WALES
No.Name
15Leigh Halfpenny, FB
2
14Johnny McNicholl, W
13George North, C
T
12Hadleigh Parkes, C
11Josh Adams, W
T
3
10Dan Biggar, FH
2
3
9Tomos Williams, SH
1Wyn Jones, P
2Ken Owens, H
3Dillon Lewis, P
4Jake Ball, L
5Alun Wyn Jones, L
6Aaron Wainwright, FL
7Justin Tipuric, FL
8Taulupe Faletau, N8
Replacements
16Ryan Elias, R
17Rob Evans, R
18Leon Brown, R
19Cory Hill, R
20Ross Moriarty, R
21Rhys Webb, R
22Jarrod Evans, R
23Nick Tompkins, R
T

*Players currently on the pitch are shown in bold

Game Info

Venue: Principality Stadium
2:15 PM, February 1, 2020
All CommentaryKey Events

Match Commentary

81'+140-0 Try - Josh Adams , Wales
81'+342-0 End of second half
81'+342-0 Conversion - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
80'No mercy! Wales didn't stop going for more points and they got their reward. Josh Adams showed his power once again, finishing between two Italian bodies and bundling on to the try line. Halfpenny converts to signal the end of the game and a winning start for Wales under new head coach Wayne Pivac.
77'35-0 Conversion - Leigh Halfpenny , Wales
77'33-0 Try - George North , Wales
75'And North finally gets his 40th try, levelling Gareth Thomas for second place in the country's all-time list. The hosts were camped out at the Italy try line before North collected the ball and collapsed his large frame over Italian bodies for a score.
72'Even the announcer is at it now: "Oggy, oggy, oggy!"..."Oi! Oi! Oi!" chant back the crowd.
71'Substitute on - Guglielmo Palazzani , Italy
71'Player substituted - Callum Braley , Italy
71'Substitute on - Dean Budd , Italy
71'Player substituted - Niccolo Cannone , Italy
69'The tooting of the rugby horn says it all: Are you awake? It's been flat once again since North's ruled out try.
69'Player substituted - Luca Bigi , Italy
69'Substitute on - Federico Zani , Italy
69'Substitute on - Jarrod Evans , Wales
69'Player substituted - Dan Biggar , Wales
66'Has that ruled out try dampened Welsh spirits? Absolutely not. They're still building attack after attack.
64'Substitute on - Ryan Elias , Wales
64'Player substituted - Ken Owens , Wales
61'George North almost scored his 40th Wales try, which would have moved him to joint-second the country's all-time scorer list alongside Gareth Thomas. TMO rules out the score, so he's still on 39.
61'Substitute on - Rhys Webb , Wales
61'Player substituted - Tomos Williams , Wales
61'Player substituted - Dillon Lewis , Wales
61'Substitute on - Leon Brown , Wales
61'28-0 Conversion - Dan Biggar , Wales
59'26-0 Try - Nick Tompkins , Wales
58'Boom! Nick Tompkins scores a try on his international debut after a long, powerful run following a Welsh ruck. The Italian defence had no answer for Tomkins' fainting hips, and Wales have an even bigger lead.
56'Player substituted - Leonardo Sarto , Italy
56'Substitute on - Jayden Hayward , Italy
56'Substitute on - Giovanni Licata , Italy
56'Player substituted - Sebastian Negri , Italy
56'Player substituted - Wyn Jones , Wales
56'Substitute on - Rob Evans , Wales
56'Substitute on - Cory Hill , Wales
56'Player substituted - Jake Ball , Wales
54'If the first half was a frantic bombardment of Welsh attacks, the second can be described as a slow time-killer. With the result already in little doubt, barring an epic Italian comeback, this is a case of Wales showing comfortable dominance.
53'Player substituted - Taulupe Faletau , Wales
53'Substitute on - Ross Moriarty , Wales
53'Substitute on - Nick Tompkins , Wales
53'Player substituted - Hadleigh Parkes , Wales
49'Italy have gained more of a stronghold since the restart than they did in the first 40 minutes. A period of possession five metres out from Wales' try line leads to an Italy scrum.
47'Substitute on - Marco Lazzaroni , Italy
47'Player substituted - Alessandro Zanni , Italy
47'Substitute on - Marco Riccioni , Italy
47'Player substituted - Giosue Zilocchi , Italy
47'Substitute on - Danilo Fischetti , Italy
47'Player substituted - Andrea Lovotti , Italy
46'Italy received a penalty deep inside their own half after Wales forward Jake Ball entered a ruck from the side. A rare moment of ill-discipline from the hosts today.
