On their 2016 song “Wake Up,” NCT 127 promised to “wake up this world” over a pulsing electronic beat. It was a loud, confident declaration — the kind fans have come to expect from the unconventional K-pop act. Three years later, the Korean group made good on their word, kicking off their first North American tour at New Jersey’s Prudential Center on Wednesday (April 24), the first stop in what they hope will become their own history-making journey.
For NCT 127 — the Seoul-based unit of a larger global collective from Korea’s SM Entertainment — the goal has always been to take their signature brand of bass-heavy beats, layered production, and charismatic swagger worldwide. Attendees of their Neo City – The Origin tour got a taste of what they have to offer with a diverse setlist that included early bangers (“Limitless,” “Chain”), slow-tempo R&B tracks (“Timeless,” “City 127”), fan-favorite B-sides (“Angel,” “Baby Don’t Like It”), and three new songs off their forthcoming EP, We Are Superhuman, including lead single “Superhuman” and the shimmering “Highway To Heaven” (as member Mark says, “it’s a bop“).
The nearly three-hour set traversed the group’s eclectic discography, starting with the explosive “Cherry Bomb,” a song that proclaims NCT 127 to be the “biggest hit on the stage.” (They performed the English version for the New Jersey crowd.) It’s not a coincidence that the group chose this song to open their set; it’s boisterous and features some of their most ambitious choreography, a hallmark of NCT 127’s dynamic performances. It’s an introduction to NCT, or in their words, the world of Neo City.
SM Entertainment
And while the group lean heavily toward hip-hop — led by magnetic rappers and dynamic duo Taeyong and Mark, who performed an energetic version of “Mad City” together — NCT 127 highlighted their vocalists by slowing things down at the halfway point, giving members Taeil, Doyoung, Jaehyun, Jungwoo, and Haechan the chance to showcase their powerful vocals and tight harmonies with “No Longer.” Member Johnny then performed a solo piano number (“Interlude: Regular to Irregular”) at the keyboard to deafening cheers.
The nine artists also gave their fans — affectionately called NCTzens (pronounced “Ncitizens”) — an exclusive look at the new music they have coming this May 24. After debuting part of their forthcoming single “Superhuman” on Good Morning America last week, NCT 127 performed the track in full during their encore, their sparkly attire glistening under the blinding house lights. The nu-disco track is a bit of a departure for the group, or perhaps an evolution. It’s a slickly produced pop song with a sticky hook that particularly suits the group’s vocalists. It’s less swag and more sultry.
In addition to “Superhuman,” the group also performed their jazzy new song “Jet Lag.” While sitting on chairs, the members sang the smooth, slow-tempo track while cosmic images of stars and planets flashed on the screen behind them — a nod towards the Superhuman era, perhaps? The production was minimal, just a bit of piano and that signature bass, but the reaction from the crowd was electric.
But of all the new offerings from NCT 127, it’s “Highway To Heaven” that holds the most promise for a group with global aspirations. The synth-pop track is already a favorite among members Doyoung and Haechan, and thanks to an encore presentation of a never-before-seen black-and-white music video, now fans know why. With elements of synth and new wave (and what sounds like a bit of Asian instrumentation), “Highway To Heaven” sounds both fresh and retro with a hook that builds to something close to euphoria. It’s so deliriously catchy that fans were singing along on first listen (a true sign of a bop).
There was minimal banter between songs, and when the group did address the crowd — the non-English speaking members trying their best — it was often to ask innocuous questions like, “Are you having a good time?” Their fans, green lightsticks in hand, would unanimously scream in response. (That meant “yes.”) Towards the end of the night, some members spoke in Korean, relying on the backstage translator to help convey their heartfelt sentiments. But they showed even more personality in the video vignettes (or VCRs) that broke up the set. One clip in particular showed the group being transported to the 90s, where they had to win a dance battle to return to 2019 — which resulted in an onstage freestyle for members Yuta, Jungwoo, and Haechan in 90s attire.
SM Entertainment
For native English speakers Mark and Johnny, the conversation flowed a bit more naturally. In many ways, they acted as emcees, especially older member Johnny (a Korean American born and raised in Chicago) who kept things moving smoothly throughout the show with his natural charisma. But it was Canadian member Mark Lee, 19, who put the night into perspective.
“What we’re doing, and what we’re doing on this tour, is not something that should be thought about lightly,” he told the crowd. “Bringing K-pop, there’s a significance to that and I’m very very grateful. Thank you so much for showing up today. I’m going to be honest, before we even started the tour, I was nervous because we have to bring this K-pop culture and all that we do to North America. I want to thank you guys for being that confidence and allowing us to do what we do. I think that’s the best relationship that any performer can have.”
For as much emphasis as the media puts on K-pop’s big push West, there’s hardly ever been a moment to stop and reflect on what that means for the artists themselves and the pressure they feel to succeed overseas in an unforgiving international market.
SM Entertainment
Members from left to right: Doyoung, Jungwoo, Taeil, Taeyong, Yuta, Jaehyun, Johnny, Haechan, and Mark
With their first solo arena show, NCT 127 proved that they have the right stuff to become the Next Big Thing here in the U.S. — the charisma, the power, the precision, and soon, the song — but waking up the world doesn’t happen overnight. It’s an exhausting grind with no guarantees. But for one night in Newark, just being on stage performing in front of a crowd of thousands 11 miles outside of New York City — something that was a dream three years ago — was enough for them. And their fans.
NCT 127’s Neo City — The Origin in Newark setlist:
Former Vice President Joe Biden’s touchy conduct toward women could shadow coming problems that will continue to plague his presidential campaign. | Cindy Ord/Getty Images
The former vice president said he didn’t reach out to Hill earlier because he didn’t want to ‘invade her space.’
Former Vice President Joe Biden on Friday offered caveated apologies to Anita Hill and the women who accused him of making them uncomfortable with his overly friendly touching, but only did so after being pressed by the hosts of “The View.”
Biden at first dodged questions about whether he would apologize directly to those who accused the former vice president of inappropriate physical conduct toward women, saying he was sorry “that they took it a different way.”
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Only after facing follow-up questions from “The View” host Joy Behar — who evoked Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s call on the former vice president to apologize — did Biden directly address the women who spoke out against him.
“Sorry I invaded your space. I’m sorry this happened,” Biden said. “But I’m not sorry in the sense that I think I did anything that was intentionally designed to do anything wrong or be inappropriate.”
Biden also discussed his private apology to Anita Hill, which Hill told the New York Times did not satisfy her concerns that the primary candidate has a true grasp of how his actions affected her and other women who are victims of sexual harassment and assault.
Biden was the chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee in 1991 during the confirmation process of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, who Hill accused of harassing her while acting as her supervisor. The former vice president has received repeated criticism for his handling of the widely televised hearings, during which Hill faced aggressive questioning from an all-white, all-male panel.
