Warren Gatland has made one change to his starting XV at No 10
Wales head coach Warren Gatland has recalled fly-half Sam Costelow in the only change to the starting line-up for their trip to Dublin to face Ireland in the Six Nations on Saturday.
Ioan Lloyd drops to the bench following the defeat to England at Twickenham while Costelow has recovered from a neck injury suffered in Wales’s first-round defeat to Scotland in Cardiff.
Related: Wales Six Nations squad
Lloyd was crucial to the fightback in the defeat to Scotland in the opening round after entering the fray at 27-0 down before spurring a comeback that ultimately ended in a one-point defeat, but he was unable to exert as much impact against England and Costelow has been recalled having recovered from his injury.
Among the replacements, Cardiff back-row Mackenzie Martin is in line to win his first senior cap after replacing Taine Basham in the No 20, while Harlequins tighthead prop Dillon Lewis will make his first appearance of this championship if called upon from the bench.
🏴 Warren Gatland has switched it up at fly-half and brought another debutant onto the bench for Ireland pic.twitter.com/YDVpXKuhRF
— Rugby World (@Rugbyworldmag) February 20, 2024
Should Martin feature, he would become the third player to make his Welsh debut in this campaign and the 1,200th Wales men’s international.
Wales come into the game looking for their first win of the tournament having lost to Scotland and England. While their opponents look to continue their march towards a second Grand Slam in as many years as they face their first home nation of this year’s competition.
Related: Gatland directs message to Welsh public after England defeat
Gatland said: “We are excited to go out to Dublin and test ourselves against one of the leading sides in world rugby.
“It’s a challenge we are relishing. We’ve made steps in the last couple of games and now it’s about building on that, learning from those experiences and taking that into this weekend.
“It’s about continuing to work hard, looking for accuracy in our performance across 80 minutes and also keeping our discipline.”
Full Wales team news for Ireland on Saturday in the Six Nations 2024
15. Cameron Winnett (Cardiff Rugby – 2 caps)
14. Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby – 56 caps)
13. George North (Ospreys – 119 caps)
12. Nick Tompkins (Saracens – 34 caps)
11. Rio Dyer (Dragons – 16 caps)
10. Sam Costelow (Scarlets – 9 caps)
9. Tomos Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 55 caps)
1. Gareth Thomas (Ospreys – 27 caps)
2. Elliot Dee (Dragons – 48 caps)
3. Keiron Assiratti (Cardiff Rugby – 4 caps)
4. Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs – 14 caps) Captain / Capten
5. Adam Beard (Ospreys – 53 caps)
6. Alex Mann (Cardiff Rugby – 2 caps)
7. Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers – 15 caps)
8. Aaron Wainwright (Dragons – 45 caps)
Replacements
16. Ryan Elias (Scarlets – 40 caps)
17. Corey Domachowski (Cardiff Rugby – 8 caps)
18. Dillon Lewis (Harlequins – 54 caps)
19. Will Rowlands (Racing 92 – 30 caps)
20. Mackenzie Martin (Cardiff Rugby – uncapped)
21. Kieran Hardy (Scarlets – 19 caps)
22. Ioan Lloyd (Scarlets – 4 caps)
23. Mason Grady (Cardiff Rugby – 8 caps)
What do you make of the Wales team news? Let us know on social media or email rugbyworldletters@futurenet.com
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