellent support player, he is also quick and has an eye for a gap.
If the challenging financial situation at the Arms Park doesn’t impact Cardiff RFC too much, he is likely to bag a hatful of scores this time, too.
Maybe he is favourite to again point the way in the priceless art of crossing the opposition line.
But keep an eye on Llandovery’s Aaron Warren.
He helped give the Drovers a cutting edge in 2022-23, profiting from the flowing game they played en route to winning the title.
Warren also searches for work, carries, and is a particular threat when looking for ball off his scrum-half.
One rival Premiership coach picked him out as a player to watch this season. All who face him would be wise to heed those words.
Undoubtedly, it’s a plus for him to have the class of brother Adam Warren in Llandovery’s midfield.
Now 32, the former Dragon won a Wales cap at the outset of his career and was being tipped to pick up many more.
It didn’t happen, but he remains a player with a huge amount to offer and his craft creates countless opportunities for those around him.
With 82 tries over 214 games played in just over a decade for Newport, Elliot Frewin is almost guaranteed to trouble opposition defences.
The Bridgend-born player also has vast experience: if there is a way to unlock a rival team’s rearguard, he will find it.
The Black and Ambers also have the rapid Lloyd Lewis in their ranks, a player who averaged close on a touchdown a game in 2022-23.
Matt O’Brien’s presence at the heart of the Newport backline should ensure both Frewin and Lewis are not short of chances.
The easy-on-the-eye skills of Niko Matawalu, the Fiji international, could yield tries for Pontypridd, while Wales cap Dafydd Howells returns to Neath after a year with his village club, Abercrave.
All who remember Howells’s defence-busting heroics for the Welsh All Blacks in the 2013 Welsh Cup final against Pontypridd, when he went inside and outside the defence during a 50-metre dash to the line, will not need reminding of what he brings to the table – and he is still only 28.
Ebbw Vale will look to Carrick McDonough to make the most of the opportunities they create, while the tenacious and fast Harri Houston will be aiming to back up a strong effort in the U20 World Rugby Championship with a big season for Swansea.
He has an eye for a gap and can beat opponents.
“Houston: he is a problem,” could be a refrain of several of the Whites’ rivals as the campaign unfolds.