“I am sorry she was treated the way she was treated,” Biden said Friday, in what was his first interview since announcing his 2020 candidacy. “I wish we could have figured out a better way to get this thing done. I did everything in my power to do what I thought was within the rules to be able to stop things.”
Biden’s stumbling responses to questions about Hill and his touchy conduct toward women could shadow coming problems that will continue to plague his presidential campaign. The former vice president has faced skepticism about whether he is the right candidate for the moment, an era that includes the #MeToo movement, a progressive push within the Democratic Party, and a wide field of young, diverse 2020 contenders.
When asked on Friday why it took him so long to reach out to Hill, Biden referenced his public expressions of regret for how the hearings were handled — in which, he noted, he lauded Hill for sparking changes in American culture. The former vice president said he’d had concerns about how efforts to contact Hill personally would be received, something he addressed by speaking to women advocates and those who know her.
”I didn’t want to, quote, invade her space,” Biden said.
When pressed, Biden contended he did not treat Hill poorly, instead blaming the process of Supreme Court hearings.
”Look, there were a lot of mistakes made across the board. For that I apologize. We may have been able to conduct it better,” he said. ”I believed Dr. Hill from the beginning. From the beginning. And I said it.”
Throughout the interview, he reiterated a pledge to be more conscious of how his actions could make others uncomfortable.
“It’s my responsibility to make sure that I bend over backwards to try to understand how not to do that,” he said.
Symone Sanders, one of Biden’s senior campaign advisers, posted a tweet after the interview pushing back against criticism of the presidential candidate and his ”unapologetic” authenticity.
”He clearly is someone unapologetic about his authenticity, sincere and genuine in his apology, has a vision for America and understands how we relate to the rest of the world,” she said. ”Such a stark contrast from what we have now. Whew!”
The Syrian government and armed opposition groups have failed to agree on the makeup of a constitutional committee, during two-day talks in Kazakhstan, led by Russia along with Iran and Turkey.
The parties will discuss the issue further at the next UN-brokered talks in Geneva, the three co-sponsors said in a joint statement after the talks in the Kazakh capital Nur-Sultan concluded on Friday.
Alexander Lavrentyev, the Russian negotiator, said the formation of the committee was “at the finish line”.
“The timing has not been agreed yet, taking into account the upcoming month of Ramadan, it is most likely to happen after that,” Lavrentyev told reporters on Friday.
“But I think by that time Mr [Geir] Pedersen [UN Special Envoy for Syria] will be able to announce” the establishment of the committee.
Forming a constitutional committee is key to political reforms and new elections meant to unify Syria and end an eight-year war which has killed more than 370,000 people and displaced about half of Syria’s prewar population of 22 million.
Forming a constitutional committee is key to end an eight-year war [Mukhtar Kholdorbekov/Reuters]
The constitutional committee is of particular interest to the UN, which favours a Syrian-led resolution to the conflict.
Russia, a backer of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, has taken the lead role in diplomatic efforts in Kazakhstan that have largely sidelined UN diplomacy in Geneva.
Tehran, like Moscow, is an ally of al-Assad, while Ankara has aligned itself with the rebels, but has repeatedly threatened to attack Kurdish fighters on the Syrian side of its southern border that it views as “terrorists”.
Russia, Iran, Turkey discuss post-war scenario in Syria talks (02:30)
Kazakhstan began hosting talks on Syria in January 2017.
Rukban camp
Separately on Friday, David Swanson, spokesman of the UN’s humanitarian coordination office OCHA, told AFP news agency that more than 7,000 people have left a desert camp for displaced Syrians near the Jordanian border since March.
About 36,000 people remained in the isolated Rukban camp near Al-Tanf base, used by the US-led coalition fighting the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) armed group.
Those who have quit the camp have moved to collective shelters in the central city of Homs or resettled in their areas of origin in the province of the same name, according to OCHA.
It said Rukban residents were organising their own transportation to the edge of a de-escalation zone established around Al-Tanf, from where they either continued in their vehicles or were transferred by private or government-provided vehicles to four collective shelters in Homs city.
The Syrian government and Russia said in February they had opened corridors out of the camp, calling on residents to leave.
Inside Story: What is Syria’s future after eight years of war? (25:00)
Earlier in his administration, as Donald Trump launched attack after attack on the mainstream media, a series of newspaper photographs caught his attention, in a good way. The photos all appeared in the New York Times, which Trump had branded the “enemy of the American people” and declared “failing.” No matter. He was so enamored of the pictures that he asked the Times photographer who shot them, Doug Mills, for prints.
Mills had built a reputation as a prolific documenter of Trump, producing indelible images like a close-up of the president in the Cabinet Room, his hands crossed, the number “45” stitched in dark italics on his left cuff. Another Mills’ photo showed Trump and his wife, first lady Melania Trump, at an inauguration welcome concert descending the steps of the Lincoln Memorial. In another, Ivanka Trump is walking off Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews after a trip to Pittsburgh with her father, her hair lifted by a breeze as Marine One looms behind.
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When the president’s prints arrived, he and Mills met for a brief exchange in the Oval Office, according to three people familiar with the meeting. And in a rare show of approbation for a member of the mainstream media, Trump personally thanked Mills for his work.
Mills has taken memorable photographs of presidents going back to Ronald Reagan. But he has found a new, perhaps surprising, admirer in Trump, who, for all of his cries of “fake news,” has repeatedly singled out one photojournalist above all others for his omnipresence and talent.
Aboard Air Force One last fall, the president peered through a tangle of arms holding voice recorders to find his favorite journalist peering at him: “There’s my genius photographer,” he said, gesturing toward Mills. At a round table during the G-7 conference in Quebec that year, Trump squeezed in between Prime Minister Justin Trudeau of Canada and German Chancellor Angela Merkel, chitchatting. Before the assembled press pool was shooed out, Mills caught Trump’s eye and, turning to Trudeau, crowed: “He’s the No. 1 photographer in the world,” adding, “Unfortunately, he works for the New York Times.” Trudeau and Merkel chuckled.
This past February, there were two White House photographers on hand at the U.S.-North Korea summit in Hanoi. But Trump was focused on Mills. Remarking on the historic nature of the event, the president called on the Times photographer to come closer and snap a shot of him and Kim Jong Un. Trump then requested that Mills send him copies of the image to be shared with the secretive state’s strongman leader. Mills told me he passed along prints to the White House press office—something he has done when asked by past administrations—and a White House official confirmed that staff delivered Mills’ pictures to Trump.
