My Wales Squad for the Autumn – Nations Championship 2026
While Wales have been progressively improving under Steve Tandy over the past year, there was a sense that progress had stalled somewhat towards the end of the first block of Nations Championship fixtures. Tandy has shown to be a methodical coach who progressively implements smaller changes over multiple campaigns rather than someone prone to radical shifts, which is helpful given the unstable nature of Welsh rugby, but it’s possible that ahead of the World Cup, big conversations will need to be had to see if Wales’ current trajectory curves upwards steeply enough.
To close out 2026, Wales have three home fixtures against Japan, New Zealand, and Australia. The first fixture is the one Wales will mostly target, as their wins over Italy and Fiji earlier in the year set them up to be a worthy opponent to a Wales side that has done the same, while New Zealand and Australia are likely to be measuring sticks to show Wales’ progress from 2025 and 2024, respectively.
To take on these three teams, I’ve selected the squad I would pick to build upon Wales’ established strengths and take them in the right direction towards the tournament in Australia next year.
Props:
Rhys Carré and Nicky Smith are two of Wales’ more important players, so they’re a shoo-in despite the former having not played a game for Saracens yet. Injuries forbidding, they’re the two looseheads in whatever combination Tandy deems fitting.
This leaves the third-choice up for discussion; Gareth Thomas has been a staple since the last World Cup, but his shaky form at international level as of late combined with fairly underwhelming club showings make it questionable if his inclusion is the best move. Meanwhile, though he has yet to start a match, Rhys Barratt has been fairly solid for Cardiff off the bench; he brings a similar defensive energy to Thomas, and has handled himself well in the scrum against Leinster’s Thomas Clarkson, an international tighthead and fairly big unit. Even if he fails to make the 23, he’ll be crucial to Wales’ prop depth after the World Cup. Steffan Thomas and Danny Southworth could be other options, but Barratt offers the best balance with the aforementioned players.
At tighthead, Tomas Francis returns following a fairly solid start to life in Sale, and should bolster Wales’ already slowly improving scrum. Dillon Lewis also enjoyed a fairly nice summer, though with the Dragons’ injury roulette at tighthead he’ll want some gametime beforehand. Kieron Assiratti remains injured, so that leaves Ospreys’ Ben Warren and the newly returning Archie Griffin at Bath, who’s enjoying a lot more gametime than usual and has looked very comfortable. While Warren enjoyed a solid summer, he’s had a tougher time finding minutes so far and doesn’t look as close to his best form.
My Choices: Rhys Carré, Nicky Smith, Rhys Barratt, Tomas Francis, Dillon Lewis, Archie Griffin
Injury Cover: Gareth Thomas, Ben Warren
Hookers:
Dewi Lake will likely be captain, and with his form for Gloucester he may be even stronger than before. Ryan Elias is a likely deputy, as the only member of the Scarlets pack worth mentioning. Having those two massive physical presences in the front row will be a stern challenge to most sides, but it’ll be a necessity against the All Blacks’ and Wallabies’ hookers.
Third choice presents a similar conundrum to loosehead; Elliot Dee is the league’s top try scorer and needless to say is in excellent form, with the Dragons’ utilisation of the driving maul being a tactic Wales is very used to. Meanwhile, Cardiff offer more dynamic alternatives in the form of Liam Belcher and Evan Lloyd, with the latter impressing in a bench role and providing extra utility as backrow cover. Unlike at loosehead, though, the younger options will likely sit this one out.
My Choices: Dewi Lake, Ryan Elias, Elliot Dee
Injury Cover: Evan Lloyd
Locks:
Dafydd Jenkins returns, and will have been missed greatly after his absence in the autumn. His partnership with Ben Carter is due to continue, as the two are in great form and give the Welsh pack a great defensive engine and high-quality lineout. Teddy Williams is likely to come off the bench, as arguably the more in-form lock of the three, giving a more athletic carrying threat late-game.
From here, another bulky, tighthead lock would be great as backup to Carter. Adam Beard looks to be doing ok in France, though he’s lagging in minutes and doesn’t seem to have much point of difference in Wales at the moment beyond his experience. Rhys Davies, however, has started in good form despite being relegated to a bench role in the first two games of the season. His stronger carries and work over the ball could make him a valuable foil to the other three.
