A young Wales side were forced to dig deep and didn’t take the lead until the final quarter of a hard-fought encounter. The hosts were unrecognisable from a team which lost heavily in Cork last week with their defence, and their attacking game on a different level.
Tries from captain Alex Mann, Joe Hawkins, Harri Houston, and Morgan Morse got the hosts over the line.
“The character the boys showed to come back from 10 points down is absolute testament to them, their maturity was very good,” he said.
“I thought the boys were outstanding. The first half didn’t go so well, and we were 10 points down in the second half but it was about staying positive because we had five line breaks in the first half.
“I told the boys to stay positive, stick to the game plan, and I think we showed our intent from the very first kick-off. The defensive effort was massive.
“We finished up something like six line breaks to nil against, and that’s testament to the work that Craig Everett has done with the boys this week. The energy we showed, and the willingness to get off the line and stop them scoring.”
Hayward was mightily impressed by Ospreys centre Hawkins who scored a crucial second half try, while he also set up another. The replacements bench was hugely influential, and Hayward is pleased with the direction of travel of his side.
“All the replacements made a positive impact, and they helped us see the game out,” he said. “I was very impressed with our game management over the last 20 minutes.
“We played off our lineout drive, and we took the ball forward. A key element of the game is to take the ball forward, and play a short, and tight game.
“We showed we can play two different types of game. We played a bit wider in the first half by playing around them, and we went through them in the second half.”