To the extent that a visual history of this unusual White House is emerging, it is Doug Mills who is capturing it. He is something of a star on social media, where journalists and casual observers marvel at how he catches fleeting, revealing moments, composed as artfully as paintings—whether Trump waving at a sea of cheering admirers in West Virginia or House Speaker Nancy Pelosi offering a seemingly sarcastic clap at the president’s State of the Union address.
Much of Mills’ work also plays with shadows, silhouettes and unique vantage points. Becky Lebowitz Hanger, a photo editor at the Times, says Mills’ intimate knowledge of Washington—its physical spaces and the people in power—helps him to narrow his attention on the moment at hand. She pointed to Mills’ overhead photo of former FBI Director James Comey testifying before a Senate committee in 2017. Mills gamed out that the most dramatic and telling visual from the event would be the spectacle itself—the size of the crowd and the sheer number of journalists looking on. “He doesn’t have to think about what the lighting is like or where the best angle is in a particular room,” Lebowitz says. “So he’s able to fully concentrate on the news, on capturing the right moment. And it allows him the space to think creatively to make surprising images from what could be quite familiar situations.”
A senior administration official gushed to me that the White House photo office is frequently “in awe” of Mills’ images.
The relationship between Mills and Trump owes something to the backgrounds of both men. Trump is obsessed with imagery and has an old-school fondness for print newspapers, each morning poring over the Times, his hometown paper whose veneration he desperately craves. “Trump is among the best politicians to appreciate visual messaging,” says Sean Spicer, his first White House press secretary.
Mills is an affable straight-shooter who brings an ageless quality to his assignments and whose No. 1 rule is to show up as often as possible—but not let the repetitive scenery sap his creativity. Sarah Huckabee Sanders, Spicer’s successor at the White House, considers Mills an “excellent photographer with tremendous talent,” noting that he “always treats everyone with respect.”
“He is a true class act,” Sanders says, “and it’s a privilege to see how he captures history and to know him as a person.”
Trump is not the first president to take a liking to Mills, who views the attention as flattering—if a bit embarrassing. “It’s awkward,” he says, with a laugh. Mills acknowledges Trump makes for a good subject, though. “I always say that President Obama was the most photogenic because you couldn’t take a bad picture of the guy. He had a great smile, great skin, great teeth, the whole dynamic of him,” Mills says. “Trump is the most iconic. You can look at any picture of him and know right away it’s him, even from afar. His hair, his coat, his hands, the size of him.”
***
No recent president has been as mindful as Trump of how the press captures not just what he does, but how he looks doing it. The Trump Tower executive office in New York is adorned with photos of Trump with celebrities and magazine covers he has graced. As president, he uses dark power suits and his preferred formal settings—the Oval Office, Cabinet Room and the Rose Garden—to project a picture of power, strength and even fear. “A don’t-fuck-with-me view,” as one veteran White House reporter described it. His dominant “look” is sitting scooched up in his chair, arms folded as he narrows his eyes and stares sternly ahead.
“Image is everything,” Mills says of Trump. “It drives social media. It drives his brand. It drives his base. It’s the empire of image.”
While Trump, like other presidents, has official White House photographers, the sparse public catalog of candid shots from the primary White House shooter, Shealah Craighead, doesn’t begin to approach the collection of Obama’s chief photographer, Pete Souza. Obama trusted Souza around his family, allowing him to build a massive, behind-the-scenes record of Obama’s presidency (even as the White House at turns sharply controlled real-time access for press photographers). Rather than using his own staff for that kind of intimate glimpse of his inner life, Trump seems to prefer Mills as his photographer of record in the daily pages of the Times.
Trump, who has shown little interest in controlling the daily media narrative with a single message, has opened more White House meetings to the press, more often and for much longer durations than his immediate predecessors. “Where’s the pool?” Trump will often bark, referring to the rotating group of journalists who cover him, photographers included. “We have more access to him than any president I’ve ever covered,” says Mills, who has the added benefit of the Times being the only newspaper that pays for a standing photographer spot in the travel pool.
Yet the photographic access Trump offers is almost entirely on his own terms, giving it a showtime quality that can feel impossible to pierce. The president and first lady resist harsh lighting—they have the lights dimmed wherever, whenever they can. It’s often so dark in the East Room that photographers have their own workarounds to make usable pictures, adjusting their cameras and carefully tracking Trump’s movements, knowing that everything in the shot but the president can come out blurry. Trump doesn’t mind shouting over the loud drone of Marine One as he comes and goes if it means he can take questions in the natural light outside the White House, irking reporters who can’t hear him.
The photos Craighead and other government photographers take of Trump, and that get released to the public, have sometimes had to be reviewed by the president himself, rather than the more typical review by a staffer, according to two former Trump White House aides. When fans ask for photos with Trump at his properties, or when he’s dining with friends, one of his ex-aides explains, “He’s never going to tell you no. But he will say, ‘Take it again. Or, ‘Let’s go from there.’ He’s particular about the shot.”
Trump also has on occasion peered at the cameras and laptops of press photographers, commenting on photos before they’re submitted to editors. After meeting with British Prime Minister Theresa May last summer, Trump noticed Mills and groused that a photo of his had made the president look like he had a “double chin.” Bill Shine, the former Fox News executive who served for several months as Trump’s communications honcho, would keep careful note of when outlets—often tabloids—ran images of his boss with his mouth open or looking angry.
Sometimes, Trump pushes for the angles he prefers as part of the give-and-take of a photo shoot. In one private session with a news photographer, Trump kept turning his head so as not to show the part in his hair, according to the shooter. The president asked the photographer to see a preview, then nodded in approval. During the same session, the photographer wanted to get a silhouette taken from behind as Trump looked out a window. Sensing that the president would demur, the photographer showed Trump an example of the concept. “Once he saw it, he was like, ‘OK, yeah, yeah,’” the shooter says. (That pose was one of nearly a dozen “looks” the person tried in the brief one-on-one session. No photographer I talked to said he or she had ever opted not to publish an image because Trump had expressed reservations about it.)
Mills—a wire-style shooter focused on the president’s day-to-day activities, rather than portrait shoots—doesn’t find the president to be in the least controlling, though he and others note that Trump allows photographers to spend only a few minutes in the buffer zone (below the stage) during speeches, while his predecessors opened the area for the entirety of their time at the podium. Overall, Mills says Trump’s unscripted presidency has given him a wealth of material.
In everyday settings, he is constantly looking to capture the essenceof his businessman-turned-commander-in-chief subject. On a damp April morning, Mills was at the White House directing traffic, pointing some print reporters and camera people into “zones” to avoid a free-for-all during Trump’s departure from the South Lawn. There was a light rain, and Mills was planning for the unexpected. Would Trump come out in a hat? Would he stand under an umbrella? The flight to California was long enough, Mills reasoned, that Trump would have time to redo his hair if it got wet.