My Choices: Dafydd Jenkins, Ben Carter, Teddy Williams, Rhys Davies
Injury Cover: Adam Beard, Seb Davies
Back-Row:
Jac Morgan, Aaron Wainwright, Alex Mann, and James Botham are sure-fire callups, with all four in great form at club and international levels. They’ll likely all be in the World Cup squad in a year’s time, so until then the job is finding players who balance out their strengths and can back them up. This creates an issue for Wales’ solid 7 stocks in Tommy Reffell and Josh Macleod, who are great players but lack the versatility and physicality of Morgan and Botham.
For the blindside cover, Ryan Woodman has been hit with a very unfortunately timed injury, which is a shame as I would seriously consider him ahead of the World Cup. Taine Plumtree is the most likely call up, though he’s missed a lot of time with injury and seems to have lost some dynamism and workrate, so resting him would be a fair call. Wainwright has played the majority of his rugby at 6 for Leicester so far this season, but Freddie Thomas makes more sense as a Woodman replacement with his size, lineout skills, and aggressive approach.
Should Wainwright move to 6, two extra 8s will be needed. One is pretty locked in; Taine Basham is arguably the form player in Wales so far, with his more dynamic carrying style differentiating himself from Wainwright. He could keep Kane James out on his own, though the latter will certainly be involved post-World Cup. Finally, Morgan Morse deserves a second look-in ahead of the World Cup; his larger size and senior experience give him the edge over James, as both are shaping up to be great successors for Wainwright and Faletau.
My Choices: Jac Morgan, Aaron Wainwright, Alex Mann, James Botham, Freddie Thomas, Taine Basham, Morgan Morse
Injury Cover: Taine Plumtree, Tommy Reffell, Kane James
Scrum-Half:
Tomos Williams is playing 70-odd minutes of most games, though it’d help to develop options to succeed him after the World Cup. Kieran Hardy’s injury leaves a space open on the bench, which Reuben Morgan-Williams will likely take given his tendency for effective bench impact and his ability to cover out wide when necessary.
As for the remaining space, it should be Che Hope’s time to shine after injury took him out of the previous two campaigns. He’s picked up where he left off for Dragons and will likely be their starting 9 in due time, which is good news as Wales lack a real succession plan and Hope is far better than the other options his age.
My Choices: Tomos Williams, Reuben Morgan-Williams, Che Hope
Injury Cover: Dane Blacker
Fly-Half:
To keep it brief, Dan Edwards and Sam Costelow will be retained as Wales will want to build towards the World Cup and beyond with those two in mind. Costelow is generally in the better form for the two at club level, though Edwards always steps up when it counts most. Callum Sheedy has impressed for Cardiff and has moved ahead of Jarrod Evans, and there’s some drop-off after that.
Two picks is a bit light, but with only three games to play, a third option would be unlikely to see gametime.
My Choices: Dan Edwards, Sam Costelow
Injury Cover: Callum Sheedy
Centres:
Hoo boy. Eddie James’ locked down starting spot aside, Wales’ existing structure in the midfield looks to be falling apart. Ben Thomas is injured, Hawkins is stuck in an identity crisis of where to play, and no-one is really sure how to adapt from Matt Sheratt’s existing comfort zone. To keep his job as attack coach, he’ll need to translate his knowledge to a different structure.
Eddie is an exceptional carrying option, but this was generally underutilised as a 13 after the Six Nations. Switching to 12 makes sense to give him more opportunity with ball-in-hand, while his defence skills should help cover up one of Wales’ persistent weaknesses; their squishy midfield. Max Llewellyn, as the second-choice 13 for the better part of a year when not injured, makes the most sense as a partner; he has the physicality, defensive consistency, and agility to make a good foil.
The secondary choices are a little tougher again; Joe Roberts is the only 13 who hasn’t had any injury problems, and his pace and agility make him a good finishing option. His indiscipline holds him back, but he shouldn’t have too much trouble fitting in. Owen Watkin has looked good since coming back from injury, but has yet to really shine either.
