Warren Gatland named the first Wales team of his second term as coach, opting for experience to face Ireland in the Six Nations opener.
The returning coach has chosen a strong core of Ken Owens, Alun Wyn Jones, Taulupe Faletau, Dan Biggar, George North and Leigh Halfpenny, being supplemented by Six Nations debutants Joe Hawkins and Rio Dyer.
Here's everything the Wales coach had to say on his line-up...
Question: Was it a conscious decision to name so much experience?
Warren Gatland: “It’s trying to get a bit of a balancing act. In fairness to the players, I’ve been surprised by the competition within the squad.
"Pleasantly surprised, actually. We had a really good selection meeting last night and some really robust debate.
"Kicking off this first game,we’re looking for some experience and continuity. The message to the squad is that people will get an opportunity in this Six Nations.
"We want to do well in this Six Nations, but we have to think long-term about the next seven or eight months in terms of the development of guys who haven’t had much Test rugby and how we get them ready for France."
READ MORE: Gatland reveals why he hasn't picked Liam Williams
Why have you picked Joe Hawkins at 12?
"I thought he was really, really good against Australia when he was on for that game. It was his first start.
"He’s a really tidy footballer. Neil Jenkins thinks he’ll potentially be a 10 as he’s played there before.
"He’s got a lot of those skills. There’s been real competition in that position. Keiran Williams has been outstanding in the last week or so.
"We know the experience that Nick (Tompkins) has. Mason Grady has had some nice touches. I’m really excited about the midfield and the potential of that going forward.
"With Joe, it’s a bit of continuity with George in midfield, having played there before, as well as the experience on either side of him. He’s a lovely footballer and I wanted to give him the reassurance and confidence after the Australia performance to start again."
Was Liam Williams fit to feature this weekend?
"Couple of things with that. He (Liam) trained today. Leigh Halfpenny has a little bit of a tight hip so we kept him out of this morning’s session.
"He’ll train this afternoon so just making sure he didn’t double up on that. Liam hasn’t had a lot of rugby. He had the knock and then the finger injury so he didn’t take part in training last week.
"We just want to give him some more training time with the team. Obviously, if something does happen to Leigh, we’ll make a decision with what happens to that. We had everyone fit and available for selection, but we had some players with bumps and knocks who didn’t take part in training last week.
"That was some of our thinking there. We just want some more training time under his belt. There’s no doubt Liam will feature at some point."
Ireland head into this as favourites - do you favour the underdogs tag?
"I think the Welsh like to be underdogs. The only expectation is the one we put on ourselves.
"We know how good a team they are. You don’t become the number one team in the world without consistency. They have a lot of players from Leinster and they’re one of the form teams in world club rugby, with their consistency and success.
"We realise what a challenge that will be and they have the continuity of being unbeaten in the autumn as well and the confidence that brings. That’s the challenge for us.
"The underdog tag is something I’ve found in the past the Welsh boys tend to relish. They like people writing them off as it tends to motivate them. I’m confident we’ll give a good account of ourselves on Saturday and give a good performance."
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How have you managed the players after last week's news?
"Last week there was only one topic of discussion and that was understandable. This week the message to players is we have a Test match to focus on.
"Rugby has been the only talking point and the players have been great in terms of that. It’s been a bit of a challenge, but our whole focus is on Saturday."
How important will Leigh Halfpenny's defensive work be against the boot of Johnny Sexton?
"Not so much Johnny Sexton, but (Jamison) Gibson-Park will kick a lot off nine. He has been one of the top defensive full-backs in world rugby for a number of years.
"So much so, that I have seen NZ teams take out clips of him defensively and positionally and use them as part of their review process. It's good to see him back. He has been training well. We have got two experienced players in that position who are going to compete pretty hard."
How will you use Hawkins in midfield - will it be as a crash-ball centre or a playmaking option?
"He is a good footballer. It's as simple as that. He makes really good decisions.
"It is a pretty pivotal role for us at the moment. I know a lot has been spoken in the past about using guys to get across the gainline, Jamie Roberts, but you have got to find other ways.
"This is a new team with players with different skills and different strengths, and he brings something that is a little bit different."
"Keiran Williams, I have been impressed with. He has got some lovely footwork, some great timing on to the ball. He will get an opportunity in this campaign too. Joe is a really good footballer. He doesn't make many mistakes and is a good decision-maker.
Did you consider choosing a younger option ahead of Alun Wyn Jones?
"The experience at the moment. I sat down with Alun Wyn and had a good discussion about where he is, and I just said we need to bring some of the other second-rows on as well and give them some game-time going forward. He is well aware of that.
"He has been fantastic in the past week or so in terms of his voice and experience, and I want those younger second-rows to learn from that experience. I said to him he has been around for last 15 years, and he corrected me and said it had been 17!
"I have always been a great admirer of his, but we've got to go through the process of some transition. I would love him to be able to make the decision when he calls the time, but he is well aware of the needs of this team at the moment, and we just keep talking about how many games he plays, who starts, and when he decides to make a decision to finish with international rugby.
"The conversation with Alun Wyn is I expect him to bust himself for the first 40 minutes and then we make a change early in the second half. Dafydd then comes on and gets some time in the second-row.
"He's been playing with a side that’s has been going quite well. He's been captaining Exeter. I had that conversation with him, asking how many times he's lost as captain. He says he's not lost yet. That's a positive.
"Rhys Davies and Teddy Williams, who has only been involved in the last few days, have shown some good stuff. The big thing is being in the environment and understanding the intensity required. Then it's for us to give them the opportunity to develop."
How difficult was the back-row to nail down?
"I think long-term, I potentially see a good fight between Tommy, Justin and Jac maybe for that seven jersey. I think we need to find that physical six - I am not saying Jac is not a physical six, because he is a great ball-carrier - but potentially that lineout option and matching some of those bigger nations in terms of size and physicality in the back-row, and that is something we will look to hopefully develop over the next few months.
"Its whether we look at some like Christ Tshiunza in terms of that role. There is some good competition within the back-row."
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