The rain relented, and a hatless Trump waved off a military aide who approached with an umbrella. Mills stood on a ladder, with two Sony Alpha a9s, one with a superwide 12- to 24-millimeter lens, and the other with a 70- to 200-millimeter lens. An affixed “doubler,” used to double the focal length, gave Mills a close-up view. He was merely practicing, looking at different exposures and trying different focuses. He knows Trump’s repetitive mannerisms down to a few seconds—he can tell when the president is going to stop talking; when he’s moving on to another topic; when he’ll answer a question and when he will brush it aside. Mills hoisted one camera on a monopod—10 to 12 feet up—and snapped a bird’s-eye-view, a signature look for him.
The “practice” photo—peering down on a scrum of reporters and boom mics fanned out before the president, his hands gesturing—drew thousands of “likes” on Instagram.
***
A photojournalist covering the White House told me if there’s a hierarchy of media following the president, photographers are proudly in the working class. They don’t get as much glory as reporters—certainly not the ones on TV. But their quiet, constant presence is often an advantage. Presidents, in general, don’t see still photographers as partisan, or as threats.
George H.W. Bush affectionately called his pack of shooters the “photo dogs” and hosted White House barbecues for them. His son, George W., liked to pick out photographers and make fun of their outfits. During his first campaign, recalls one of his former special assistants, Greg Jenkins, the candidate walked to the back of the plane to hang out with the photographers, so long as they agreed not to put their cameras in his face. They swilled blended margaritas under a disco ball while Bush bantered and nursed a nonalcoholic beer, Jenkins recalls.
Mills was along for the ride with not just the Bushes, but Reagan, Bill Clinton and Obama. Before joining the Times in 2002, he worked for newspapers in Virginia and United Press International, then spent 15 years on the White House beat as chief photographer for the Associated Press in Washington. (Along the way, he won two Pulitzer Prizes, while also sneaking away from the capital to shoot sports events like the Olympics and the Super Bowl.)
Early on, he developed a knack for earning the trust of presidents by putting them at ease. One Christmas Eve, when he was just a rookie, Mills sat alone in the White House briefing room and grew curious after a Secret Service agent dropped in. Curiosity turned to shock when, following close behind the agent, was President Reagan. “What are you doing here?” the president asked the young photographer. They shook hands and went out on the colonnade for a walk toward the residence. Mills politely declined when Reagan offered for him to go up and see the first lady.
Mills was in the same briefing room chair a few years later when the door opened on a Friday afternoon, and in walked George H.W. Bush. “Hey Doug, you know how to play horseshoes?” Bush asked. Mills fetched another photographer and joined the president at his horseshoe pit outside the Oval. Mills and Bush would later go running together in Kennebunkport, Maine, and Mills became a regular in the president’s horseshoe game. Once, while they were playing at the White House, first lady Barbara Bush walked up wearing a robe over her swimsuit. “Good thing you don’t have your camera with you today,” Mills recalls her teasing. “We joked. Then she jumped in the pool and started swimming.”
Mills is not afraid to push the limits of his cloistered environments. He is believed to be the first photographer to employ a remote camera (a staple of sports photography) to shoot presidents, as he did to capture an image of George W. Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin, eyes locked, on a stroll at a 2001 meeting in Slovenia—an angle nobody else got.In 2012, Mills negotiated with the White House and Souza for permission to place his remote camera in an Oval Office mantelpiece fern. The result was a page one Timesphoto taken from behind Obama and British Prime Minister David Cameron, with a unique fish-eye effect.
A longtime member of the White House Correspondents’ Association, Mills has been at the center of countless standoffs over press access issues. During the Obama years, when the administration closed off access to journalists and released its own images online, Mills and others worked to improve the situation. He has also been tough on the Trump administration when it has limited photographers’ presence, particularly at major foreign events. To this day, he spends hours every week helping journalists and officials coordinate access and calendars.
“I’ve often thought to myself I should have a tattoo on my arm that whenever I’m in a position where I don’t know what to do,” says Andrew Harnik, an AP photographer in Washington, “I could look down and it would say, ‘What Would Doug Do?’”
Mills’ habit of always showing up has landed him scoops of historic proportion. On September, 11, 2001, he took the now-famous photo of chief of staff Andy Card whispering in George W. Bush’s ear during a visit to an elementary school in Florida, informing the president that America was under attack. Mills was the only still photojournalist with Bush on his plane throughout the day. A decade later, Mills was walking through the White House gate on an eerily quiet Sunday when he ran into a White House official he knew. “What the hell is going on?” Mills asked.“OBL,” the personwhispered—Osama bin Laden had just been killed. Mills called Peter Baker, the Times’ chief White House correspondent, who with colleagues went to work confirming the news.
Mills continues to gather tidbits about the current administration. He gets along with Trump, who is less chummy with his press corps than previous presidents, but there are no horseshoe games or margaritas, just occasional cross talk. Mostly, it is Mills’ iconic imagery that has captivated the president—and the public. A longtime former Mills colleague likes to say you can judge a picture by whether, decades from now, a news reporter could use it to write a 1,000-word article. Many such photos of the Trump era in Washington are likely to have Mills’ name under them.
“He is in some ways the best White House correspondent we have—even though he doesn’t write—because he is just as intuitive and insightful about [presidents],” Baker told me. “He knows with great and exacting detail how each president responds to the visuals of their presidency, what matters to them. And he noticed things about them that the reporters miss.
The university and its head football coach agreed to a 10-year, $93 million contract Friday, per Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports. The deal makes him the highest-paid college football coachin terms of total value and carries a $4 million buyout, per Anna Hickey of 247Sports and Brett McMurphy of Stadium.
Swinney, 49, has been at the South Carolina program since taking over for Tommy Bowden midway through the 2008 season. The Alabama native has led the Tigers to a 116-30 record and won two of the last three national championships. Clemson has reached the College Football Playoff in each of its first four years and made three title games.
While he’s unquestionably one of the nation’s premier coaches, his massive salary will undoubtedly draw criticism given Swinney’s stance against paying college football players.
“We’ve got enough entitlement in this country as it is. To say these guys get nothing totally devalues an education. It just blows my mind people don’t even want to quantify an education.
“I didn’t get into coaching to make money—coaches weren’t making any money when I got into coaching. It’s what I wanted to do with my life, and I was able to do it because of my education. That’s what changed my life. That’s what changes everybody’s life.”
That position juxtaposed with a salary that’s nearly eight figures (and no doubt is topped with endorsements) will likely be a tough pill to swallow for many.
From a performance perspective, there may be no better coach in America at the moment.
Swinney’s bested Nick Saban in two of their three national championship battles while still not quite being able to unseat Alabama’s stranglehold atop the recruiting rankings. It’s fair to say Swinney has done a better job at developing his talent in recent years than Saban, who is the unquestioned top dog in college footballto many.
