WALES TEAM WINNERS AND LOSERS AS ‘HELLBENT’ WARREN GATLAND MAKES SHOCK BACKLINE CALLS AGAINST AUSTRALIA

Following the announcement of Warren Gatland’s Wales matchday 23 to tackle the Wallabies in Sydney, here are our winners and losers.

In true Gatland fashion, the experienced head coach has made some surprising decisions as he goes toe-to-toe with his old foe Joe Schmidt.

The New Zealander has a thrown a shock call at fly-half while also moving to cap an English-qualified speedster after failing to do so with the uber-talented Immanuel Feyi-Waboso.

With two inexperienced teams going up against one another, this promises to be an enthralling Test match with many stars of the years to come making their mark over the series.

That is without mentioning the pressure Gatland must be under having failed to win any of his six Test matches in 2024 taking his current losing streak to seven since their Rugby World Cup exit in the quarter-finals to Argentina.

So without further ado, here are our winners and losers from the Wales squad selected to tackle on the Wallabies.

Winners

Aaron Wainwright

A well-deserved milestone on Saturday as Aaron Wainwright raises the bat for his 50th cap, six years after making his debut for his country.

Despite Wales’ struggles in recent times, the 26-year-old has been a shining light in Gatland’s pack and is bound to put in another solid performance regardless of the result.

The hard-working and versatile loose forward is highly-rated by Gatland and it’s easy to see why as he has slotted in wonderfully in the number eight jumper with Taulupe Faletau still sidelined through injury.

Josh Hathaway

Hellbent on not losing another talented outside back to England, Gatland has moved to cap Gloucester flyer Josh Hathaway in the starting lineup against Australia on Saturday.

The 20-year-old enjoyed a breakout debut Premiership season with the Cherry and Whites and cemented his place in the side’s starting XV. While Gloucester struggled throughout the season, Hathaway racked up 19 appearances in his first full professional campaign and crossed for nine tries.

He could be a real star for Wales in the years to come, and while Gatland may be handing him a cap earlier than he would have liked, it is deserved based on his form this season.

Exeter Chiefs locks

A win for Gatland, too, as he calls on the impressive Exeter Chiefs’ pairing of Christ Tshiunza and Dafydd Jenkins, the former marking his return to the side after his battles with injuries which saw him miss the Six Nations.

Jenkins has been relieved of the captaincy duties but continues to shine in Wales’ engine room as he builds towards becoming a truly world-class second rower.

This certainly a young Wales squad, but the two Exeter Chiefs’ lock show there is still plenty to be excited for in the years to come.

Ellis Bevan

Last week, Gatland entrusted Ellis Bevan to start against the Springboks in his Test debut and has retained the jersey for the clash against Australia.

Bevan performed admirably against the Springboks despite Rassie Erasmus’ charges comfortably putting Wales away, and the young scrum-half will look to continue in that vein.

Ben Thomas

Since Dan Biggar’s retirement after the 2023 Rugby World Cup, Sam Costelow has been the starting fly-half in all but one of Wales’ Test matches, and that tally will double on Saturday as Ben Thomas takes on the number ten jumper.

It’s a real surprise decision from Gatland and follows his call to move Mason Grady into the number 12 jumper against South Africa. Thomas has sparingly played at fly-half during his senior career and started in the position on just one occasion in the United Rugby Championship this season.

A seriously talented player, this could be the shift that sees Thomas cement his place in the Wales’ starting XV.

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Losers

Cameron Winnett

For the first time this year, Cameron Winnett will not be starting at fullback for Wales as Gatland has favoured the more experienced number 15 in Liam Williams.

Winnett has hardly put a foot wrong since making his Test debut in the opening Six Nations match against Scotland.

Gatland clearly wanted to pair Hathaway with more experienced internationals for his first Test, but it is a rather harsh call on the youngster who drops out of the 23 entirely.

Sam Costelow

Another big call from the Wales head coach, who drops Sam Costelow from the starting XV down to the bench.

Wales’ fly-half stocks have been seriously depleted after the Rugby World Cup last year, but Costelow has risen to the occasion rather well and looked to be really finding his feet at the international level.

It’s understandable that the Wales boss wants to develop some depth in the role, and Costelow could still have a say in the Test from the bench, but it is another harsh decision.

Dropped locks

Gatland never shies away from a tough decision and this team announcement was no different all the locks that featured against South Africa were dropped from the matchday 23 entirely.

Starters Ben Carter and Matthew Screech make way for the Exeter duo mentioned above, while Cory Hill returns to the international fold, replacing James Ratti on the bench.

READ MORE: Warren Gatland names shock fly-half against Wallabies as Wales move to cap English-qualified flyer

2024-07-04T10:33:16Z dg43tfdfdgfd