In the opening weeks of the season, much of the talk has been around the Welsh talent currently stealing the show over the border in England. Louis Rees-Zammit is on fire for Bristol Bears, scoring four times in the opening two matches, while Leicester's Gabriel Hamer-Webb isn't too far behind after a hat-trick on the opening day. The other Welsh players at Welford Road - back-row trio Aaron Wainwright, Tommy Reffell and Olly Cracknell - have impressed too early on. At Kingsholm, Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake have made an immediate impact at Gloucester, while Tomos Williams is settling into life nicely at Saracens. Even if Premiership finalists Exeter haven't started the season too well, the form of Kane James early on has also been a boost. The new Wales cap is a raw talent, but his efforts at the start of this campaign show he's finding his footing at this level.
Wales coaches monitoring form
Steve Tandy will of course have one eye on the Gallagher Premiership, given the sheer number of Welsh players over there. But closer to home, there's been plenty for the Wales coaches to mull over in the opening weeks. Just weeks before he names his squad for the second part of the Nations Championship in November, Tandy likely has a fairly good idea of who is in the mix.
Of the mammoth 48-man training squad Tandy named at the start of the summer, just six haven't played so far this season. In Wales, Keiron Assiratti, Taine Plumtree and Josh Adams haven't featured. Over the border, Rhys Carre, Louie Hennessey and Max Llewellyn are the only players to not be involved in the opening weeks. Needless to say then, Tandy - as things stand - has his preferred options available to him. However, that isn't to say some players couldn't force their way into the reckoning in the next few weeks. Some have started the season in strong form, providing the Wales head coach with a timely reminder.
Taine Basham's resurgence
One such player is Taine Basham, who has picked up exactly where he left off at the end of last season. Having joined Cardiff last year from the Dragons, it perhaps took a little while to get going. His first eight appearances for the Blue and Blacks either came on the openside or from the bench. However, midway through January, Corniel van Zyl started the 26-year-old at No. 8 and Basham didn't look back. He started eight matches there at the end of the season, scoring in their URC quarter-final defeat to the Stormers. And, having finished the campaign strongly, he's started in fine form this year. A player of the match outing against the Scarlets was followed up by another strong performance against Zebre last Friday night.
It's been over two years since Basham's last cap, having come off the bench against England in the 2024 Six Nations. Having first been capped under Wayne Pivac, there was a sense that Wales didn't know how to get the best out of the back-row. The majority of his starts under Pivac came in the seven jersey, with Wales' back-row balance struggling at the time. Those appearances in the 2021/22 were characterised by some powerful carries, but Basham wasn't a traditional openside in the mould of a Jac Morgan or Sam Warburton. Recalled under Warren Gatland ahead of the 2023 World Cup, he was used to provide impact off the bench in France. Perhaps, having seemingly settled on No. 8, he finally has found the position that could move him back towards a Test recall.
Certainly, those at the Arms Park are expecting a big season from him. "I think if you look at Bash's end of season last year, it was an upwards curve," said van Zyl ahead of the new season. "That's what we expect from him. He had a few niggles at the start of the season, which took away from his gametime. He started pre-season in a different way than he started the previous year. So it suggests he's going to be better this year, I believe. I'm really excited where he is. What he can do with the ball in hand and his work around the pitch is all we can ask for now. It's massive. Very, very good footwork and very, very tough to put down. As you can see from the base of the scrum, he's a handful for any defence to put down."
Of course, back-row is a competitive area for Basham to break into. There's little indication that Basham has been in Tandy's thoughts to date, but the kind of performances we've seen to date could soon change that.
Options out wide
The back-three is equally stacked, with a number of wingers starting the season superbly. Rio Dyer is one such wing who is pushing hard for a Test recall. Following the 2023 World Cup, Dyer looked likely to be a long-term constant out wide for Wales. However, after starting in the first eight Test matches following that tournament in France - scoring three times across those matches - Dyer has only managed to win two more caps in the six Test windows since. Both have been hidings to nothing, in all honesty. In the last two autumn campaigns, Dyer has been brought into the side for hammerings against the Springboks before being sent back to Rodney Parade once again. In 2024, he did manage to conjure a try against the back-to-back world champions. But it's clear that Dyer has fallen down the pecking order somewhat in the past two years.
There were glimpses of the 26-year-old recapturing his form towards the end of last season - although that didn't result in a summer recall. However, Saturday's Welsh derby against the Scarlets really saw Dyer catch the eye. The 10 defenders beaten across the 80 minutes were more than any other player managed in the URC this weekend, while, according to Opta, he became just the second Dragons player to beat double figure defenders in a match. The first, unsurprisingly, was Taulupe Faletau back in 2013. That moved Dyer to top of the defenders beaten chart in the URC after two weeks and reminded everyone just how dangerous a broken-field runner the wing can be. Given his aerial ability and kick-chase capabilities, he feels like a player made for the Test game as it currently looks. Whether he gets that chance remains to be seen.
Again, there are other players vying to breakthrough in that position. Macs Page perhaps took a little backwards step last season, having been taken to Japan by Wales in the summer of 2025. While the exciting outside back ultimately didn't feature in that two-Test series, the expectation was that Page would kick on. However, a difficult season for the Scarlets made that tricky for the 21-year-old. But the word from around the Llanelli side in pre-season was that everyone was quietly expecting Page to bounce back strongly. Many had singled him out as a dark horse when it came to standout performers in Wales this season and the early signs are good. Against the Dragons at Rodney Parade, he looked sharp - crossing for two tries. The first of which was the type of solo score that few could create. Tom Bowen is another diminutive winger who could force his way in, having also crossed for two tries on the weekend. However, having just finished with the U20s, Bowen hasn't been brought into Wales' alignment camps by Tandy like some of his other age-grade team-mates - begging the question of how close he really is to a maiden Test call.
A left-field recall?
Perhaps one Welsh hopeful who is unlikely to change any minds is Ospreys centre Keiran Williams, although that doesn't mean he isn't worthy of a mention. A pocket rocket of a midfielder, Williams probably finds himself between two camps - what Wales' coaches want from an inside centre and what some Welsh fans would rather see. A powerful carrier, Williams isn't the second playmaker that Wales and attack coach Matt Sherratt are wedded to - although the 28-year-old boasts some tidy skills. Beyond running strong lines, there's a surprising turn of pace and some deft footwork - with Williams able to change direction on a dime. But also, he's not a colossus either. At a time when some would rather see Eddie James wear 12 rather than 13, Williams isn't exactly going to ease those concerns.
But, out in South Africa, Williams wasn't cowered by the Lions' physicality. Despite being a relentless carrier, a Wales recall seems unlikely - although stranger things have happened in recent years. What does seem fair to say is that Williams' 21 minutes at Test level still seem a little too short a timeframe to have judged whether he's up to international standard or not. That day, on his one and only cap against England ahead of the 2023 World Cup, Warren Gatland apportioned blame on the centre for a botched exit from a kick-off. You sensed Gatland was merely looking for confirmation of an already-held opinion at Twickenham back then. Perhaps Tandy could be convinced, given Wales' midfield still remains far from settled.
