By Sean Davies BBC Sport Online

In the second part of BBC Sport Online's interview with David Watkins, he tells of challenges and triumphs in league, the return to Wales, Newport's revival and the state of Welsh rugby.

"It was a bit like the Iestyn Harris thing in reverse. It was so physical and so tough. There was resentment at my signing-on fee.

"In my first two seasons I broke my nose four times, fractured my ribs and broke my jaw and they were all off-the-ball incidents.

"I remember being pole-axed in a game against Leigh. I got up and asked the ref what he was going to do about it. He said 'Hey, son, you've been paid enough to look after yourself'!"

Watkins was also asked to take over goal-kicking responsibilities, and he did it so well that he broke all the club's scoring records. In 13 seasons in league he scored over 1,000 points, gained 16 Welsh caps and captained his country 14 times.

Watkins played six times for Great Britain, taking the ultimate challenge of the Ashes tour to Australia in 1974 - and repeating the feat as player-coach in 1976.

He switched to full-back in the final years of his career, finally finishing with Salford in 1979 before playing one season with Swinton.

Returning to Wales in 1981, Watkins was the driving force behind the Cardiff Blue Dragons rugby league club.

"It was hard work. There was a 'them and us' situation between league and union and we had to bring a lot of players from the north of England.

"If people were seen training with the Blue Dragons and they didn't make it there was no way back for them in union.

"The Welsh public are finding it hard to empathise with the current league team as they don't know the players. I hope they can get behind them and support the boys, though - it's a big game coming up against New Zealand."

"People who talk about that know nothing about the game. The truth of the matter is we don't have many good players and have lost our natural flair.

"Too many rugby players only think of how much they're being paid. We have to stamp out professionalism below the premier division. When we see the small sides like Oakdale struggling to raise teams you have to fear for the grassroots of our game.

"We should put time and effort into the clubs. The union needs to get up off its backside and make sure the finance is in place."

Watkins has also been an outspoken critic of Wales' recruitment of New Zealand coaches Graham Henry and Steve Hansen.

"People at the clubs know what the Welsh game is about and you'd think that Steve Hansen would want to get them on his side. We should all be pushing in the same direction but that's not happening, there's no dialogue.

"We pay too much and the money should be put back into our game."

Perhaps the answer is in financing and the structure of the game, but many Welsh fans will fear that the country is just not producing the natural talent that used to flood out of mining communities like Blaina.