Clemson will enter the 2019 season as a national championship favorite again, led by potential Heisman winner Trevor Lawrence. Given how he’s built the program over his first decade at the helm, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see Swinney stick around and create a legendary legacy at Clemson.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has inaugurated the country’s new parliament, though dozens of seats remained empty amid ongoing claims of election fraud.
The parliament’s first session on Thursday came six months after a vote that was marred by a string of deadly bombings and attacks on polling stations across the country.
In his opening speech, Ghani called for the protection of human rights and expressed regret over the 33 seats that remain vacant in the 249 seat lower house.
“Today in the house of the nation, the majority of the new members of the parliament are educated, and from a younger generation who will protect women’s rights and human rights,” he said.
The government had no role in the inaugural delay, he said, blaming the “incompetency of former election commission members” who have since been replaced.
Ghani also encouraged the newly-elected legislators to participate in the peace process with the Taliban.
“We have presented the peace plan on a regular basis and we are committed to it,” he said. “Based on this plan, there will be no peace deal and negotiation that does not have the green card of the parliament.”
The president has invited thousands of politicians, religious scholars and rights activists to an assembly known as a loya jirga next week to discuss ways to end the 17-year war.
Ghani’s term as president was supposed to end May 22 but has been extended for several months.
Presidential elections to find a replacement should have been held by now, but have been twice delayed as election workers scramble to fill the backlog from the parliamentary vote.
Friday’s ceremony came as the defense ministry said the military had stormed a Taliban-run jail in southern Zabul province, freeing 53 captives held by the fighters.
Those freed included four Afghan commandos and four policemen. The rest were civilians, the ministry said.
The Taliban stage near-daily attacks and though they are negotiating with US envoy Zalmay Khalilzad.
The armed group refuse to talk directly to Ghani’s government, calling it a “puppet” of the West.
The Taliban has been running an armed rebellion since it was dislodged from power in 2001 after the US-led invasion of Afghanistan. The ongoing negotiations mark the highest level negotiations between the two sides since the US ramped up peace efforts last year.
Talks that were to start last week in Qatar between the Taliban and an array of prominent Afghans, including government officials and opposition representatives, were scuttled after a falling-out between the two sides over who should attend.
The Arizona Cardinals reportedly amplified their efforts to trade quarterback Josh Rosen in the final “minutes” before selecting Oklahoma Sooners QB Kyler Murray with the first overall pick in the 2019 NFL draft Thursday night in Nashville, Tennessee.
On Friday, Robert Klemko of Sports Illustrated reported the Cards made contact with the Miami Dolphins, New York Giants and Washington Redskins about Rosen, but none of those teams were willing to offer a first-round pick for the No. 10 choice in the 2018 draft.
The Redskins had emerged as the favorite in trade talks with Arizona, but owner Dan Snyder and president Bruce Allen “were resolved not to give up anything close to a first-round pick,” per Klemko.
Washington and New York are likely out of the Rosen conversation after grabbing quarterbacks in Round 1. The ‘Skins selected the Ohio State Buckeyes’ Dwayne Haskins at No. 15 after the Giants passed on him to take the Duke Blue Devils’ Daniel Jones with the sixth pick.
Although there was a late surge of rumors suggesting Arizona could go in a different direction with the first choice, it was no shock when the team selected Murray. He’s an ideal fit for the Air Raid offense that new head coach Kliff Kingsbury is implementing.
“He’s a dynamic talent, a unique talent that I don’t know if anyone has seen,” Kingsburytold reporters.
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Now the focus shifts to what the Cardinals will do with Rosen as the number of possible suitors dwindles.
His struggles as a rookie—highlighted by a 55.2 percent completion rate with 11 touchdowns and 14 interceptions across 14 appearances (13 starts)—have significantly lowered his stock from one year ago, and the Cardinals’ selection of Murray reduces their own leverage in trade talks.
If Arizona’s asking price does come down, Rosen could represent a nice buy-low flier for the Miami Dolphins, who currently have journeyman Ryan Fitzpatrick penciled in as their starter for 2019.
Cyclone Kenneth has killed at least one person and left a trail of destruction in northern Mozambique, destroying houses, ripping up trees and knocking out power, authorities said on Friday.
The cyclone brought storm surges and wind gusts of up to 280km per hour when it made landfall on Thursday evening, after killing three people in the island nation of Comoros.
It was the most powerful storm on record to hit Mozambique’s northern coast and came just six weeks after Cyclone Idai battered the impoverished nation, causing devastating floods and killing more than 1,000 people across a swath of Southern Africa.
The World Food Programme warned that Kenneth could dump as much as 600mm of rain on the region over the next 10 days – twice of that brought by Cyclone Idai.
One woman in the port town of Pemba died after being hit by a falling tree, the Emergency Operations Committee for Cabo Delgado (COE) said in a statement, while another person was injured.
In rural areas outside Pemba, many homes are made of mud. In the main town on the island of Ibo, 90 percent of the houses were destroyed, officials said. Around 15,000 people were out in the open or in “overcrowded” shelters and there was a need for tents, food and water, they said.
There were also reports of a large number of homes and some infrastructure destroyed in Macomia district, a mainland district adjacent to Ibo.
A local group, the Friends of Pemba Association, had earlier reported that they could not reach people in Muidumbe, a district further inland.
Mark Lowcock, United Nations undersecretary-general for humanitarian affairs, warned the storm could require another major humanitarian operation in Mozambique.
“Cyclone Kenneth marks the first time two cyclones have made landfall in Mozambique during the same season, further stressing the government’s limited resources,” he said in a statement.
Flood warnings
Shaquila Alberto, owner of the beach-front Messano Flower Lodge in Macomia, said there were many fallen trees there, and in rural areas, homes had been damaged. Some areas of nearby Pemba had no power.
“Even my workers, they said the roof and all the things fell down,” she said by phone.
Further south, in Pemba, Elton Ernesto, a receptionist at Raphael’s Hotel, said there were fallen trees but not too much damage. The hotel had power and water, he said, while phones rang in the background. “The rain has stopped,” he added.
However, Michael Charles, an officer for the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), said heavy rains over the next few days were likely to bring a “second wave of destruction” in the form of flooding.
“The houses are not all solid, and the topography is very sandy,” Charles said.
In the days after Cyclone Idai, heavy inland rains prompted rivers to burst their banks, submerging entire villages, cutting areas off from aid and ruining crops. There were concerns the same could happen again in northern Mozambique.
Before Kenneth hit, the government and aid workers moved around 30,000 people to safer buildings such as schools. However, authorities said around 680,000 people were in the path of the storm.
Only three quarterbacks came off the board during Thursday night’s first round of the the 2019 NFL draft.
