Wayne Pivac named his Six Nations squad earlier on this week and it did include a couple of uncapped players and a particular player that should interest supporters will be hooker Dewi Lake.
It has been a very interesting career for Lake who started player rugby at Valley Ravens as a youngster before moving on to playing for Nantyffyllon as a flanker before moving to Bridgend Ravens and switching to hooker before featuring for Neath and Swansea in the Welsh Premiership.
Who is Dewi Lake?
He made his Ospreys debut in 2018 against Zebre in the Pro 14.
Lake spent two years with Wales U20s and he oversaw a victory over New Zealand in the Junior World Cup in 2019, That All Blacks side contained the likes of Quinn Tupaea, Tupou Vaa’i and Glasgow Warriors fullback Cole Forbes.
Since his debut, he has scored two tries for his region in 18 games.
It hasn’t been the first time that Lake has been called up into a Welsh squad as Pivac called Lake up for the 2020 Six Nations although he didn’t get to earn his first cap.
Since the arrival of Toby Booth at the Ospreys, the head coach has put tremendous faith in Lake at the start of the 2020/21 season by giving him a run of games before injury.
So, what does he do on the field to warrant an international call up and is there a possibility of a first international cap?
The good stuff
Despite moving from the back row at a young age, the instinct of a back-rower is there in Lake, with plenty of dynamic carrying in an Ospreys shirt and a turn of pace when given the ball in hand.
The work in the breakdown is still there with Lake with a very strong jackal threat and is very quick to get to the ruck, a prime example of this was where he won a crucial turnover against Leinster to seal the win for the Ospreys.
He also possesses scrum power. He performed well in the scrum area against Racing 92 in the Champions Cup.
His work in the scrum area should also be noticed as he performed well with Gareth Thomas and Tomos Francis in the front row, he also has shown plenty of leadership skills while he was captain for the U20s.
One major issue
An issue that creeps into many hooker’s game is the ability to throw at the line out and throw at the jumper and with his late change from the back row to hooker, it has been challenging for Lake at the start of his career.
Many people blame the player throwing the ball into the line out, but sometimes it isn’t his fault as it could be a late lift, a miss-communication between thrower and jumper at the set-piece. The opposition could have done their analysis on the line out and they take the steal to make the turnover.
So, with time spent in the Welsh camp, it is the perfect opportunity for Lake to work on his throwing with former international hooker Huw Bennett involved in Wayne Pivac’s coaching staff.
Even if he was to be released back to the Ospreys, Toby Booth has appointed Simon Hardy to help the region with their current line-out struggles.
Will he get his first cap?
There’s a good chance that the Dewi Lake will receive his first cap during this Six Nations, although Pivac could be looking to give Lake squad experience for the future as he continues to develop.
However, if the opportunity does come up near the end of the tournament, Lake will definitely take it with both hands.
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