Scarlets flanker James Davies will become the 18th new cap in 10 months in a side that shows 10 changes from the one that was beaten 37-27 by Grand Slam chasing Ireland in Dublin two weeks ago. But Howley insists Wales will be taking the Italians as seriously as any other side.
“We are at home, we back ourselves and we are looking forward to playing at the Principality Stadium again. There is a fair amount of experience in our side and we have brought back three Lions in George North, Justin Tipuric and Taulupe Faletau,” said Howley.
“We have picked players we feel deserve to be given the opportunity to start, as well as players returning who have been injured. Elliot Dee and Gareth Anscombe have both come off the bench and done well in previous games, but it is a totally different feel starting a game.
“We’ve got 14 or 15 games to go to the World Cup next year and we have spoken about the strength in depth that we have created. This is an opportunity once again to see if our strength in depth stacks up – we believe it can.
“There is a lot of excitement and enthusiasm and everyone is looking forward to the game. You back your players and we feel we have selected players who deserve their chance.
“We were criticised last year for not giving players an opportunity and now, when we have given them that opportunity, we are told we are being disrespectful, which we are not. Sometimes you are damned if you do and damned if you don’t.”
The Italians come to Cardiff having lost their last 11 games in a row against Wales and without a victory in the Championship since they beat Scotland 22-18 at Murrayfield on 28 February, 2015. Since then they have lost 15 games on the trot.
For Italian head coach Conor O’Shea the game in the Welsh capital this weekend is another chance to break that sequence and he has not truck with suggestions the Welsh selection is disrespectful to his team.
“It’s not being disrespectful when you put in guys like Liam Williams, George North and Toby Faletau and you rotate the front row. There’s nothing in that and Wales are an outstanding side,” said O’Shea.
Howley is excited to see how the new back row trip of Tipuric, Faletau and Davies plays and has set Davies the task of carrying on the good form shown by Josh Navidi in the three previous matches.
“Josh Navidi has done particularly well in the Six Nations and we want to see more of the same from James. James’ pace and ability to see things are natural talents he possesses,” said Howley.
“We are hoping to see James in the game as often as possible. His pace in the wider channels and his foot work and his ability to put other players in space are things we’ve seen him use time and again for the Scarlets.
“The Six Nations games are special and they bring their own pressure. This is where we are going to learn about these players and it is their chance to put their hand-up.
“We expect a similar performance to the last one we had at the stadium against Scotland. That’s the expectancy
and the challenge for this group of players because the Principality Stadium is the best in the world and it is a stadium that deserves a high quality performance.”