Kyler Murray went No. 1 overall after months of speculation, and both the New York Giants and Washington Redskins found—or at least think they found—their quarterbacks of the future in Daniel Jones and Dwayne Haskins, respectively.
But as expected, defensive players dominated the night as a whole.
Friday’s 70 selections will feature no lack of excitement, though. We expect skill players to make their presences felt early and often in Rounds 2 and 3, as only one running back (Josh Jacobs) and two wide receivers (Marquise Brown and N’Keal Harry) were selected in the top 32.
So, who are the best players still on the board? Let’s take a look.
2. Jarrett Stidham, Auburn3. Tyree Jackson, Buffalo4. Will Grier, West Virginia5. Clayton Thorson, Northwestern6. Ryan Finley, NC State7. Gardner Minshew, Washington State8. Brett Rypien, Boise State9. Easton Stick, North Dakota State10. Manny Wilkins, Arizona State11. Jordan Ta’amu, Ole Miss12. Trace McSorley, Penn State13. Kyle Shurmur, Vanderbilt14. Taryn Christion, South Dakota State15. Nick Fitzgerald, Mississippi State16. Jake Browning, Washington17. Jacob Knipp, Northern Colorado18. Lamar Raynard, North Carolina A&T
3 of 13
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1. David Montgomery, Iowa State
2. Miles Sanders, Penn State3. Damien Harris, Alabama4. Devin Singletary, Florida Atlantic5. Darrell Henderson, Memphis6. Mike Weber, Ohio State7. Trayveon Williams, Texas A&M8. Justice Hill, Oklahoma State9. Dexter Williams, Notre Dame10. Ryquell Armstead, Temple11. Elijah Holyfield, Georgia12. Rodney Anderson, Oklahoma13. Alexander Mattison, Boise State14. Bryce Love, Stanford15. Devine Ozigbo, Nebraska16. Jalin Moore, Appalachian State17. Karan Higdon, Michigan18. Myles Gaskin, Washington19. Benny Snell, Kentucky20. Jordan Scarlett, Florida21. Alex Barnes, Kansas State22. Bruce Anderson, North Dakota State23. Tony Pollard, Memphis24. Travis Homer, Miami25. Wes Hills, Slippery Rock26. LJ Scott, Michigan State27. Darwin Thompson, Utah State28. James Williams, Washington State29. Nick Brossette, LSU30. Qadree Ollison, Pittsburgh31. Jordan Ellis, Virginia32. Darnell Woolfolk, Army33. Darrin Hall, Pittsburgh34. Damarea Crockett, Missouri35. Kerrith Whyte, Florida Atlantic 36. Jacques Patrick, Florida State
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Mike Stewart/Associated Press
1. A.J. Brown, Ole Miss
2. D.K. Metcalf, Ole Miss3. Deebo Samuel, South Carolina4. Parris Campbell, Ohio State5. Hakeem Butler, Iowa State6. Mecole Hardman, Georgia7. Terry McLaurin, Ohio State8. Riley Ridley, Georgia9. Kelvin Harmon, NC State10. J.J. Arcega-Whiteside, Stanford11. Miles Boykin, Notre Dame12. Emanuel Hall, Missouri13. Jalen Hurd, Baylor14. Preston Williams, Colorado State15. Andy Isabella, Massachusetts 16. KeeSean Johnson, Fresno State17. Darius Slayton, Auburn18. David Sills, West Virginia19. Anthony Johnson, Buffalo20. Hunter Renfrow, Clemson21. Gary Jennings, West Virginia22. Keelan Doss, UC Davis23. Travis Fulgham, Old Dominion24. Stanley Morgan, Nebraska25. Dillon Mitchell, Oregon26. Tyre Brady, Marshall27. Greg Dortch, Wake Forest28. Olabisi Johnson, Colorado State29. Antoine Wesley, Texas Tech30. Diontae Johnson, Toledo31. Lil’Jordan Humphrey, Texas32. Cody Thompson, Toledo33. Ashton Dulin, Malone University34. DaMarkus Lodge, Ole Miss35. Olamide Zaccheaus, Virginia36. Alex Wesley, Northern Colorado37. Felton Davis, Michigan State38. Johnnie Dixon, Ohio State39. Jon’Vea Johnson, Toledo40. Penny Hart, Georgia State41. Terry Godwin, Georgia42. Jaylen Smith, Louisville43. Jamal Custis, Syracuse44. Jazz Ferguson, Northwestern State45. Ryan Davis, Auburn46. John Ursua, Hawaii47. Jakobi Meyers, NC State48. Anthony Ratliff-Williams, North Carolina49. Emmanuel Butler, Northern Arizona50. Nyqwan Murray, Florida State51. Jamarius Way, South Alabama52. Dredrick Snelson, UCF53. Jovon Durante, Florida Atlantic 54. Trenton Irwin, Stanford55. DeAndre Thompkins, Penn State56. Brody Oliver, Colorado School of Mines
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Rogelio V. Solis/Associated Press
1. Irv Smith, Alabama
2. Dawson Knox, Ole Miss3. Kahale Warring, San Diego State4. Foster Moreau, LSU5. Isaac Nauta, Georgia6. Jace Sternberger, Texas A&M7. Trevon Wesco, West Virginia8. Josh Oliver, San Jose State9. Drew Sample, Washington10. Kaden Smith, Stanford11. Alize Mack, Notre Dame12. Tommy Sweeney, Boston College13. Zach Gentry, Michigan14. Caleb Wilson, UCLA15. C.J. Conrad, Kentucky16. Andrew Beck, Texas17. Keenen Brown, Texas State18. Dax Raymond, Utah State19. Kendall Blanton, Missouri20. Daniel Helm, Duke21. Donald Parham, Stetson22. Isaiah Searight, Fordham23. Logan Parker, Southern Utah24. Matt Sokol, Michigan State25. Tyler Petite, USC
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1. Jawaan Taylor, Florida
2. Dalton Risner, Kansas State3. Greg Little, Ole Miss4. Yodny Cajuste, West Virginia5. Max Scharping, Northern Illinois6. Chuma Edoga, USC7. David Edwards, Wisconsin8. Bobby Evans, Oklahoma9. Dennis Daley, South Carolina10. Isaiah Prince, Ohio State11. Trey Pipkins, Sioux Falls12. Tyler Roemer, San Diego State13. Derwin Gray, Maryland14. Donnell Greene, Minnesota15. Paul Adams, Missouri16. Oli Udoh, Elon17. Yosh Nijman, Virginia Tech18. William Sweet, North Carolina19. Jackson Barton, Utah20. Garrett McGhin, East Carolina21. Calvin Anderson, Texas22. Joshua Miles, Morgan State23. Chidi Okeke, Tennessee State24. Ethan Greenidge, Villanova25. Ryan Pope, San Diego State26. Devon Johnson, Ferris State27. Koda Martin, Syracuse28. Alex Bookser, Pittsburgh29. Brian Wallace, Arkansas30. Lukayus McNeil, Louisville31. Ului Lapuaho, BYU32. Daniel Cooney, San Diego
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Paul Sancya/Associated Press
1. Cody Ford, Oklahoma
