The early kickoff on the final Saturday of the group stages in the 2023 Rugby World Cup will see Wales taking on Georgia at Stade de la Beaujoire in Nantes.
After the first three matches of the competition, Wales currently lead Pool C with 14 points and are guaranteed a place in the knockout stage, while Georgia are fourth and will bow out of the World Cup at the end of this match.
Match preview
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While many would not have given them much of a chance of winning the 2023 Rugby World Cup leading up to the tournament, Wales have surpassed all expectations, steadily improving with each passing match.
Despite facing intense pressure in the opening match of the competition, Wales ground out a hard-fought 32-26 victory, showing tremendous character in the face of a late onslaught by the Flying Fijians.
They then secured a somewhat less-than-perfect win over Portugal, but their undoubted best performance so far came in their last match when they embarrassed The Wallabies in a 40-6 win, booking their place in the quarter-finals in the process.
Gareth Anscombe played a pivotal role in the last match, contributing 23 points against Australia, and the Dragons have now secured their first three wins with an average margin of 20 points.
Warren Gatland can be well proud of what his troops have delivered so far but will know the job is only half done and he will want to continue their momentum with a clash against either Argentina or Japan to come in the next round.
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Meanwhile, Georgia were tipped as the potential dark horse in this Pool, but most would agree that they have largely underperformed in the competition and will be making their final rounds at the final whistle of this match.
A disjointed Wallabies side comprehensively beat the Lelos in their opening match of the competition, but their biggest disappointment came the following week when they drew 18-18 in an encounter they were fancied to win against Portugal.
Against Fiji, the Georgians started very strongly and led 9-0 at the break but faded in the latter stages of the game, allowing their opponents to come back, who duly obliged with two converted tries and a penalty.
While the Georgians did pull off a famous victory over the Dragons back in November last year, Wales are a different team now under Gatland, and it is hard to see how Levan Maisashvili will be able to stop them here based on his team's performances in this tournament.
Wales Rugby World Cup form:
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Wales form (all competitions):
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Georgia Rugby World Cup form:
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Georgia form (all competitions):
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Team News
Gatland has made a few notable changes to his side, with Dewi Lake set to captain the side from the front row alongside Gareth Thomas and Tomas Francis.
Taulupe Faletau and winger Louis Rees-Zammit have been included in the starting lineup, maintaining their 100% record of playing in every group stage match, while Tommy Reffell makes a return at openside flank, partnering with Aaron Wainwright on the blindside.
Anscombe equalled the record for most points scored by a Welsh player at an RWC and maintains his spot, while Tomos Williams completes the halves pairing.
As part of five changes made for their last group fixture, Merab Sharikadze makes a comeback to the Georgia starting lineup and will captain the side in this his 99th Test match.
In the pack, Guram Gogichashvili, Shalva Mamukashvili, and Nodar Cheishvili also return to the lineup after being absent in the loss to Fiji.
Lasha Khmaladze completes the five changes as he joins wingers Davit Niniashvili and Akaki Tabutsadze in the back three behind Giorgi Kveseladze and captain Sharikadze in midfield.
Wales starting lineup: 15. Liam Williams, 14. Louis Rees Zammit, 13. George North, 12. Nick Tompkins, 11. Rio Dyer, 10. Gareth Anscombe, 9. Tomos Williams, 8. Taulupe Faletau, 7. Tommy Reffell, 6. Aaron Wainwright, 5. Dafydd Jenkins, 4. Will Rowlands, 3. Tomas Francis, 2. Dewi Lake (c), 1. Gareth Thomas
Replacements: 16. Elliot Dee, 17. Nicky Smith, 18. Henry Thomas, 19. Dafydd Jenkins, 20. Taine Basham, 21. Gareth Davies, 22. Sam Costelow, 23. Mason Grady
Georgia starting lineup: 15. Lasha Khmaladze, 14. Akaki Tabutsadze, 13. Giorgi Kveseladze, 12. Merab Sharikadze (c), 11. Davit Niniashvili, 10. Luka Matkava, 9. Vasil Lobzhanidze, 8. Tornike Jalagonia, 7. Beka Saginadze, 6. Mikheil Gachechiladze, 5. Konstantine Mikautadze, 4. Nodar Cheishvili, 3. Beka Gigashvili, 2. Shalva Mamukashvili, 1. Guram Gogichashvili
Replacements: 16. Vano Karkadze, 17. Nika Abuladze, 18. Irakli Aptsiauri, 19. Vladimer Chachanidze, 20. Giorgi Tsutskiridze, 21. Gela Aprasidze, 22. Tedo Abzhandadze, 23. Demur Tapladze
Head To Head
Wales and Georgia have met on four previous occasions. The Dragons have won three and the Lelos have won one. The last match between these sides was played in November last year, and Georgia won the match 13-12.
We say: Wales 38-15 Georgia
While Wales have already booked their spot in the quarter-finals, Warren Gatland will know how important it will be to keep the momentum going and spirits high in the camp. Georgia have not done enough in this competition to suggest they can cause an upset in this one, and we think they will lose by 20+ points.
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Devesh Jaganath
