Judgement Day V - “plenty of intriguing sub plots to keep a rugby purist enthralled”

Now let’s be honest with ourselves Judgment Day is not a great name. It’s certainly not the name I would have chosen to describe a Welsh regional double header. To be fair, given the opportunity to right the wrongs of my parents I probably wouldn’t have called myself Gareth either.

Judgment Day has become an event that attracts ‘eventers’. Supporters who might not attend regional rugby matches on other occasions and who are in the market for an experience beyond the actual matches being played in front of them. Attendances have grown year on year and indications are that Judgement Day V on Saturday will get within touching distance of a sell out.

Whilst Judgement Day V is not apocalyptic in its urgency there are plenty of intriguing sub plots to keep a rugby purist enthralled. Warren Gatland names his Lions squad on Wednesday and whilst it would be foolish to suggest that he’s about to make significant changes to his plan this late in the day, a performance on Saturday could well seal a players’ fate.

As for consequences, both the Scarlets and the Ospreys are within touching distance of the top-4 play offs and a win is a must if they’re to keep their post-season hopes alive. The Ospreys – for much of the season the embodiment of consistency – are in freefall having lost 3 consecutive matches, all of which they could and should have won. They face a rejuvenated Blues side in the Scrum V game for what appears to be the closest of both matches.

As for us on Clwb Rygbi we feature the Scarlets against the Dragons. Beyond the clichéd concept of unpredictable derbies it’s nigh on impossible to make the case for a dragons victory. An uncertain future off the field is coupled by a series of depressingly predictable results on it. They face a Scarlets side who have won 13 of their last 15 league matches.

So back to that name. In 2001 the Royal Mail became known as The Post Office. The rationale being that the new branding was clearer, crisper and less, well, regal. It was a disaster. The public had grown accustomed to the original name and cared little for what the words meant in a literal sense, rather what the brand represented. A year later the company reverted back to the Royal Mail. Judgment day is now a brand and as much as I’d like to suggest “The Welsh Regional Derby Double-Header Spectacular” is far more representative of the actual product, let’s stick with Judgment Day and see what happens.

BBC One Wales presents the first of two huge Welsh Pro12 derbies on Saturday with Scrum V Live: Blues vs Ospreys from 2.30pm

S4C provides live coverage of the second showdown from 5pm Saturday on Clwb Rygbi as the Newport Gwent Dragons take on the Scarlets

Dydd y Farn V



Na nid rhaglen gwis ar ITV2 na ffilm diweddara Arnold Schwarzenegger mo Dydd y Farn, ond y teitl a ddewisiwyd ar gyfer darbis rhanbarthol Cymru bnawn Sadwrn. Â phob parch, baswn i wedi dewis enw gwahanol, ond wedi dweud hynny, o gael y cyfle eto basw’n i ddim di galw’n hunan yn Gareth chwaith.

Gêm y Dreigiau yn erbyn Y Scarlets fydd yn cael ein sylw ni ar Y Clwb Rygbi. Nawr, ma’ na ystradebau di-ri yn cael eu defnyddio wrth ddisgrifio gemau darbis ‘da’r mwyarfif yn awrgymu bod calon ac angerdd yn golygu cymaint os nad mwy na thalent a safon tîm. Dyna i ni’n ei obeithio fel darlledwyr di-duedd sydd eisiau gweld gem gystadleuol oherwydd, ar bapur, ma’n ffinio ar yr amhosib i roi unrhyw obaith ar obeithion y dreigiau. Mae’r rhanbarth yn wynbeu dyfodol ansicr oddi ar y cae, tra bo’ na sicrwydd cyson i’w canlyniade ar y maes chwarae: colli, tro ar ôl tro. O rhan eu gwrthwynebwyr: ma’r Scarlets ‘di ennill 13 o’u 15 gem ddiweddara’ ac yn targedu lle yn y pedwar uchaf.

Mis yn ôl, ro’dd gweld Y Gweilch yn gorffen yn y pedwar ucha ‘na yn ymddangos fel sicrwydd cadarn i’r Gweilch. Ond ma’r rhanbarth yn bagu o un clwyd i’r nesa. Fydda nhw’n wynebu’r Gleision yn fyw ar Scrum V. Er bod tymor tîm Danny Wilson ar ben i bob cyrfi’ ry’ ni di gweld adfywiad diweddar yn eu perfformiadau. Ma’ proffwydo canlyniad y gem yma lawer anoddach.

Ac i ychwanegu at speis y penwythnos, dyma’r cyfle ola un i greu argraff ar Warren Gatland cyn ei fod e’n cyhoeddi carfan Y Llewod. Bydd chwaraewyr megis Jonathan Davies, Scott Williams a Justin Tipuric yn ymwybodol y galle perfformiad ar y penwythnos sicrhau eu lle ar yr awyren.

Felly, yn ôl at yr enw. Yn 2001 newidiodd y Royal Mail ei enw The Post Office. Y meddylfryd oedd fod y brandio newydd yn gliriach, symlach a llai brenhinol. Roedd hyn yn benderfyniad trychinebus. Roedd y cyhoedd wedi arfer â’r hen enw ac yn poeni dim am ystyr llythrennol y geiriau, dim ond am yr hyn oedd y brand yn ei gynrychioli. Blwyddyn yn ddiweddarach, aeth yr enw nôl i The Roayl Mail. Mae Dydd y Farn bellach yn frand, ac er y bysai rhai ohonom ni’n dymuno gweld enw ychydig yn fwy teilwng a disgrifiadol - y gorau sy’ gen I i’w gynnig yw “Diwrnod gemau derbi rhanbarthol Cymru yn Stadwim y Principality”. Dydd y Farn amdani.



BBC One Wales sy’n cyflwyno’r ornest cyntaf o’r Pro 12 Cymreig ar ddydd Sadwrn gyda Scrum V Live: Gleision v Gweilch o 2.30pm.

S4C sy’n darparu’r ail ornest yn fyw ar Clwb Rygbi dydd Sadwrn am 5pm wrth i’r Scarlets wynebu Dreigiau Gwent.