Rugby World Cup: Nervous Wales fans await 'toughest game'

An opponent all too familiar to Wales, Fiji, will be eyeing up another significant scalp at the Rugby World Cup on Sunday.

The two sides have met at the last five tournaments.

Overall Wales has won 10 of the 12 meetings.

But memories are still fresh of the humbling in Nantes which dumped Gareth Jenkins' men out of the 2007 World Cup and led to the head coach being sacked in the stadium car park.

Fiji are coming into this tournament as the highest ranked team in the group, and Wales fans in Bordeaux are certainly wary of the Pacific islanders' threat as the two sides meet at 20:00 BST.

Hannah was one of the few brave Wales fans to have donned a daffodil hat for the game, on a sweltering day in Bordeaux.

She has travelled with parents Val and Nigel, partner Dan and son Teddy, two.

"I think it will be a close game - my prediction was Wales to win by three points," said Hannah.

"I'm a bit apprehensive, I think it's going to be a really tough game," said Andrew, from Merthyr Tydfil, who has travelled with a tour group to France.

"I think it could be the game of the group - it's a cup game as far as I'm concerned, we've got to treat it like one.

"Sadly I was there in Nantes for that dreaded game when Fiji beat us, so I'm hoping it won't be the same outcome."

Lisa, from Swansea, who is part of the same group, added that she was "really nervous".

"Fiji are looking really, really good and I hope that we can do our best and get the win," she said.

Former Wales international Dyddgu Hywel arrived in Bordeaux on Saturday, having cycled all the way from Paris as part of a large group from Wales raising money for the Velindre cancer centre.

With the gruelling challenge done amid scorching temperatures of more than 35C all week in France, attentions now turn to what she admits is a "massive game for Wales".

"Fiji are very physical - we'll see how we are at set piece and lineouts, but it may come down to fitness," she said.

"Temperatures are really hot here as well, you could see that from the game [between France and New Zealand]. But I think we'll do well."

Other supporters in the city share her optimism.

"I think they've got a very good chance, but they've got to come out fighting," said Aysha, Lee from Abergavenny.

"You can't write Fiji off, they're playing amazing at the moment, so I'm just hoping that Wales pull out all the stops and go for it. I think it'll be very close."

Both sides have faced fitness issues in the build up to the game, with Wales co-captain Dewi Lake not having recovered from injury in time to be selected, and Fiji fly-half Caleb Muntz ruled out of the tournament after hurting his knee in training.

But for some Welsh fans, the return of head coach Warren Gatland this year may have just as much of an impact as the players on the field.

"I'm quite confident," said Ben Edwards, from Llanelli.

"Gatland has come in and built a young team, and we've got a good chance in this tournament.

"I think this is the toughest game, because if we win it takes the pressure off the rest of the group. They can go into that Australia game full of confidence."

Despite Wales coming into the tournament having only won two of their last 10 games - while Fiji recently claimed their first ever win over England - David Holmes, from Cardiff, doesn't see recent form as an issue.

"Being a Welsh fan you learn to live with the highs and the lows, but Gatland will get us there," he said.

"He's trained them, he's got them to a level that's going to be different - I think we're going to win.

"In the Six Nations he'd had them for five minutes - give him a chance. He's done it before and he'll do it again."

How confident are the Fiji fans?

Sara and Silvio from Switzerland are adopted Fiji fans, having met the squad when they spent their honeymoon on the island in 2018.

"Ever since then our hearts are with Fiji - we follow them a lot to watch the rugby," said Sara.

Meanwhile, many fans back home will be watching the game in local rugby clubs or pubs or on the sofa.

Friends Nia Richards, 30, Nathan Hill, 32, Adam Beachey, 32, all from Cardiff, are watching the game at the clubhouse at the Cardiff Arms Park and are feeling "anxious" but also "excited"."I think it's going to be really tense," said Nia.

"I don't know which way it is going to go - Fiji have played really well recently. It's definitely important to get a good start. " Adam was feeling the most positive: "I think we've got this one. We just need to stay focused. I'm quietly confident."