Head coach Milton Haig led Georgia to two victories on their Americas tour, defeating Canada 13–0 and the United States 21–17 and they gave Argentina a real fright before succumbing 45-29 to the Pumas.
The powerhouse of the Tier Two European Championship are no strangers to causing the occasional upset, with Samoa, Fiji and Tonga among the scalps in recent times.
While Principality Stadium can prove an imposing and intimidating prospect for second tier nations, the red-hot cauldron won’t pose any concerns to the Lelos, who produced a memorable performance against New Zealand in the 2015 Rugby World Cup.
Georgia presented a number of headaches for the eventual champions, particularly at the scrum, breakdown and in defence. The final 43-10 score-line flattered the All Blacks – the Georgians put up such a spirited performance, inspirational back row Mamuka Gorgodze was made man-of-the-match.
With Georgia finishing third in their pool, which included victories against Tonga and Namibia, Haig guided his country to an historic automatic qualification for the next World Cup in Japan in 2019.
“We have certainly made some progress in recent years,” says the Kiwi, who took over the reins in 2011.
“On the back of 2015 we had our most successful season in 2016 ever in Test rugby so it’s going reasonably ok. If we can get more of these matches against quality opposition then that is where we feel we are at.
“We are at this precipice now, if we get quality matches we can continue to improve our game but if we don’t get quality matches then we’ll be stagnant and to some degree we may even go backwards a little bit and we don’t want that to happen.
“So a match against Wales in an iconic stadium, against an iconic team – these are the occasions that we absolutely dream about, not only as a coach but also our players.
“When you talk to most Georgians about their most lasting memory there’s a couple. Probably qualifying [for the next World Cup] after playing Namibia is one of them, but I think everyone’s most treasured memory is playing New Zealand at the Millennium Stadium – and why wouldn’t it be?
“I remember walking up the stairs and going right and I kept thinking about the story about the old days when they [Wales] went right – theses the Welsh team always go left to the changing rooms.
“When we went right and went into the changing room all I said to the boys was: “The Welsh team used to be in this room so it can’t be too bad boys.”
“It was just one of those special occasions – it was pretty packed, the crowd and atmosphere was amazing. I think the roof was closed that night and the noise was pretty good – it was something that will live long in our memories, I’m sure.”
Gorgodze, having played in three World Cups, hung up his international boots in May, after playing 71 matches for his country. His absence leaves a huge void to fill but Haig believes his absence offers another player the opportunity to shine on the international stage.
“He’s probably the best player Georgia has ever produced. That’s certainly my opinion,” he says.
“The reality is you can’t replace guys like that, we always knew it would be difficult for Mamuka to keep going because his body has played a lot of rugby in France over the years.
“He’s going to be a massive hole for us but like for everyone, one door closes and another opens for somebody else – I know that is a cliché but it’s now somebody’s responsibility to step up and make sure we can start trying to fill the big void that he has left.”
It remains to be seen if any player can ever attain the lofty heights Gorgodze reached – but Haig is eagerly looking forward to Saturday, 18th November 2017, when Wales entertain Georgia, to see if any of his young back row is prepared to take up the challenge.
CLICK HERE to hear Georgia head coach Milton Haig look ahead to the clash against Wales.
Under Armour autumn series 2017
Sat 11 November 2017, 17:15 Wales v Australia
Sat 18 November 2017, 14:30 Wales v Georgia
Sat 25 November 2017, 17:15 Wales v New Zealand
Sat 2 December 2017, 14:30 Wales v South Africa
CLICK HERE for tickets
