Here are the latest rugby headlines on Friday, August 26.
Pivac lauds Davies
Wales coach Wayne Pivac has paid tribute to legendary team physio Mark Davies after his retirement was confirmed by the WRU.
Davies has left his role after 30 years, seven World Cups and two British & Irish Lions tours. His last campaign was the recent Wales summer tour to South Africa, with the players and management giving him a fitting send-off.
Pivac led the tributes to the man known as 'Carcass', saying: “The fact that Carc has been here as long as he has indicates that he has done a really good job. Someone that can go through the different eras and still be at the forefront of his game speaks volumes.
“In the time I have been here, not only is he very good clinically but he’s also a really good bloke to have in and around the environment.
“He’s got a great sense of humour and no job is too big for him. He’d do anything he can to help the team, he’ll always put the team first.
“The players love him, the management love him and I think they broke the mould once Carc came into the position. In the area of his expertise he is a legend. Certainly a legend in Welsh rugby."
Speaking about his decision to retire, Davies said: “I glanced in the mirror once too often and saw my sell-by date.
“The decision to retire is mine. I realise I’ve had a longer run than I could have wished for, but the job is much more active than it used to be and there comes a time when you have to be honest and put your hand up.
“I’ve accumulated a number of ailments over the years which has required a new knee, hip and shoulder. I’ve had a number of fusions in both feet, so long gone are the days when I had four good wheels on my wagon. They are boney problems which is a bit ironic in view of my nickname.
“Somebody called me ‘carcass’ way back in primary school in Maesteg because some bright spark thought it summed up my anatomical state. I was skin and bone at the time and it’s stuck ever since.
“The boney issue now means I can’t get about as quickly as I used to.”
Fly-half gets chance to impress
Exciting Wales fly-half Lleucu George is about to get her chance to impress as head coach Ioan Cunningham prepares for two final auditions ahead of this autumn's Women's Rugby World Cup.
Wales Women are in Canada, who they face on Saturday night (9pm UK time), and will face the Red Roses on September 14 in another World Cup warm-up match before heading to New Zealand to kick off their tournament against Scotland on October 9.
Chances to impress before a 32-player squad is named are now running short, meaning every player must seize their opportunity with both hands.
One of those players is 22-year-old utility back Lleucu George, who has eight caps to her name having made her debut at the 2017 World Cup aged 17 but was restricted to one outing off the bench during the Six Nations despite calls for Wales to utilise her strong kicking game.
Ospreys No. 10 Stephen Myler has been brought on board as a Wales Women kicking coach over the summer in a bid to improve this area of Wales' game. The likes of England, France and Italy all boast players who can kick with length, tactically and kick off the front foot, whereas Wales struggled to kick for meaningful territory, lacked the get-out-of-jail option when under the cosh defensively and missed out on valuable points via unsuccessful conversions during the 2022 Six Nations.
Head coach Cunningham pointed to George's aerial strengths when discussing his team selection for the Canada Test, which sees George named on the bench behind starting fly-half Elinor Snowsill.
"She’s still developing," he said. "There’s still parts of her game that needs work on, but her strength is she kicks the ball fantastically. She can kick with length, her catch-pass skills are brilliant, she can throw 15-20m passes off left and right hand which grows and opens our game up for more width.
"We’re really excited to see how she goes. She had some time against Italy in the Six Nations and it’s the next step for her now as we move forward."
Wales v Canada kicks off at 9pm UK time on Saturday, August 27, in Halifax. The match will be broadcast live online on S4C Clic, BBC iPlayer, S4C Chwaraeon Facebook and S4C YouTube channels.
England's quickest star to play for French giants
England international Christian Wade is set to play his first rugby match in four years after being named in the Racing 92 squad for Saturday's Extenso Super Sevens event.
The French giants are weighing up whether to sign the 31-year-old winger as a medical joker after star signing Regan Grace ruptured his Achilles soon after signing this summer.
Wade last played for Wasps in October 2018 before quitting the sport and trying to make it in the NFL with Buffalo Bills. He returned to England earlier this summer following the expiry of his Bills contract and has hinted that he could make a return to rugby.
The French Top14 season begins next weekend.
Rankings set for change
The World Rugby rankings could be set for significant change this weekend as the Rugby Championship resumes. New Zealand are up against Australia in Christchurch and Australia take on South Africa in Adelaide, with both games being played on Saturday.
World champions South Africa could plummet from third to fifth in the rankings table if they lose by more than 15 points in Australia and New Zealand also beat Argentina. The Wallabies could climb up to sixth if results got their way. Equally, Australia run the risk of dropping to a new all-time low of ninth, below Wales, if beaten at home.
South Africa are the only team unable to move higher than their current position as France have just about a big enough advantage over them to stay second even if the Springboks win handsomely in Australia.
New Zealand will climb above South Africa into third place if they avoid defeat against Argentina and the Springboks lose to Australia. If both teams win, the All Blacks cannot catch the Springboks.
A draw or a win for Argentina would lift them at least two places – above Wales and Scotland – with sixth place possible if the margin is big enough.
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