As for the 12 cover, I think it’s better to rest Hawkins to let him re-find his flow and give someone else a shout. Kieran Williams remains in good form for Ospreys, while Bryn Bradley still looks fairly green at pro level. Johnny Williams has also found it hard to get gametime despite probably being the most similar to James. Aneurin Owen looks to be in the best form of the group, though, with his excellent workrate and distribution being key assets to the Dragons.
My Choices: Eddie James, Max Llewellyn, Joe Roberts, Aneurin Owen
Injury Cover: Kieran Williams, Owen Watkin
Wingers:
As per usual, international-grade wingers will miss out here. It’ll only get worse at the World Cup, with only 3 likely to make the cut along with the fullback cover. Still, it would be a far-fetched call to expect Louis Rees-Zammit not to be there; the only one close to being world-class, and he looks to have found something of his best rugby at the start of the season. Josh Adams is a bit less lucky; he’s been sidelined with injury for the season so far, and while always a reliable player for Wales it’s been argued he doesn’t offer enough pace and agility out wide right now. It might be better to rest him to fully recover so that he remains in best form for the World Cup.
I’ve been wanting to see Rio Dyer partnering Rees-Zammit on the wings, and he appears to be one of the in-form options despite not scoring a try yet. He’s beating more defenders than most, is more than willing to bring a physical edge that Ellis Mee tends to struggle with, and is solid under the high ball. Mee will still make it in though, especially with his performance against Benetton. He’s only getting more comfortable with this level of rugby, even if he ends up dropping down the pecking order a little.
For the final pick, Gabriel Hamer-Webb has fit right in among Leicester’s elite wingers, but I wouldn’t say he’s quite first-choice. That wouldn’t count against him normally, but he doesn’t seem to have a point-of-difference at international level. Mason Grady continues to excel in parts, but isn’t the most clinical player beyond his physicality, which counts against him when Wales are struggling for opportunities out wide.
For his even stronger early season form, Macs Page earns my pick, as he’s only gotten better from his breakthrough two years ago and has tightened up his defensive limitations. His kicking game and agility could put some elite teams under pressure, while his versatility is another edge. He’ll need to do more to make the World Cup squad, but an international call-up feels inevitable.
My Choices: Louis Rees-Zammit, Rio Dyer, Ellis Mee, Macs Page
Injury Cover: Josh Adams, Gabriel Hamer-Webb
Fullbacks:
The OTHER problem position. While tighthead lacks quality depth and the centres are more of a balancing act, fullback is a little simpler due to the limited experienced options. Rees-Zammit has committed to the wing and played well there, so he’ll be an emergency pick at best. This will likely see Blair Murray retained for at least Japan, though with his early-season form and exceptional attacking skills there are worse situations to be in.
However, he may not be the best solution long-term given his aerial and physical weaknesses. With Cam Winnett injured, the other two region’s fullbacks will push for a spot. Tom Rogers moved to Swansea to play fullback, and while his start on the wing was underwhelming, he really clicked in the 15 jersey against Dragons. His aerial skills remain as strong as ever, while his kicking game looked equally effective at putting pressure on. Anyone watching that game would be excited to see if he could bring that to the international game, as he has proven talents at that level.
Angus O’Brien’s advantages, meanwhile, revolve around his leadership and kicking game. Rogers is good for chip-kicks and chases, but O’Brien can win space under pressure with total ease and is a safe pair of hands (feet?) at the tee. He’s someone who can steer the backline regardless of whether or not his team is on the back foot. However, he has been limited to the one bench appearance so far this season with injury, with the less experienced Huw Anderson taking his place and doing quite well.
Ultimately, Rogers’ current form and international experience wins out, though the picture could look very different by the World Cup.
My Choices: Blair Murray, Tom Rogers
Injury Cover: Angus O’Brien
Provisional Starting Team vs Japan
- Rhys Carré
- Dewi Lake
- Tomas Francis
- Dafydd Jenkins
- Ben Carter
- Alex Mann
- Jac Morgan
- Aaron Wainwright
- Tomos Williams
- Sam Costelow
- Rio Dyer
- Eddie James
- Max Llewellyn
- Louis Rees-Zammit
- Blair Murray
BENCH
- Ryan Elias
- Nicky Smith
- Dillon Lewis
- Teddy Williams
- Taine Basham
- Reuben Morgan-Williams
- Dan Edwards
- Macs Page
