Wales team to play Ireland: 2023 Six Nations

ruck.co.uk

31 January 2023

Wales team to play Ireland: 2023 Six Nations

Making his return as head coach this weekend, Warren Gatland has named his Wales team to play Ireland in their Six Nations opener in Cardiff.

Joe Hawkins makes his Six Nations debut at inside center, after winning his first senior cap against Australia in the autumn. He joins Wales’ most-capped back George North in the midfield.

The front row features props Gareth Thomas and Tomas Francis with captain Ken Owens, and the tight five is completed by Alun Wyn Jones and Adam Beard.

The back row consists of Jac Morgan at blind-side flanker, Justin Tipuric at open-side flanker and Taulupe Faletau at No. 8. Fly half Dan Biggar returns to the Wales XV after missing the Autumn Nations Series due to injury. Scrum half is Tomos Williams.

Full back Leigh Halfpenny starts for the first time since the summer of 2021, having appeared as a replacement against Georgia in November. The wings are Rio Dyer and Josh Adams.

Scroll down for the full Wales team to play Ireland.

Warren Gatland said:

“We’ve picked Joe at 12. He’s a lovely footballer with some great skills. I thought for his first cap he was outstanding so we’ve given him another opportunity. There’s some real competition in the midfield at the moment, so I’m really excited about that.

“Ireland are the number one team in the world, so they’re going to be coming here with a lot of confidence. You don’t become the number one team in the world without having some pretty consistent performances. We know how good they are and we’re expecting a really tough contest. It’s important for us that we start well, but we need to be in the game at the last 20mins.

“We’ve only had a couple of weeks together but I’m confident that the guys will go out and give a good account of themselves. They’re pretty excited about playing this first game at home.”

When is Wales vs Ireland:

The two sides will meet on Saturday 4 February 2023 and the match is set to kick-off 2.15pm GMT at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. Tickets for the fixture have sold out but fans have been advised to go to the Welsh Rubgy Supporter Exchange if they wish to sell or buy tickets.

How to watch Wales vs Ireland:

The BBC will have all the coverage of the Six Nations. BBC One will begin their programme at 1.15pm ahead of the 2.15 start time and fans can tune in to the coverage on BBC iPlayer if they are unable to watch on TV.

Wales vs Ireland referee:

Assistant Referee 1: Angus Gardner (RA)
Assistant Referee 2: Luke Pearce (RFU)
TMO: Tom Foley (RFU)

Wales team to play Ireland:

15. Leigh Halfpenny (Scarlets – 97 caps)

14. Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby – 43 caps)

13. George North (Ospreys – 109 caps)

12. Joe Hawkins (Ospreys – 1 cap)

11. Rio Dyer (Dragons – 3 caps)

10. Dan Biggar (Toulon – 103 caps)

9. Tomos Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 40 caps)

1. Gareth Thomas (Ospreys – 17 caps)

2. Ken Owens (Scarlets – 86 caps) captain

3. Tomas Francis (Ospreys – 67 caps)

4. Adam Beard (Ospreys – 41 caps)

5. Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys – 155 caps)

6. Jac Morgan (Ospreys – 6 caps)

7. Justin Tipuric (Ospreys – 89 caps)

8. Taulupe Faletau (Cardiff Rugby – 95 caps)

Replacements

16. Scott Baldwin (Ospreys – 34 caps)

17. Rhys Carre (Cardiff Rugby – 17 caps)

18. Dillon Lewis (Cardiff Rugby – 45 caps)

19. Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs – 1 cap)

20. Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers – 4 caps)

21. Rhys Webb (Ospreys – 36 caps)

22. Owen Williams (Ospreys – 3 caps)

23. Alex Cuthbert (Ospreys – 55 caps)

“Brian Moore axed” – Who are the BBC and ITV Six Nations 2023 presenters and pundits?

With the Six Nations 2023 kicking off this weekend, fans will be snuggling up on the sofa to watch some of the greatest teams and players take to the field.

Meet the BBC and ITV presenters and pundits who will front the Six Nations 2023 TV coverage in the UK, with all 15 matches shown live across the two channels.

ITV

Kicking off a massive year of rugby union on ITV – with the Rugby World Cup to be exclusively screened on ITV1 and ITVX in the Autumn – the channel will show ten live matches throughout the six weeks of the Six Nations.

They include mouth-watering clashes including the tournament finale Ireland v England at the Aviva Stadium, England v France on March 11, and a clash of the pre-championship favourites Ireland v France on Feb 11.

This year’s tournament marks the latest in a deal between ITV and the BBC that sees 6 Nations matches shared between both broadcasters on television and online with ITV’s matches aired on ITV1, ITVX, STV and STV Player.

Leading ITV’s team will be presenters Mark Pougatch and Jill Douglas, joined by Jonny Wilkinson and Lawrence Dallaglio, members of England’s victorious Rugby World Cup 2003 team, along with their coach Sir Clive Woodward, England Women World Cup winner Maggie Alphonsi, former Ireland captain Brian O’Driscoll, fellow former Irish skipper Rory Best, former Wales captain Gareth Thomas, Welsh legend Jamie Roberts, former Scotland and Lions coach Sir Ian McGeechan, former Scottish international Jim Hamilton, Australia’s most-capped player George Gregan, and former French forward Benjamin Kayser.

Martin Bayfield will combine presenting duties with his role as reporter, alongside reporter Gabriel Clarke. Joining them with a wealth of experience in the commentary box will be Nick Mullins and Miles Harrison, plus co-commentators Shane Williams, Gordon D’Arcy, Ben Kay, Scott Hastings, David Flatman and Danielle Waterman.

Every match will be simulcast live on ITVX, and our responsively designed 6 Nations site – itv.com/six-nations – will help bring the tournament to life with all the latest news and highlights of all games.