Dragons wing Joe Goodchild is on red-hot form for Wales going into the final weekend of the World Rugby Sevens Series in Paris.
He was his country’s top try-scorer at Twickenham a week ago, and was even on the end of a ‘planned move’ that went viral (enjoy what the commentator calls “the most remarkable try you’ll ever see” here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lrbnNzz6eYc).
Despite that gaffe-turned-good being viewed across the globe, his most memorable try so far in the Wales Sevens jersey was scored in Hong Kong. It was indicative of Goodchild’s approach to the game all season, according to his captain, Luke Treharne: “Joe’s shown excellent workrate and determination this year, on both sides of the ball. The best example being the huge contribution he made in our win over USA in Hong Kong, with his try-saving tackle and last-minute try.”
It was one of the shock results of the tournament, against the series leaders no less. “You don’t get a much better feeling than beating one of the top teams on the circuit. All I remember is being pretty tired. They made a break and I had to run 50 metres back to get ball out of Martin Iosefo’s hand, then as we were playing out from our 22, Reuben [Morgan-Williams] made a break and I just tried to keep up. I was so in the moment that I didn’t realise till after we’d converted that we’d beaten them. Mind you, you’re always on edge in sevens.”
Watch Goodchild finish off that sensational try he helped create here (https://www.world.rugby/sevens-series/video/411696?lang=en)
You could say that Wales should be more on edge than most on the series, given their slim points lead over fellow relegation battlers Kenya and Japan, but that’s not necessarily the case. “We do speak about it, because you have to understand where you are and how important games are,” says the 21-year-old. “The pressure is there but it’s how you deal with that and get past it. We can see our progression and how well we’re doing. If we play how we know we can, like when we beat USA, we’ll do ourselves justice.”
At the London Sevens, Wales gave a timely reminder of how good they can be when they click, with a victory over Spain tasting particularly sweet after something of a drought against Los Leones. Goodchild puts it down to cohesion, something which has been difficult achieve throughout a season where players have come and gone.
As he sees it: “The boys have started to gel together and it feels like were getting towards that consistency and performing across both days. You can sense it around the hotels and at training, how well the boys get on. It’s all coming together.”
During their down time this week, the players have been hopping on electric scooters to take in the sights of Paris. “We’ve been flying round in them,” admits Goodchild. “We saw the Eiffel Tower and the Arc de Triomphe. It’s a bit different to the Paris I experienced during my school trip to EuroDisney!”
For the boy from Pontypool, playing on the World Series has allowed him to see different, exotic corners of the world, but Goodchild’s undiscovered city that will most surprise you is far closer to home than Hong Kong or Hamilton. “I’d never been to London until we were there for the sevens last week,” he says, casually. “It’s mad, isn’t it? I told all the boys and they didn’t believe me. I’ve always wanted to go and see a West End musical too, and we got to see 9 to 5. I loved it.”
Away from Dolly Parton, and once this significant weekend of sevens for Wales is over, Goodchild’s focus will be back on the Dragons, where big changes are afoot. “We’ve got a new man in charge,” says Goodchild, referring to the new director of Dragons Rugby, Dean Ryan “I’ll have three weeks off and then I’m back in for pre-season. It’ll be interesting to see what’s changed, with some new players coming in as well.”
Does he hope those at the top at Rodney Parade will have taken note of his performances on the World Series? “All I can focus on is what I can control, and I know that being on the circuit all the way through this season has bettered my performance. Playing on the World Series is so challenging. You think it’s hard going into it because that’s what you hear from people, but you don’t realise how hard it actually is until you play it.”
He can take inspiration from one of the key players on the wing for Dragons, Jarred Rosser, who also made great strides (https://www.world.rugby/sevens-series/video/340037?lang=en) as a sevens player. Goodchild concurs, saying: “If you think of all the people that have come through the sevens pathway, you can see how massive it has been in their development.”
Whatever happens, he is thankful for everything the game has given him, from his early days at Garndiffaith, the Dragons and Wales age grades, through to the World Series. “You make friends for life in rugby. It’s such a social sport. I try my hardest all the time but, more than anything, you have to enjoy it. That’s when I play my best, and that’s why I started playing rugby in the first place. I love the game.”
Pool B, Paris Sevens – Saturday 1st June: RSA v WAL, 10:44 BST, AUS v WAL, 14:32, WAL v KEN, 17:36. Live on Sky Sports.
