Wayne Pivac will track the fitness of Dan Biggar after the Wales fly-half limped out of Northampton's Heineken Champions Cup defeat by Racing 92.
The English club were on the wrong end of a Finn Russell masterclass as they lost 45-14 at Franklin’s Gardens.
But of more concern to Wales' head coach will be the fitness of his first-choice No. 10.
Biggar departed the pitch on 46 minutes and Northampton team boss Chris Boyd later classed him as a doubt for the European game against Ulster in Belfast this coming weekend, with Biggar having found it difficult to overcome a persistent thigh problem in recent weeks.
Media reports said the 32-year-old player “was playing through the pain again”, while Boyd confirmed the injury wasn’t new, saying: “He’s carried that thigh for a couple of weeks now.
“We thought it was good and he trained well last week, but he overstretched early on.
“It was a bit of a problem because we couldn’t finish the game with a full side.
“So, unfortunate, but sometimes it goes like that.”
Wales open their Six Nations campaign in just over seven weeks, so Pivac will not be panicking. That said, the suggestion that the 95-cap Wales international is finding it hard to shake off the problem won’t have gone unnoticed.
Biggar's worth to Wales was underlined again during the recent Tests when he performed strongly against South Africa and Australia.
And after a batch of Tests when his side were hammered by injuries, Pivac will be hoping one of his key players recovers quickly.
Wales' head coach will also have his fingers, toes and everything else crossed as he waits for updates on Biggar's fellow Wales front-liners Justin Tipuric, George North, Taulupe Faletau, Ross Moriarty and Ken Owens, each of whom have been sidelined by bumps.
- Want the latest Welsh rugby news sent straight to you? Look no further.
