The Scarlets hooker has been left frustrated after promising starts against Scotland and Italy were undermined with a litany of penalties. And despite securing two victories, Rees admits Wales made it harder for themselves than it needed to be and doesn’t want to go through the same anguish against Ireland.
“The pressure is on us on Saturday, and the biggest issue for us is our own mistakes. We have to make sure we are accurate, disciplined and not make mistakes. The one thing that has frustrated me about us in the Six Nations is ourselves.
“We had two yellow cards against Scotland, which is unacceptable, and we gifted Italy two tries and we kept them in the game with ill-discipline.
“The message for us against Ireland is that we need to perform well for more than just 20 minutes. That is our biggest challenge, and if we can do that then I am sure the result will take care of itself.”
Wales: L Byrne (Ospreys); L Halfpenny (Cardiff Blues), J Roberts (Cardiff Blues), J Davies (Scarlets), S Williams (Ospreys); J Hook (Ospreys), M Phillips (Ospreys); P James (Ospreys), M Rees (Scarlets, capt), C Mitchell (Ospreys), B Davies (Cardiff Blues), A-W Jones (Ospreys), D Lydiate (Newport Gwent Dragons), S Warburton (Cardiff Blues), R Jones (Ospreys).
Replacements: R Hibbard (Ospreys), J Yapp (Cardiff Blues), D Peel (Sale Sharks), S Jones (Scarlets), M Stoddart (Scarlets), plus two from R McCusker (Scarlets), A Powell (Wasps) and J Thomas (Ospreys).
Ireland: L Fitzgerald (Leinster); T Bowe (Ospreys), B O’Driscoll (Leinster, capt), G D’Arcy (Leinster), K Earls (Munster); R O’Gara (Munster), E Reddan (Leinster); C Healy (Leinster), R Best (Ulster), M Ross (Leinster), D O’Callaghan (Munster), P O’Connell (Munster), S O’Brien (Leinster), D Wallace (Munster), J Heaslip (Leinster).
Replacements: S Cronin (Connacht), T Court (Ulster), L Cullen (Leinster), D Leamy (Munster), P Stringer (Munster), J Sexton (Leinster), P Wallace (Ulster).
