Wales are prepared to wait until the morning of the Six Nations match against England at the Principality Stadium on Saturday before deciding whether Dan Biggar and George North will face the champions.
The pair, who were both injured during the victory against Italy in Rome last Sunday, were named on Thursday in the home side’s starting lineup, but Leicester have been put on alert that Wales may require their outside-half Owen Williams to sit on the bench with the final decision over Biggar still to be made. The other wings in the squad, Alex Cuthbert and the uncapped Steffan Evans, have not been released back to their regions with North not certain to take his place on the wing.
Biggar sustained a rib injury that forced him off at half-time in Rome while North sustained a dead leg that has prevented him from training this week. He appears to be the more doubtful of the two and if he were forced to pull out it would leave the Wales interim head coach, Rob Howley, with a problem.
Cuthbert, who scored Wales’s two tries in their last Six Nations victory against England in 2013, appeared against Australia and Japan in November last year but looked a shadow of the player who played in the first Test against the Wallabies for the British & Irish Lions four years ago, while Evans is untried. The full‑back Leigh Halfpenny played on the wing against Japan in the autumn, but Wales have no cover in his position other than Evans, who has played at 15.
“Dan and George are important players for us and they will be given every opportunity to prove their fitness, even going to the day of a big game,” said Howley, whose two changes from the opening‑round victory were in the front row where the props Rob Evans and Tomas Francis replace Nicky Smith and Samson Lee. “Experience will come to the fore against England. It’s a key ingredient when you play in the championship and it has counted for us on occasions. It’s up to us to bring that experience to the fore and engage the crowd.”
Sam Davies made an impact for Wales when he replaced Biggar in the second half in Rome, involved in their three tries, but with England on a 15-match winning run and winners in the last three Six Nations matches against Wales, Howley wants to exploit what he considers to be one of his main advantages, experience, against a side missing half their pack and fielding an unfamiliar back row.
“I think the quality and experience in our back row will have a significant impact on the game,” said Howley, who has recalled the Lions No8 Taulupe Faletau, who has not played since Christmas Eve after aggravating a knee injury playing for Bath, to the bench. “I think it speaks volumes of our back row when you see us releasing back to his club Thomas Young who has been one of the in-form 7s in the English Premiership.
“I think the quality and experience in that back row will have a significant impact on the game the weekend. Taulupe hasn’t played for a long time but it hasn’t looked like that in training with his deft touches and ability to beat defenders. We look for similar impact from him as we had from the bench on Sunday.
“Every coach will tell you is it about your 23 and the last 20 minutes are pretty key from our perspective when the game loosens up. Sam Davies is a fantastic player who made a difference in Italy, providing the impact you want from your bench, and I would be confident starting him, but I feel for this game that we need experience. Dan played particularly well when he was on and it is good to have two outside-halves of such quality to give us headaches.”
Wales have had a day less to prepare than England, having played last Sunday. They flew back to Cardiff a few hours after the end of the 33-7 victory against Italy and in the early hours of the morning the players were in the cryotherapy chamber at their training base in the Vale of Glamorgan making up for lost time.
“There will be no excuses from us,” Howley said. “We’ve trained as best as we can with a six-day turnaround and are looking forward to one of the best sides, if not the best, in the northern hemisphere. You admire their strength in depth which they showed with the impact made by the bench against France. We know we are going to have to be on our A game and we feel we are in good shape, excited and ready for it.”
The England head coach, Eddie Jones, has told his players to have no fear about playing in Cardiff and the Wales captain, Alun Wyn Jones, wants to maximise home advantage.
“We are fortunate to have a stadium that adds to the occasion and we hope to do it justice,” he said. “Rugby has to be the focus, but we have to show the pride of a nation on the pitch.”
Wales team to face England
L Halfpenny (Toulon); G North (Northampton), J Davies (Scarlets), S Williams (Scarlets), L Williams (Scarlets); D Biggar (Ospreys), R Webb (Ospreys); R Evans (Scarlets), K Owens (Scarlets), T Francis (Exeter), J Ball (Scarlets), A W Jones (Ospreys, capt), S Warburton (Cardiff Blues), J Tipuric (Ospreys), R Moriarty (Gloucester). Replacements S Baldwin (Ospreys), N Smith (Ospreys), S Lee (Scarlets), C Hill (Newport Gwent Dragons), T Faletau (Bath), G Davies (Scarlets), S Davies (Ospreys), J Roberts (Harlequins).
