Fly-half Gareth Anscombe Driven by Wales Return

Wales fly-half Gareth Anscombe, who has earned 37 international caps, stated that his return to international rugby served as a “massive driver” because he was not prepared to relinquish the Wales jersey. The 33-year-old Anscombe’s most recent Test appearance was in September 2023, when he led Wales to a significant 40-6 World Cup victory over Australia. He sustained an injury during the warm-up for the subsequent match against Georgia, leading him to miss the remainder of the season and consequently ruling him out of the 2024 Six Nations and the summer tour of Australia. Since then, Anscombe has moved to Gloucester, where his impressive performances this season earned him a call-up for Wales’ autumn series, commencing against Fiji on Sunday, 10 November. Anscombe stated, “I probably always had in the back of my mind that I could come back for Wales.” The Auckland-born player has overcome two significant long-term injuries, including a major knee problem that kept him out of action for two years between 2019 and 2021. He commented, “You can give up and move on and retire, or fight to get back, and I’ve always chosen the latter.” He added, “When you’ve been out for as long as I have and had so many setbacks, you figure out what drives you. So even during those times I’ve been out, I’ve always felt like I could, if I got myself back to fitness, add something at this level.” Anscombe further stated, “That competitiveness and resilience is enough to believe I can come back and make a difference here. Time will tell in the next few weeks.” His transfer to Gloucester has revitalized Anscombe, where he has reconnected with his Wales half-back partner, Tomos Williams. “When I got to Gloucester it felt like I was meant to be there and it has been refreshing,” Anscombe commented. He emphasized, “The most important thing is trying to play consistently, spending time back on the field and keeping myself together.” Regarding Williams, Anscombe remarked, “It’s been nice linking back up with Tommy again, we know each other from our years at Cardiff. He’s been outstanding for Gloucester, one of our best players recently and is world class.” Following Dan Biggar’s retirement after the World Cup and Anscombe’s injury, Sam Costelow, Ioan Lloyd, and Ben Thomas have been the starting fly-halves in the last eight Tests, all of which Wales has lost in 2024. Costelow and Thomas are also listed as fly-half options within the November squad. Anscombe stated, “My goal is to try and play for Wales again and help bring some experience to this younger side.” He added, “We’ve got to get a few wins here and that helps you enjoy what you do.” “We haven’t been far away. If we can put in a couple of improved performances that bring wins, suddenly everyone starts relaxing a little bit. Winning is a habit, but so is losing,” he observed. He concluded, “We just need to understand what it takes to win at this level.” Having previously played for Cardiff and Ospreys, Anscombe also expressed his belief that Wales’ backline is regaining the physical stature characteristic of previous teams assembled by Gatland. His Gloucester teammate Max Llewellyn, along with fellow centre options Eddie James and Mason Grady, have been named in the squad. Anscombe noted, “You can see with the squad Gats has picked we’re starting to get some size back.” He elaborated, “At this level, you need size and power and we probably recently haven’t always been blessed with some of the ball-carriers we needed to compete at this level.” “They’re starting to pop up now and it feels like we’re starting to grow a bit of firepower again,” he added. He praised, “Max is one of the best players in the Premiership at the moment, while Eddie is the biggest midfielder I’ve ever seen in my life.” “So there’s some dynamic players and you need to build your team off the back of that. Hopefully, the half-backs can guide them the right way,” Anscombe concluded. Having participated in two World Cups, Anscombe is targeting an immediate return to the Wales squad but has not dismissed the possibility of aiming for the next World Cup in Australia in 2027. Anscombe revealed, “I had conversations with Gats about that in the last World Cup.” “Mentally, I don’t have the runs on the board. Physically I’ve always got to have my challenges, particularly after a couple of big injuries, and we’ve figured out what that looks like to keep myself together,” he explained. He continued, “If I can get a bit of help with looking after myself mentally, I’m determined to get there.” “I’m driven to play for as long as possible. I’ve learnt with all my injuries not to look too far ahead because I’ve been guilty of doing that in the past,” Anscombe stated. He concluded, “If I can keep myself together and I enjoy my rugby, I’d look at that [2027 World Cup] as a target.”