2. Connor McGovern, Penn State3. Nate Davis, UNC Charlotte4. Michael Deiter, Wisconsin5. Michael Jordan, Ohio State6. Beau Benzschawel, Wisconsin7. Dru Samia, Oklahoma8. Ben Powers, Oklahoma9. Ryan Bates, Penn State10. Drew Forbes, Southeast Missouri State11. Shaq Calhoun, Mississippi State12. Phil Haynes, Wake Forest13. Hjalte Froholdt, Arkansas14. Nate Herbig, Stanford15. Mitch Hyatt, Clemson16. Zack Bailey, South Carolina17. Tyler Jones, NC State18. Brandon Knight, Indiana19. B.J. Autry, Jacksonville State20. Trevon Tate, Memphis21. Martez Ivey, Florida22. Fred Johnson, Florida23. Keaton Sutherland, Texas A&M24. Alex Bars, Notre Dame25. Joe Lowery, Ohio26. Bunchy Stallings, Kentucky27. Marquez Tucker, Southern Utah28. Iosua Opeta, Weber State29. Andre James, UCLA30. Venzell Boulware, Miami31. Garrett Brumfield, LSU32. George Asafo-Adjei, Kentucky33. Brandon Fanaika, Stanford
8 of 13
David J. Phillip/Associated Press
1. Elgton Jenkins, Mississippi State
2. Erik McCoy, Texas A&M3. Ross Pierschbacher, Alabama4. Lamont Gaillard, Georgia5. Jon Baker, Boston College6. Javon Patterson, Ole Miss7. Brandon Hitner, Villanova8. Sean Rawlings, Ole Miss9. Keegan Render, Iowa10. Alec Eberle, Florida State11. Jesse Burkett, Stanford12. Nick Linder, Indiana13. Drew Kyser, Memphis
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Joe Robbins/Getty Images
1. Dre’Mont Jones, Ohio State
2. Anthony Nelson, Iowa3. Trysten Hill, UCF4. Armon Watts, Arkansas5. Khalen Saunders, Western Illinois6. Renell Wren, Arizona State7. Gerald Willis, Miami8. Kingsley Keke, Texas A&M9. Isaiah Buggs, Alabama10. Daylon Mack, Texas A&M11. Greg Gaines, Washington12. Byron Cowart, Maryland13. Albert Huggins, Clemson14. Dontavius Russell, Auburn15. Daniel Wise, Kansas16. Chris Slayton, Syracuse17. Michael Dogbe, Temple18. Kevin Givens, Penn State19. Terry Beckner Jr., Missouri20. Ed Alexander, LSU21. Demarcus Christmas, Florida State22. Cortez Broughton, Cincinnati23. Amani Bledsoe, Oklahoma24. Chris Nelson, Texas25. Marquise Copeland, Cincinnati26. Ricky Walker, Virginia Tech27. Youhanna Ghaifan, Wyoming28. Olive Sagapolu, Wisconsin29. Darrion Daniels, Oklahoma State
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Paul Sancya/Associated Press
1. Jaylon Ferguson, Louisiana Tech
2. Jachai Polite, Florida3. Zach Allen, Boston College4. Chase Winovich, Michigan5. Christian Miller, Alabama6. Joe Jackson, Miami7. D’Andre Walker, Georgia8. Oshane Ximines, Old Dominion9. Charles Omenihu, Texas10. Ben Banogu, TCU11. Shareef Miller, Penn State12. Austin Bryant, Clemson13. Jonathan Ledbetter, Georgia14. Jalen Jelks, Oregon15. Porter Gustin, USC16. John Cominsky, Charleston17. Jordan Brailford, Oklahoma State18. Justin Hollins, Oregon19. Malik Carney, North Carolina20. Maxx Crosby, Eastern Michigan21. Sutton Smith, Northern Illinois22. Wyatt Ray, Boston College23. Landis Durham, Texas A&M24. Ronheen Bingham, Arkansas State25. Jamal Davis, Akron26. Greg Roberts, Baylor27. Kyle Phillips, Tennessee28. Darryl Johnson, North Carolina A&T29. Juwon Young, Marshall30. CeCe Jefferson, Florida31. Carl Granderson, Wyoming
11 of 13
Marcio Jose Sanchez/Associated Press
1. Mack Wilson, Alabama
2. Bobby Okereke, Stanford3. Germaine Pratt, NC State4. Vosean Joseph, Florida5. David Long Jr., West Virginia6. Jahlani Tavai, Hawaii7. Te’von Coney, Notre Dame8. Emeke Egbule, Houston9. Terrill Hanks, New Mexico State10. Cameron Smith, USC11. Chase Hansen, Utah12. Blake Cashman, Minnesota13. T.J. Edwards, Wisconsin14. Tre Lamar, Clemson15. Terez Hall, Missouri16. Drew Lewis, Colorado17. Cody Barton, Utah18. Josiah Tauaefa, UTSA19. Sione Takitaki, BYU20. Gary Johnson, Texas21. Dakota Allen, Texas Tech22. Ben Burr-Kirven, Washington23. Joe Giles-Harris, Duke24. Ryan Connelly, Wisconsin25. Drue Tranquill, Notre Dame26. Ty Summers, TCU27. Malik Reed, Nevada28. Kendall Joseph, Clemson29. Dre Greenlaw, Arkansas30. Tyrel Dodson, Texas A&M31. Jeff Allison, Fresno State32. Gerri Green, Mississippi State33. Deshaun Davis, Auburn34. BJ Blunt, McNeese State35. Otaro Alaka, Texas A&M36. Ulysees Gilbert, Akron37. Azeez Al-Shaair, Florida Atlantic38. Nate Hall, Northwestern39. Khalil Hodge, Buffalo40. Chris Peace, Virginia41. Cole Holcomb, North Carolina42. Jordan Kunaszyk, California43. Quart’e Sapp, Tennessee44. Curtis Akins, Memphis45. Natrez Patrick, Georgia46. Koron Crump, Arizona State47. Joe Dineen Jr., Kansas48. Andrew Van Ginkel, Wisconsin
12 of 13
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1. Greedy Williams, LSU
2. Byron Murphy, Washington3. Trayvon Mullen, Clemson4. Rock Ya-Sin, Temple5. Justin Layne, Michigan State6. Lonnie Johnson, Kentucky7. Julian Love, Notre Dame8. Sean Bunting, Central Michigan9. Jamel Dean, Auburn10. Joejuan Williams, Vanderbilt11. Amani Oruwariye, Penn State12. David Long, Michigan13. Kris Boyd, Texas14. Isaiah Johnson, Houston15. Jordan Brown, South Dakota State16. Iman Marshall, USC17. Blessuan Austin, Rutgers18. Jimmy Moreland, James Madison19. Sheldrick Redwine, Miami20. Corey Ballentine, Washburn21. Mark Fields, Clemson22. Michael Jackson, Miami23. Jordan Miller, Washington24. Montre Hartage, Northwestern25. Xavier Crawford, Central Michigan26. Saivion Smith, Alabama27. Kendall Sheffield, Ohio State28. Jamal Peters, Mississippi State29. Hamp Cheevers, Boston College30. Blace Brown, Troy31. Ken Webster, Mississippi32. Derrick Baity, Kentucky33. Davante Davis, Texas34. Rashad Fenton, South Carolina35. Ryan Pulley, Arkansas36. Alijah Holder, Stanford37. Donnie Lewis, Tulane38. Derrek Thomas, Baylor39. Clifton Duck, Appalachian State40. Ka’dar Hollman, Toledo 41. Tyler Horton, Boise State42. Keisean Nixon, South Carolina43. Chris Westry, Kentucky44. Jace Whittaker, Arizona
13 of 13
Butch Dill/Associated Press
1. Taylor Rapp, Washington
