Wales boss Ioan Cunningham has made eight personnel changes and two positional switches to the starting line-up to face Italy in the Women's Six Nations finale this Saturday (12pm kick-off). If the hosts can claim a bonus point, they will finish third to secure their best Championship finish since 2009.
The women in red kick off the Super Saturday action at Cardiff Arms Park, which will be followed by a title decider between France and reigning champions England at 2.15pm before Ireland host Scotland at 8pm. Wales are bidding to finish third in the table, which would mark a significant improvement from sixth last year - a result which prompted the introduction of 12 full-time and 12 part-time Welsh Rugby Union contracts in January.
Hooker Kelsey Jones, loose-head prop Cara Hope and full-back Niamh Terry, who came off the bench against France last time out, have all been handed their first starts of the campaign. Donna Rose returns at tight-head, while Alex Callender and Sioned Harries return to the back-row, alongside Alisha Butchers, with captain Siwan Lillicrap shifting from No. 8 to the second-row to partner Gwen Crabb. Behind the scrum, Ffion Lewis starts at scrum-half and Kerin Lake returns to inside centre to resume her partnership with Hannah Jones and Robyn Wilkins shifts from centre to fly-half to renew the half-back combination which started against England.
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Gloucester-Hartpury outside-half Lleucu George, who is one of the part-time dozen and possesses a strong kicking threat, is set to make her first appearance of the campaign and add to her seven caps if she comes off the bench, while Keira Bevan provides No. 9 cover and Kayleigh Powell is the full-back replacement option. As for the forwards, Carys Phillips, Caryl Thomas, Cerys Hale, Natalia John and Bethan Lewis are set to provide an impact if called upon.
Wales will be bidding to claim their third win from five against Italy, who they last played in 2020 - losing 19-15 - due to a condensed tournament in 2021. Buoyed by the announcement that 25 Italy players will be awarded part-time contracts to aid preparation for this autumn's World Cup, the visitors are targeting their second victory of the tournament.
Wales boss Cunningham said: "Consistency of selection has been important to us as a new management group this season. It’s been important to build cohesion while trying various combinations and starting line-ups. However, there are players who deserve the opportunity to either start this final match or feature in the 23 having performed well in training throughout.
"It’s great to see Kelsey [Jones] returning to the starting line-up after a long-term injury, along with Caryl Thomas on the bench. Niamh [Terry] deserves to show what she can do at full-back and it’s good to see Cara Hope getting a first start of the season too. Sioned Harries has made a big impact each time she has been involved and forms part of a very strong back-row on Saturday. Ffion Lewis made an impact again coming off the bench against France and it’s exciting to see her and Robyn together again.
"Equally, we wouldn’t be where we are now without the contribution of the whole training squad and I’m confident that every player, even if they haven’t featured in a matchday, will leave camp having gained an invaluable amount of experience and gained knowledge of what it takes to be part of an international set-up, along with improving their skills, strength and game understanding. As we head towards the Rugby World Cup selection, every player should know what they need to work on in order to put their hands up for inclusion in that journey.
"We know it’s going to be a really tough day at the office on Saturday. Italy are a quality team and we need to be 100% ready mentally as well as physically. We want to finish with three wins, that is what this group deserves having worked so hard all season. We would love to have the support of a big crowd again, having support back at the Arms Park has been huge this season."
As for the visitors, Andrea Di Giandomenico has made three changes to the Italian side which defeated Scotland 20-13 last week following an impressive turnaround from a 10-3 half-time deficit. Scrum-half Sara Barrattin returns to the starting line-up, while Elisa Giordano comes back into the side at No. 8 after withdrawing late on against Scotland. Silvia Turani comes in at loosehead prop for her first start of the Championship, which sees Melissa Bettoni move over to hooker.
The Italy boss said: "Following the win over Scotland, we are preparing for the final game of the 2022 Championship with a lot of confidence – during the game last week we showed that we could react well and had an effective defence. We are aware of the need to raise our level in attack and in the last week that is what we have focused on. We want to end the TikTok Women’s Six Nations on a high to continue our preparation in the best possible way for the World Cup."
Wales: 15. Niamh Terry, 14. Lisa Neumann, 13. Hannah Jones, 12. Kerin Lake, 11. Jasmine Joyce, 10. Robyn Wilkins, 9. Ffion Lewis, 1. Cara Hope, 2. Kelsey Jones, 3. Donna Rose, 4. Siwan Lillicrap (capt), 5. Gwen Crabb, 6. Alisha Butchers, 7. Alex Callender, 8. Sioned Harries.
Replacements: 16. Carys Phillips, 17. Caryl Thomas, 18. Cerys Hale, 19. Natalia John, 20. Bethan Lewis, 21. Keira Bevan, 22. Lleucu George, 23. Kayleigh Powell.
Italy: 15. Manuela Furlan (capt), 14. Aura Muzzo, 13. Michela Sillari, 12. Beatrice Rigoni, 11. Maria Magatti, 10. Veronica Madia, 9. Sara Barattin, 1. Silvia Turani, 2. Melissa Bettoni, 3. Lucia Gai, 4. Valeria Fedrighi, 5. Giordana Duca, 6. Beatrice Veronese, 7. Ilaria Arrighetti, 8. Elisa Giordano.
Replacements: 16. Vittoria Vecchini, 17. Gaia Maris, 18. Sara Seye, 19. Sara Tounesi, 20. Isabella Locatelli, 21. Francesca Granzotto, 22. Alyssa D’Incà, 23. Vittoria Ostuni Minuzzi.
