Wales face ‘judgment time’ in their World Cup opener with Fiji, but news that the Pacific Island opposition have lost their star fly-half has given Warren Gatland’s side an advantage.
Head coach Gatland and his fully fit squad of 33 players will trade the sweltering heat of Versailles on the outskirts of Paris on Thursday for equally warm Bordeaux and travel by train.
It is in Bordeaux that they will take on their old foe Fiji – a side they have played in the pool matches of every global showpiece since their infamous defeat in Nantes in 2007.
“We’ve been working towards one goal for 16 weeks: this game,” said Wales assistant coach Jonathan Humphreys.
“We are well aware that this is the time of judgment for us. We feel we are reasonably well prepared and know what’s to come.’
Every player in Warren Gatland’s 33-man squad is fully fit for the Rugby World Cup
Assistant coach Jonathan Humphreys has warned Wales it is ‘judgment time’ against Fiji
Wales have reduced their focus on Fiji for the past two weeks. They have a well-rehearsed plan, but things changed significantly yesterday with news from the opposition camp.
Caleb Muntz is only 23 and only made his debut in Fiji this year.
But the news that he has been ruled out of the entire World Cup due to a knee injury sustained in training has shocked Simon Raiwalui’s men.
“On Monday, Caleb suffered a knee injury during a non-contact session and is out of the World Cup,” said Fiji head coach Raiwalu.
“It’s devastating for us as a group and for Caleb. He has worked so hard for the last two years for the Fijian Drua and for Flying Fijians. We sympathize with him. As a young man, he misses the opportunity so close to the World Cup.
“We have 33 players and we have the utmost confidence in them. Once we have named the team for the game against Wales, we will have complete confidence in who we have selected.’
Fiji – who beat England at Twickenham last month – had entered this tournament in sweltering France as a side widely seen as capable of shaking up the established order.
Raiwalu understandably emphasized his confidence in the other members of his squad. Wales also downplayed the impact of Muntz’s absence, but the hard truth is that the player’s injury is good news for the Gatland team and a blow to Fiji.
Fiji will be full of confidence after beating England at Twickenham last month
But they have been rocked by the news that fly-half Caleb Muntz has been ruled out of the tournament due to a knee injury sustained on Wednesday.
It is now almost certain that Teti Tela will start in tenth place for Fiji in Bordeaux. Ben Volavola, 32, missed Fiji’s first World Cup squad but can certainly expect a call-up now.
Volavola has just joined Agen as a replacement for Elton Jantjies after his positive drug test and is therefore already in France. Muntz’s injury also robs Fiji of a reliable goalscorer against Wales.
“Ruthless, that’s what we trained for,” said Humphreys.
“Everyone is a little tense, but in a good way. It’s taken me a long time to get here.’
So that’s right. Wales will name their team for Fiji today when they arrive in Bordeaux, where the temperature – like Versailles – is around 30 degrees.
Dan Biggar is expected to start the fly-half against Fiji on Sunday-evening in Bordeaux
Wales’ final training session at Versailles last night was intended to mimic to some extent the evening’s kick-off in Bordeaux. Night time temperatures are still sweltering here. Gatland has insisted that he has everyone available to face Fiji.
In last night’s session, hooker and co-captain Dewi Lake warmed up separately for the main group and Tommy Reffell was not initially present. Gatland faces his big roster calls at scrum half, inside center, blindside flanker and prop.
Nick Tompkins and Johnny Williams are contenders for a center position alongside George North, while a decision has to be made between Gareth Davies and Tomos Williams as starting number 9. Davies has been training at the scrum half this week alongside Taulupe Faletau and Dan Biggar, it will likely start at number 8 and fly-half respectively.
Davies and Williams are the only two scrum halves in the Wales squad, so both will be involved, but the former’s kicking play could well earn him the honour.
Johnny Williams is a contender for a center berth alongside George North
There is a sense that Williams could potentially make a bigger impact from the bench, while Wales hope their strong fitness will have exhausted Fiji in the Bordeaux heat.
“What’s really positive about this group right now is that there will be a few disappointed players. There are many options for us. You want hard decisions,” Gatland said.
‘You don’t want to be able to choose your 15 or 23 quickly. You want to have a strong debate in the coaching group about what you think should be the best combination.
“That will certainly happen.”