Wales centre Nick Tompkins believes he and Owen Watkin can be the odd couple who prove a puzzle Scotland are unable to solve at Murrayfield. Wayne Pivac’s side have headed north of the border following an opening weekend win against Ireland, but also minus a quarter of their 36-man Six Nations squad sidelined by injuries or suspension. Tompkins and Watkins will be the centre pairing in Edinburgh for round two – a selection combination that would have attracted long odds before the tournament began.

Wales play Scotland at Murrayfield on Saturday and go there as firm underdogs for the first time in years. The Scots are doing things differently to Wales, says Harri Morgan – showing both patience and pragmatism missing within the WRU. In the wake of Scotland’s first victory at Twickenham since 1983, Gregor Townsend’s stock has shot up ‘Gamestop’ style. The head coach has been lauded for masterminding the hybrid game plan, which struck a perfect chord between risk and reward.

Wayne Pivac may have called up Willis Halaholo for a likely first Wales cap this weekend, but is not the first time the coach has held faith in his fellow New Zealander. Halaholo will be among the replacements to face Scotland at Murrafield in round two of the Six Nations, a dozen years since the centre made his first big impression on Pivac. That was when the Kiwi coach was at North Harbour and Halaholo was making a reputation at Auckland academy.

Liam Williams is set to return to the Wales team against Scotland this weekend after having seen out his three-match ban following a red card playing for the Scarlets against Cardiff Blues. James Dodd believes the Lions star is exactly what Wales need in order to get their backline moving freely again. Liam Williams was shown a red card for his head clash with back rower Shane Lewis-Hughes at the Cardiff City Stadium in January – an act that proved old habits die hard. While Williams has become one the most exciting players in the world, he cut his teeth as a youngster playing club rugby for Waunarlwydd in Swansea , rather than in any cosseted regional academy.

Scott Williams believes the best thing to happen to George North this season was being dropped by Wayne Pivac. Ospreys centre Williams – a teammate of North’s for region and country – believes the Lions star has found his best form following that rejection by the Wales coach in autumn and also discovered a new lease of life by moving from wing to centre. Williams – whose own Wales career has been halted for the time being by back problems – has hailed the performance of North during Wales’ opening Six Nations victory over Ireland on Saturday.

Dean Ryan has told his Dragons team they must not let a back row crisis deflect them from the need to bounce back against Edinburgh on Friday night. The Dragons, who are fifth in conference A, welcome the Scottish side to Newport with clear orders to make amends for their home defeat to Connacht last week. “I think it’s important that we build on last week. I don’t think it’s any secret, I was pretty disappointed with how we came out on quite a long spell,” said Ryan.

Carwyn Tuipulotu has committed his future to the Scarlets by signing a four-year deal and his first professional contract. The 19-year-old back-row, one of Welsh rugby’s bright young prospects, has made a big impression at Parc y Scarlets this season and came off the bench for his Guinness PRO14 debut against Leinster last month. The son of Tongan international Kati, Tuipulotu was educated at Sedbergh School in Cumbria before linking up with the Scarlets Academy from Newcastle Falcons two seasons ago.

Former Scarlets conditioning coach Aled Waters has revealed that getting out of Wales has opened his eyes to how players should prepare for top level rugby. Walters left his home region in 2009 and has since travelled the world, establishing himself as one of the most well-respected strength and conditioning coaches on the planet. Having spent time at Taranaki, the Brumbies and with Munster before helping South Africa lift the 2019 Rugby World Cup, he now finds himself with Leicester Tigers.

Louis Rees-Zammit’s superb try against Ireland should keep him in the Wales team for 20 more caps, according to TV pundit David Flatman. The former England prop thinks Wales coach Wayne Pivac should stick with Rees-Zammit, who owed his place in the starting line-up to the banning of Josh Adams. Rees-Zammit justified his selection with an acrobatic finish for Wales’ crucial second try in their 21-16 victory and gave a very solid all-round display.

