British & Irish Lions centre Jonathan Davies insists the Wales squad need to spend more time together before next year’s World Cup if they are to avoid performances like the one shown in the first Test against South Africa.
Wales were drubbed 38-16 in Durban, before putting in a better showing in the second encounter in Nelspruit, going down 31-30.
And Davies, who scored three tries on the Lions tour Down Under, says the hastened preparation for the summer Tests were not adequate for the Welsh to compete at their best in South Africa.
“We did not have a lot of preparation time before South Africa and it probably showed (in the first Test) because in the second week we were getting better,” he told the WalesOnline.
“If you look back at Australia in 2012, the first week we were way off the pace, the second week we should have won and the third week we were competing again for victory.
“The more time the squad spends together the better we get because there is more familiarity among us.”
And Davies says his perspective on the game has changed slightly following the injury to fellow Welshman Owen Williams, who suffered a spinal cord injury last weekend.
But Davies, who is set to join Clermont Auvergne next season, insists he cannot allow the shock caused by Williams’ injury to affect his mentality on the pitch.
“Everyone is in shock," Davies told the Rugby Paper.
“It's really opened the boys' eyes to the dangers of the game. It's something you live with every day but when it comes this close to home, it's even more shocking.
“You never want to see that happen to anyone, but when it's someone you have trained with, it hits hard.
“These are the dangers of the game but you never go on the field thinking or fearing you're going to be injured.
“But things like this do put things into perspective and that your health, and that of other players, is the most important thing.”
