Six Nations Preview: Wales
Form: WWLLL
Fixtures: @ Ireland, v Scotland, @ England, v France, v Italy
Wales Player of the Tournament: Ellis Jenkins
One to Watch: Taine Basham
Prediction: 5th
Preview:
Wales enter the Six Nations off the back of a lacklustre Autumn Nations Series. In their last five fixtures, they have suffered losses to Argentina, New Zealand and South Africa, all of which were at the Principality (Millennium). Despite winning their final two games against Fiji and Australia, it was clear that there has been a big drop off from their winning Six Nations campaign earlier in the year. One reason for the said decline was due to the fact that Wayne Pivac’s squad were hit hard by the injury bug during the Autumn period, and unfortunately for Welsh fans, that injury cloud still looms large as we enter the 2022 Six Nations. Currently, Wales have unavailabilities across the entire squad, the likes of Alun Wyn Jones, Taulupe Faletau, Ken Owens, Leigh Halfpenny, Dan Lydiate, George North, Josh Navidi and Justin Tipuric are all injured and won’t feature in the tournament. Those eight players mentioned share over 700 test caps between them, so it’s fair to say that Wales will be missing a huge amount of experience. If Wayne Pivac’s side doesn’t adapt and learn from their Autumn Nations Series performances, they’ll be in for a tough 5 Rounds with Ireland, France, Scotland and England looking very strong. In saying that, these are the reigning champions, and even with a myriad of injuries, they can still be a very competitive side.
Even with the extensive injury list, Wales have named an exciting squad mixed with both new additions and savvy veterans. In Alun Wyn Jones’ absence, Northampton Saints fly-half Dan Biggar has been selected as captain for the tournament. With Biggar set to make his 100th appearance for Wales during the Six Nations, his experience made the decision a no-brainer for Wayne Pivac. Along with Biggar, Wales can lean on the experience of Tomas Francis, Ross Moriarty, Gareth Davies, Jonathan Davies and Liam Williams to lean on, all of whom have over 50 caps for Wales. With a youth-filled squad, the experience of those players will be invaluable, they will be tasked with guiding the youngsters through the peaks and troughs of this campaign.
Alongside the veterans, Wales have a staggering 11 players that have 10 or fewer caps. This group of players have been chucked in at the deep end due to the long list of unavailabilities, but will be looking to prove that the future is bright for Wales. Amongst those, uncapped backrowers Jac Morgan (Ospreys) and James Ratti (Cardiff) will be hoping to replicate their club form on the international stage. As two of Wales’ highly tipped stars for the future, Morgan and Ratti should get significant game time and could be shining lights in what many predict to be a difficult 8 weeks.
If Wales are to be successful during this Six Nations, they must do the ‘Meat and Drink’ far better than what was shown during the Autumn, that starts with the defence and set-piece. Across their last 5 games, Wales have conceded an average of 33 Points per game, an awfully high amount. Defensive schemes are simple for all sides, what separates the good from the bad is the communication and ability to slow the ball down. Wales simply didn’t win enough collisions in defence over the Autumn and it allowed teams to get on the front foot and generate quick ruck ball. If that problem isn’t solved, it’s going to be a torrid tournament for the Welsh. As for the set-piece, the lineout and scrum dipped heavily from their notoriously high standards in the Autumn. That may be down to new combinations due to the injury count, but that area must also improve if Wales are to find any success in this Six Nations.
Ultimately, whilst there is still a core group of established players in this squad, the level of youth and international inexperience means that this Six Nations will have a big developmental focus. With the 2023 RWC fast approaching, this is a great opportunity for Wayne Pivac and his coaching staff to give new players opportunities on the international stage and start to figure out who can cut it at the top level. With such an extensive injury list, Wales’ chances of repeating last year’s Six Nations success are thin. It’s hard to see how they can overcome the likes of Ireland, France, England and Scotland who are all looking incredibly strong. If you are a Welsh fan, you may be in for a frightful Six Nations.
Squad Depth Chart (assuming all players available):
Jones / Carre / Thomas
Elias / Roberts / Lake
Francis / Lewis / Brown
Beard / Carter
Rowlands / Davies / Tshiunza
Jenkins / Wainwright
Basham / Morgan
Moriarty / Ratti
Davies / Williams / Hardy
Biggar © / Priestland / Sheedy
Adams / Curthbert
Halaholo / Tompkins
Davies / Watkin
Rees-Zammit / McNicholl
Williams / Anscombe