Late-season club displays give Steve Tandy fresh selection dilemmas ahead of Nations Championship squad announcement
Steve Tandy, who became Wales head coach in the summer of 2025, will name his Nations Championship squad on Tuesday, 20 October after Welsh clubs delivered late food for thought in European competition.
Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets began the European campaign with Challenge Cup wins while Cardiff, on their return to the Champions Cup, lost at Northampton but produced a competitive display; BBC Sport Wales has profiled the players who used those fixtures to press their Wales claims as opportunities narrow in the year before the 2027 World Cup.
Cardiff’s outing at Northampton offered encouraging signs for two experienced internationals returning from injury. Number eight Taulupe Faletau featured for just shy of an hour, covered 65 metres from eight carries in the first half, made a telling defensive stop to deny Callum Chick on the try line and finished by carrying hard off the base of a scrum. Josh Adams replaced a team-mate for the final quarter, was held up by covering defender George Hendy when a try looked likely, and arrives off the back of a strong 2026 Six Nations campaign.
Tandy had selected Faletau for the 2025 autumn internationals before the number eight suffered a knee injury, and the head coach — who worked with Faletau on the Lions tour to South Africa in 2021 — faces selection choices around the club forwards; Cardiff have United Rugby Championship fixtures against Sharks at the Arms Park and Ospreys at St Helen's should either Faletau or Adams require more match minutes.
The scrum-half position looks settled at the top but open beneath Tomos Williams, who is described as the nailed-on starter for the Japan Test on Saturday, 7 November, with the No 21 shirt available for the rest of the month. Ospreys’ Reuben Morgan-Williams, recently used off the bench in Wales’ most recent Test in South Africa, started against Black Lion in Tbilisi, created an assist when fizzing a pass past three defenders for hooker Lewis Lloyd, made two clean breaks, carried 11 times and ran for 77 metres before being withdrawn with half an hour remaining. The Osprey will be keen to establish himself as deputy to Saracens scrum-half Williams, while the Wales management could also hand Dragons prospect Che Hope exposure to Test camp.
Dragons’ performance against Perpignan in Newport underlined the club’s forward work and highlighted several Wales candidates. Ben Carter is described as a shoo‑in, Dillon Lewis and hooker Elliot Dee remain in the mix to challenge Dewi Lake and Ryan Elias, and blind-side flanker Shane Lewis-Hughes, who won three caps in 2020, made 27 tackles against Perpignan. Wing Rio Dyer has yet to score this season but has been lively in the air, and inside centre Aneurin Owen — named Dragons man of the match — carried strongly, produced two turnovers and defended well; Owen turns 26 the day before Tuesday’s squad announcement and was in the Wales squad under Wayne Pivac in the summer of 2021 but remains uncapped. There could be an opening at 12 because of Ben Thomas’ injury.
Scarlets’ emphatic win over Newcastle Red Bulls produced mixed news on selection prospects: fly-half Sam Costelow left at the end of the first half with a hamstring concern described by director of rugby Nigel Davies as a precaution, Ellis Mee earned player-of-the-match honours and wing Macs Page celebrated his 50th Scarlets appearance with two tries. "He a good rugby player, he's got a good brain," said Davies of the 21-year-old. Back-row Taine Plumtree had a limited return from shoulder surgery, while captain Josh Macleod again influenced the game with turnovers; "Josh had a fantastic game," said Davies. "There were probably four or five turnovers by him and they were big moments in the game." Scarlets players who are selected by Wales are unlikely to travel to South Africa on Tuesday for URC matches with Stormers and Bulls because the international squad meet up next Monday.
Tandy’s squad will be announced on Tuesday, 20 October, and Wales are scheduled to meet Japan, New Zealand and Australia in Cardiff before another fixture at Twickenham on finals weekend.