2. Chauncey Gardner-Johnson, Florida3. Deionte Thompson, Alabama4. Nasir Adderley, Delaware5. Juan Thornhill, Virginia6. Amani Hooker, Iowa7. Evan Worthington, Colorado8. Marquise Blair, Utah9. Mike Edwards, Kentucky10. Jaquan Johnson, Miami11. Will Harris, Boston College12. Saquan Hampton, Rutgers13. Malik Gant, Marshall14. Mike Bell, Fresno State15. Marvell Tell, USC16. Andrew Wingard, Wyoming17. Jonathan Crawford, Indiana18. Lukas Denis, Boston College19. Ugo Amadi, Oregon20. D’Cota Dixon, Wisconsin21. Mark McLaurin, Mississippi State22. Darius West, Kentucky23. Khari Willis, Michigan State24. John Battle, LSU25. Zedrick Woods, Mississippi26. JoJo McIntosh, Washington27. Donovan Wilson, Texas A&M28. Adarius Pickett, UCLA29. Mook Reynolds, Virginia Tech30. Dre Askew-Henry, West Virginia31. Delvon Randall, Temple32. Chris Johnson, North Alabama33. Garrett Davis, Houston34. Jah’Shawn Johnson, Texas Tech
Wales are enjoying their most successful period in the professional era, last month winning a third grand slam in 11 years to lift them to second in the world rankings, their highest ever. They are on a record winning run and will arrive in Japan for the World Cup later this year as self-proclaimed contenders.
The achievement is all the more notable because the professional game in Wales below international level is heading towards the intensive care ward. The regular season of the Pro14 ends this Saturday with a series of local derbies and there is a chance that, for the first time, Wales will not be represented in next season’s European Champions Cup, 12 months after the Scarlets reached the semi-final.
The country’s four regions will be at the Principality Stadium for Judgment Day VII, six weeks after Wales secured the grand slam there by defeating Ireland. The winner of the match between Cardiff Blues and the Ospreys will qualify for the play-off to determine the Pro14’s final place in next season’s Champions Cup: the Scarlets, who face the Dragons, could provide the opposition, but the side coached by Wayne Pivac, who will take charge of Wales after the World Cup, is reliant on others.
The Scarlets could finish third in their conference and qualify automatically for Europe. That would require the two teams immediately above them losing, Edinburgh at Glasgow and Treviso at Zebre. If one of the results went the region’s way, the play-off would beckon; if neither did, it would mean experiencing the Challenge Cup for the first time.
“It has been a hugely frustrating season, and that is an understatement” said Jonathan Davies, the Scarlets’ Wales and Lions centre. “There was expectation and we put pressure on ourselves from within. Injuries were a reason we faltered, but with the talent we have we should be in a better position.
“There is a lot at stake for us against the Dragons because the Champions Cup is part of the Scarlets’ history. The days you remember as a kid growing up are big European matches and it is vital that we are in the tournament next season. We need to beat the Dragons and hope that everything else takes care of itself: I have my Glasgow and Zebre shirts ready.”
Ospreys are the only Welsh region to have won more league matches than they have lost this season. The Blues and the Scarlets have a 50% record and the Dragons are propping up their conference having recorded four victories in 20 matches. It is 16 years since Wales abandoned the club system at professional level, a move driven by economics as teams were unable to get anywhere against the playing budgets of clubs in England and France and losing players, but the financial divide remains even with four sides. They are pedalling harder and harder but falling further behind.
All four lack depth in their squads, making them vulnerable to injuries, and they do not spend as much on coaching teams as their rivals in Europe. The Welsh Rugby Union has tried to launch Project Reset, a comprehensive plan that addresses issues like player wages, the number of regions and where they would best be located. But any change needs consensus and it suffered a setback during the Six Nations when a proposed merger between the Ospreys and the Scarlets was leaked, ending it abruptly at the conception stage.
The result is that in the final week of the regular season a number of contracts still have to be sorted out, including that of the Wales captain, Alun Wyn Jones. The Ospreys have drawn up a new deal for the second-row, but need the financial support of the Welsh Rugby Union to honour it. Earlier this month, the Cardiff Blues fly-half Gareth Anscombe announced he was joining the Ospreys next season: the Wales international could have the kick which decides which of the two goes into the play-off.
“It is a bit unreal that we are playing the Ospreys for the play-off spot,” said the Blues head coach, John Mulvihill. “Gareth is a true professional and will be doing everything for us. Recruitment and retention should be made between December and February, not now, which is unacceptable. We need to make sure it does not happen again. The Pro14 is a league that is going from strength to strength and will get even better. We have played some really good rugby this season, but you have to be on it all the time.”
The Dragons are in a familiar position despite recruiting with intent a year ago when they brought in experienced internationals Ross Moriarty and Richard Hibbard. It has been a two-tone season for their hooker Elliot Dee, unbeaten in nine matches with Wales but whose four victories in a Dragons shirt include the Southern Kings, Zebre and Timisoara Saracens among the victims.
“It has been a good season for me with Wales,” said Dee. “It was amazing to be part of the grand slam, but it has been tough for the regions with all the stuff that has been going on in the background. At the end of the day, you have a job to do and we intend giving a good account of ourselves against the Scarlets.”
Judgment Day is intended as a celebration before a near capacity crowd, but it has come to highlight the parallel roads Welsh rugby runs on, only one of which has signposts.
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