Wayne Pivac confessed he was a relieved man after gaining his most significant win so far as Wales coach and proving he’s added something to his assets – a streak of luck. Pivac’s team opened their Six Nations with a fortune-favoured 21-16 victory over Ireland in an empty Principality Stadium. Ireland were the better side […]

Wales captain Alun Wyn Jones says he has had “a pretty seamless” recovery from injury ahead of his comeback in Sunday’s Guinness Six Nations clash against Ireland. Jones – who was given a black eye this week, after a punch from Jake Ball, according to reports – will make his first appearance in Wales or Ospreys colours since suffering a knee injury during the Autumn Nations Cup victory over Italy nine weeks ago. He goes straight back into test match action with Wales targeting a strong start to their Six Nations campaign following last year’s poor fifth-placed finish and an overall run of just three wins in 10 games.

Andy Farrell says Ireland must make a statement of intent against Wales to demonstrate their Guinness Six Nations title credentials. The Irish return to Cardiff on Sunday for the first time since a 25-7 defeat in 2019 saw Wales replace them as Grand Slam champions. Head coach Farrell was unable to help his adopted country reclaim the crown during an inconsistent first year in the job, eventually finishing a prolonged tournament third behind England and France.

Dan Lydiate will return for Wales after more than two years away when he plays against Ireland on Sunday. It’s a good call, according to Mike Ruddock, but the former Leinster and Ireland U20 coach reckons Wales will need to do a lot more than simply defend around their back row as he tells Graham Thomas. Mike Ruddock has warned Wales that English pair Andy Farrell and Mike Catt are looking to unleash a new multi-weaponed Ireland against them on Sunday. Wales’ former Grand Slam-winning coach believes it will not be enough for Wayne Pivac’s side to concentrate solely on blocking Ireland’s steam-rollering pack.

New women’s head coach Thomas Brindle is relishing chance to progress the Wales Rugby League national team. The 34-year-old takes over from Craig Taylor, who stood down at the end of last year for personal reasons, having been involved in the sport for many years.

Wayne Pivac has vowed his Wales team will give the country reason to get excited when they launch their Guinness Six Nations campaign against Ireland in Cardiff on Sunday. The Wales coach has picked George North at centre and recalled wing Hallam Amos and flanker Dan Lydiate for the opening match of the tournament as injuries and the axing of Josh Adams forced the coach’s hand. Ospreys wing North, who wins his 99th cap, is partnered by Johnny Williams in midfield as Wales go into action without Scarlets centre Jonathan Davies.

With no fans inside the Principality Stadium for the Six Nations – and no pubs or rugby clubs open – predictions competitions are one way of keeping supporters feeling involved and together. Leading results agency All Wales Sport have extended the deadline for theirs to Friday and are going all out with a £200 prize pot for charity. Entry is free and all you have to do is predict each Six Nations result – in terms of overall points difference – starting with Saturday’s tournament opener between Italy and France.

Wales’ preparations for their Six Nations opener with Ireland have been thrown into turmoil after star wing Josh Adams was removed from Wayne Pivac’s squad for breaching Covid-19 protocols. Adams – the top try-scorer at the 2019 World Cup – attended a family event at the weekend in a decision which went against every protocol the Wales management had provided. To minimise the risk of coronavirus infecting their squad, Wales are spending longer periods in their bubble at their Vale of Glamorgan training base.

A Six Nations tournament in the year of a Lions tour always adds extra spice, but for Wayne Pivac it might just be food that keeps him alive, according to Harri Morgan. With Lions places dangled on a string in front of them, he expects a few Wales players to step forward. As a fan, with designs on following the Lions to the southern tip of Africa, my preference would be for a postponement until 2022. The ‘+1’ approach is conceptually simple.

Wales back row international Ollie Griffiths has received a double boost – signing a contract extension at the Dragons and returning to training after ankle surgery. The 25-year-old, who won his only cap to date as a replacement in the summer tour victory over Tonga in Auckland in 2017, has been dogged by injuries in recent seasons, but is now targeting a return to action next month. His latest problem came in the Champions Cup defeat to Wasps, when he damaged his ankle. Successful surgery was followed by rehab and now he is back running at the region’s Ystrad Mynach training base.

WillGriff John says family reasons and a desire to be playing a vibrant band of rugby led him to sign for the Scarlets for next season from Sale. The prop – who came close to his first cap last season before the lockdown stalled his ambitions – would have been outside the eligibility category for the next campaign had he remained in England. But the tight-head has decided against renewing his contract at Sale in preference of a move to Parc y Scarlets.