Wales will look to continue their positive start to the 2023 Rugby World Cup when they take on Portugal in a Pool C encounter at the Allianz Riviera Stadium in Nice on Saturday afternoon.
The Dragons come into this match off the back of a win in their opening match over Fiji, while the Wolves had the opening week off and will be playing their first match in the competition here.
Match preview
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Wales were involved in what many would agree was the most entertaining match of the first week of the tournament and one that showed exactly what the Rugby World Cup competition should be all about.
After a closely-fought first half, Wales pulled away after the break and looked home and dry with under 10 minutes left on the clock at Stade de Bordeaux, but Fiji had other ideas and came within 10 feet of possibly pulling off their greatest comeback on the worlds biggest stage.
However, while Fiji would have got the bulk of the applause from neutrals for their effort, the Welsh passion was undeniable as they withstood wave after wave of pressure from the Flying Fijians in the closing stages of the match.
The Dragons, led by a fired-up Dan Biggar, threw their bodies on the line at every opportunity, making an incredible 253 tackles across the 80 minutes, which tells a story in itself when considering that their opponents made 70.
The positive psychological impact that would have given them will be immeasurable after a difficult period for Welsh Rugby on and off the pitch, and the Dragons will likely look to push on and improve their conversion rate and points difference before their crucial match against Australia next week.
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While Wales will likely look at their last match as a possible turning point, this match marks a special occasion for Portugal as they return to the Rugby World Cup competition after a 16-year wait.
The Wolves earned their entry to the competition by winning the Final Qualification Tournament last year, beating the United States, which meant that no North American side would feature in this year's tournament.
However, it is also fair to say that they had their fair share of luck in getting here, as they benefited from Russia's disqualification and Spain's 10-point deduction at the 2022 Rugby Europe Championship, which bumped them into third place, sending them into the Final Qualification Tournament as Europe 3.
Portugal have several first-team players in the French lower leagues, which could work to their advantage, but if Wales are anything like they were last week, it is difficult to see Os Lobos avoiding a heavy defeat in this one.
Wales Rugby World Cup form:
- W
Wales form (all competitions):
- W
- L
- W
- L
- L
- W
Portugal form (all competitions):
- L
- L
- W
- W
- D
- W
Team News
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Warren Gatland is starting to work his magic in the Wales dugout and has opted to shuffle his pack in this one with as many as 13 changes to the side he put out against Fiji last week.
The immense Biggar will receive a rest this week with Gareth Anscombe stepping into the number 10 jersey, while Louis Rees-Zammit and Taulupe Faletau are the only players that retain their place in the starting 15.
Leigh Halfpenny will get his 101st cap and first start of the tournament at full-back, while Tomos Williams will claim his 50th appearance for the Dragons at scrum-half.
Portugal bring an experienced squad into this match featuring seven players aged 30 years and older and 19 that featured in the matchday 23 against the US last year during their qualification campaign.
Tomas Appleton will resume captaincy duties from midfield, and Jose Lima will join him, while Jeronimo Portela and Samuel Marques will make up the halves pair.
Right-winger Vincent Pinto was an Under-20 World Rugby Championship winner with France, while Anthony Alves and Joris Moura also represented France at age-grade levels.
Wales starting lineup: 15. Leigh Halfpenny, 14. Louis Rees-Zammit, 13. Mason Grady, 12. Johnny Williams, 11. Rio Dyer, 10. Gareth Anscombe, 9. Tomos Williams, 8. Taulupe Faletau, 7. Tommy Reffell, 6. Dan Lydiate, 5. Dafydd Jenkins, 4. Christ Tshiunza, 3. Dillon Lewis, 2. Dewi Lake (c), 1. Nicky Smith
Replacements: 16. Ryan Elias, 17. Corey Domachowski, 18. Tomas Francis, 19. Adam Beard, 20. Taine Basham, 21. Gareth Davies, 22. Sam Costelow, 23. Josh Adams
Portugal starting lineup: 15. Nuno Sousa Guedes, 14. Vincent Pinto, 13. Jose Lima, 12. Tomas Appleton (c), 11. Rodrigo Marta, 10. Jeronimo Portela, 9. Samuel Marques, 8. Rafael Simoes, 7. Nicolas Martins, 6. Joao Granate, 5. Steevy Cerqueira, 4. Jose Madeira, 3. Anthony Alves, 2. Mike Tadjer, 1. Francisco Fernandes
Replacements: 16. David Costa, 17. Lionel Campergue, 18. Diogo Hasse Ferreira, 19. Martim Belo, 20. David Wallis, 21. Pedro Lucas, 22. Joris Moura, 23. Raffaele Storti
Head To Head
The only previous encounter between these two nations took place in Lisbon in May 1994.
In a one-sided contest, Wales completely dominated with a resounding 102-11 victory, crossing the try line 16 times, including four tries by Nigel Walker and 11 successful conversions from Neil Jenkins.
We say: Wales 52-7 Portugal
With Australia scheduled to play Fiji this week, Wales will be eyeing up taking the lead in this Pool here. Despite the Welsh boss ringing the changes for this match, we expect the Dragons to be too strong for the Wolves here and fancy them to win this one by more than 40 points.
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Devesh Jaganath
