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Wales’ experience will count for a lot, says Pivac

Wayne Pivac during training.

Wales’ experience will count for a lot, says Pivac

Wayne Pivac believes Wales’ experience will make a big difference in their Six Nations finale against a strong France side in Paris.

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Wales will field the most experienced starting XV in their history with 987 international caps, with 14 of the starting line-up having won Grand Slams in the past.

Pivac is confident his experienced players will come to the fore.

“We’re very lucky that in our changing room we’re going to have 14 of the starting 15 having won a Grand Slam before,” said Pivac.

“There are plenty on the bench and in the management that have also done it before. There is a lot of experience to call on in these situations which is a good place to be.

“You don’t become a perfect team overnight, it takes time and we’re nowhere near perfect – we know that. We’ve got our own motivation.

“With the amount of guys that have been in this position before, it’s not new to them. They’re very focused on an 80-minute performance this week without worrying about any external motivation.

“No matter what level of the game you’re at, when you have senior players you want that input all the time. They’re the ones who have to play the game on a Saturday.

“It’s just about getting the balance right between getting the input from players and coaches.

“When you’ve got 14 of your starting side that have won a Grand Slam before, you want that experience and those conversations to come out.”

Pivac has made one change to the starting XV which ran riot against Italy last weekend with Ospreys second-row Adam Beard replacing Cory Hill who drops to the replacements bench.

There are three changes on the bench with Nicky Smith, James Botham, and Tomos Williams involved.

Victory for Wales will secure the Grand Slam, but Pivac is well aware his side will have their hands full against the strongest France side in recent memory.

“They’re a very good side,” said Pivac when asked about France.

“We know that from the two games that we’ve had against them. I thought they played well and controlled that game [against England] for large parts and were probably desperately unlucky at the end.

We know we’re going to be in for a very big challenge. They have quality right across the park and they come up with some great plays.

“Their try from the line-out was an excellent play so we’re going to have to have our wits about us.

“Obviously, they bring a lot of attacking threats and they’ve got a very good attacking kicking game.

“So I think our back three, in particular, are going to have a lot of work to do.”

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Wales’ experience will count for a lot, says Pivac