All change in Cardiff. It would be fair to say this Six Nations has not panned out as Wales or France would have wanted, so both have indulged in significant makeovers for Sunday’s match.
Wales throw out their established centre pairing of Nick Tompkins and George North, all 155 caps of it, and move their captain, Dafydd Jenkins, to a position he has never played before, while France throw out more than half the team that started last round’s match against Italy, where they were lucky to escape with a draw. The line is fine between experimentation and a desperate search for an elixir.
France’s is certainly the more desperate, so disappointing have they been, relative to expectations. If they were bottom of the table with zero wins, it would be a fairer reflection of their deserts this championship. The television match official from their game against Scotland is probably still sitting in a bunker somewhere explaining how they escaped from Murrayfield with a win in round two.
As for an explanation of how a ball can topple from a tee in a breathless stadium with the roof closed, as it did to deny Italy at the end in round three, we might have to summon the spirit of Sir Isaac Newton.
Wales at least know they are a work in progress. They have earned the respect of the neutral in the opening three matches, completely at sea for the first 45 minutes against Scotland but thereafter hard, flexible and determined. They actually do have zero wins, the only team to have lost every game, but they have three bonus points for their troubles.
What they are crying out for is a cutting edge. Watching them hurl themselves against Ireland was poignant. They made Ireland tackle 190 times, only four fewer than Ireland made, in a match with nearly 400 tackles, by far the most of the opening three rounds. And Ireland scored four tries, without playing particularly well, while Wales had to rely on a penalty try, queried afterwards by Andy Farrell, for their only points.
So Wales beef up their pack and inject a little more in the way of youthful zest into their midfield. From 155 caps in the centre to 38. Tompkins and North make way for Owen Watkin and Joe Roberts.
Just as notable is the decision to move Jenkins to the back row. We see more and more of this interchangeability between the second-row and back-row, as the modern back-five forward evolves to cover a range of skills. But Jenkins has never played for his club or country in the back row. No reason why not, though. He is rangy and athletic, and Wales’s lineout, the first to spoil Ireland’s 100% record at that set piece last time out, will have quite the array of options.
Will Rowlands replaces Jenkins in the second row, fresh from his exertions for Racing 92 among the big beasts of the Top 14. He will be alongside Adam Beard in a reprise of their World Cup partnership. Ryan Elias, who replaces Elliot Dee in the fourth of Wales’s changes, will throw in to them.
Clearly, there is also a thought for the fearsome physicality of those big beasts in France’s pack. If Wales are tinkering in their search for the right mix, France are suddenly in overhaul. One of their multiple changes, at least, is the return of the captain, Grégory Alldritt, to lend some stability in the chaos, but it is all change for them in the second row and at half-back, while further amendments are made in every other department.
Unavailability is a factor. The crisis at fly-half deepens with the loss of Matthieu Jalibert to injury, so Thomas Ramos makes his first start at 10, switching from full-back, where Léo Barré will make his debut, yet another dazzling footballer who can play in either position.
England will open their 2025 Six Nations campaign by tackling Ireland in Dublin. The competition begins on the evening of Friday 31 January with France facing Wales in Paris, while England play the following day, when Scotland take on Italy at Murrayfield.
England then host France, Scotland and Italy, before meeting Wales in Cardiff on the competition's final day.
Ireland's run of fixtures, meanwhile, sees them travel to Scotland and Wales after the England match, then France visit Dublin before a finale against Italy in Rome.
2025 Six Nations fixtures (kick-off times GMT)
31 Jan France v Wales (8.15pm)
1 Feb Scotland v Italy (2.15pm), Ireland v England (4.45pm)
8 Feb Italy v Wales (2.15pm), England v France (4.45pm)
9 Feb Scotland v Ireland (3pm)
22 Feb Wales v Ireland (2.15pm), England v Scotland (4.45pm)
23 Feb Italy v France (3pm)
8 Mar Ireland v France (2.15pm), Scotland v Wales (4.45pm)
9 Mar England v Italy (3pm)
15 Mar Italy v Ireland (2.15pm), Wales v England (4.45pm), France v Scotland (8pm)
The loss of Jonathan Danty to suspension opens the way in the centre for, well, another dazzling footballer to make his debut in Nicolas Depoortère, whose length-of-the-field try for Bordeaux against Racing last week beggars belief. Louis Bielle-Biarrey returns on the wing, which hardly dilutes the dazzling-footballer quotient.
The loss of Antoine Dupont is the single most debilitating blow France have received this year, but Nolann Le Garrec is given the chance to succeed at scrum-half, where Maxime Lucu has struggled. A third debutant, Emmanuel Meafou, steps into the engine room, which is already shuddering at his 6ft 8in, 23st frame. Julien Marchand and Thibaud Flament complete the changes, which, in case you were not counting, total eight.
Wales will be glad to be home from their travels of the past two rounds. They will finish the championship in Cardiff. France, meanwhile, wander listlessly, deprived of their home and more than a few dazzling footballers, but there appears no shortage of those. Cardiff is as good a place as any to change things up.