43'The start of the second half has been greeted with a lot of kicking. Strain-your-neck stuff from the restart.
41'We're back underway!
41'+221-0 End of first half
40'Italy made a last-ditch push for a try with a lineout inside the Welsh 22. They lack confidence in their lineout though and go near, with the ball eventually called in touch, signalling an end to the half. It's been all Wales so far.
40'21-0 Start of second half
38'Wales fans will be happy to see fly-half Dan Biggar looking annoyed at not putting his penalty kick into touch closer to the try line, despite their 21-point lead. Wales wasted the resulting opportunity but Biggar's face says it all: They want more.
36'Save that one for the highlight real... Williams looked to have scored a try after blocking an Italian kick, but he couldn't secure the ball. It rested on his head before rolling behind him into the arms of an opposition back who safely kicked away.
33'This is all going one way. Wales look comfortable, cemented by their 60% possession so far.
31'21-0 Conversion - Dan Biggar , Wales
30'19-0 Try - Josh Adams , Wales
29'Wales pushed their maul near the opposing try line and collapsed it five metres out. With a ruck just left of centre, Williams sprayed the ball out to Biggar, who quickly dispatched it between his legs with his back to Adams, who catches and touches down his second try of the day.
25'Leigh Halfpenny has been one of the busiest men on the field so far, collecting a bunch of Italian kicks and leading the Welsh collective in bombarding ground attacks.
22'Italy haven't won a game in the past three Six Nations tournaments, and the way this one has started, they don't look to be ending that streak today.
22'Player substituted - Nick Tompkins , Wales
22'Substitute on - Johnny McNicholl , Wales
19'It's been a happy first quarter for the home faithful. Josh Adams put on the burners at the sideline, showing his speed and angling his body inside to keep himself from going into touch.
18'14-0 Try - Josh Adams , Wales
16'9-0 Penalty goal - Dan Biggar , Wales
14'Leigh Halfpenny delivered a nicely weighted chip over the Italian line and was tripped on his way through. Tomos Williams gathered again and kicked along the floor to the Italian try line but lost out in the ensuing race. The play was called back for the trip on Halfpenny, meaning...you guessed it, another three points for Wales.
11'Substitute on - Nick Tompkins , Wales
11'Player substituted - Johnny McNicholl , Wales
11'6-0 Penalty goal - Dan Biggar , Wales
10'It's been a frantic start, and Itlay are just starting to show a few cracks. A Johnny McNicholl chip was fumbled by the Italian back, upon which Tomos Williams gathered and offloaded, eventually leading to a Wales penalty and three more points for the hosts.
7'Leigh Halfpenny knocked the ball on prior to Tomos Williams touching the loose ball down for a try. Ruled out soon after.
6'Mattia Bellini found some space to charge forward after a spell of possession from the visitors. They eventually lose the ball.
4'Italy are penalised for an illegal grab after some pretty solid defence -- a Dan Biggar penalty kick gives the home side an early lead. Wales have broken the Italian line once already thanks to a Tomos Williams surge.
4'3-0 Penalty goal - Dan Biggar , Wales
1'And the Wayne Pivac era begins. The game is underway.
1'The sight of Alun Wyn Jones belting out the Welsh national anthem at the top of his pipes means only one thing...game on! Kick-off is imminent.
1'Wales will be looking to pick up where they left off in last year's tournament and are overwhelming favourites to do just that today. Their opponents, Italy, have lost their last 22 Six Nations matches, with their last win coming in 2015, when they beat Scotland 22-19 at Murrayfield.
1'Hello and welcome to ESPN's live coverage of today's 2020 Six Nations opener between defending grand slam champions Wales and Italy. Kick-off is in 15 minutes.
1'0-0 Start of first half

Six Nations Championship 2020 News