The absence of players like Alun Wyn Jones, Ken Owens, Justin Tipuric, Taulupe Faletau and George North will have an obvious impact on the field during the Six Nations.
But it also leaves a leadership vacuum in the Welsh squad.
That's because the aforementioned players, who will miss some or all of the upcoming campaign through injury have been part of Wales' leadership group over the years.
With new captain Dan Biggar in situ, a new leadership group - identified by head coach Wayne Pivac and team manager Martyn Williams - has now been formed and it's been trimmed down from previous years to just four people.
Vastly-experienced centre Jonathan Davies, who has captained Wales himself in the last 12 months, is part of it. Davies has two Lions tours and 93 Wales caps under his belt, knows plenty about the game at the highest level and has been part of leadership groups in the past.
Ospreys tight-head Tomas Francis, who himself has been around the camp for over six years is also part of the new group.
And finally, of course, is vice-captain Adam Beard, whose appointment was a real talking point when head coach Wayne Pivac announced his squad earlier this month.
“They are probably the four senior guys in the squad now. We had a meeting on Monday evening with Wayne and Martyn," captain Biggar told WalesOnline.
“I said that, even though there are a lot of people missing from our regular leadership group, I probably need them more than we’ve needed a leadership group in the last few campaigns.
“I’ve been around the squad for a while, I know my way around it, but this is a new thing for me, being captain.
“I don’t want it to just be my voice being heard in a meeting or a huddle after training. I’ve put a fair bit on them.
“Even if they’re saying exactly the same thing that I’d be saying, just hearing a different voice can make a big difference.
“That should be good and they’re three pretty good characters to have around as experienced guys.”
Generally, the leadership group are the conduit between the rest of the squad and the management group when it comes to off-field matters.
They gauge the mood of the squad, look out for anything that might be unsettling players and take requests from team-mates over things like schedules and team room affairs.
The group are particularly important this time seeing as Biggar will be required to return to Northampton for the Thursday and Friday of fallow weeks.
“The plan is to meet up once-a-week on a Monday, just to discuss how the previous week went – have there been any issues?" said Biggar.
“It can be big stuff around things like Covid, which is a pretty hot topic at the minute, or it can be small things.
“Earlier this week, the boys asked about the timing of our snacks. Our snacks used to be at nine o’clock but they moved it forward in the last couple of campaigns.
“So the boys asked if we could get snacks moved back to nine o’clock for one or two days next week and make it a bit more of a social event.
“With those sort of things, we’d go straight to Paul Stridgeon [Head of Strength and Conditioning] and the nutrition guys.
“It’s important to get that feel of the squad. That’s only something small but sometimes it can have a big impact around the team room.
“Generally, it will be mostly off-field stuff.
“At the end of the day, playing and training is what we’re used to doing all the time. But it’s the little bits around the hotel and the team room, scheduling and things like that, can be a bit more awkward to bring up.
“We’re lucky to have incredibly good management, who are open to us asking the question and if it can be done, they’ll make it happen.
“If it can’t be done, then they’ll just say no. There are no grey areas.
“In Bobby [Stridgeon], we have somebody that will move mountains for you if there is anything you need.”
He added: “We have got a young group and I know what it’s like coming into a squad where you’re uncapped or have little experience in the set up.
“You can be not quite happy with a certain style of play or whatever it is and it’s quite daunting to speak up to management when you’re young.
“So those boys [the leadership group] are also a good sounding board for the rest of the group.”
As well as the Monday meeting with the head coach and manager, the leadership group regularly catch up on a more informal basis to 'see if there is anything we need to keep on top off'.
Those things then get fed back and it ensures that the camp is always a happy one and any barriers to success are removed.
This campaign will be the first time that the 95-cap pivot has captained his country.
It is, of course, a great honour and will be made all the more special by the fact that fans will now be allowed to attend matches at the Principality Stadium.
Behind closed doors fixtures at the venue last year felt a little soulless. Ireland are up first, but having fans in attendance will make it an even more memorable occasion for Biggar when he leads Wales out for the first time in Cardiff, against Scotland on February 12.
“It [last year] was incredibly difficult," he admitted.
“Even winning it last year felt so strange. When you lose, it almost didn’t feel as if it mattered as much because you couldn’t see the disappointment in people’s faces.
“We’re all really glad to have fans back. It creates the atmosphere.
“Especially for a tournament as special as the Six Nations. People book their entire calendars around it.
“It’s a huge plus for the tournament as a whole and for us a team, definitely.”
Fans attending matches at the Principality Stadium will have to provide proof of double vaccination or a negative lateral flow test upon request when arriving at the venue.
Biggar encouraged fans to remain vigilant when at the match in order to ensure that we don't end up back in a situation where games go back behind closed doors in the future.
“I’ve always been a believer that as long as everyone is sensible and not taking the mick, then it makes sense for us to have crowds back," he said.
“The last thing we want is for things to go back to the way they have been over the last few years in general life and from a sporting perspective.
“It’s about making sure everyone is sensible, especially with people being double vaccinated and things. Hopefully it will mean people can keep coming to sporting events.”
*Dan Biggar was speaking on behalf of the Keep Wales Safe campaign encouraging fans to stay safe when attending Six Nations matches.
The WRU has launched a competition for young Welsh fans to design a facemask to be worn by Welsh players during the championships. You can enter the competition here. *
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