Here are your rugby headlines for Friday, February 28.
Wales players get new roles
Wales' contingent at Gallagher Premiership side Gloucester have been used to prepare the inexperienced Cherry & Whites players who will take on Newcastle this weekend.
Welsh players Tomos Williams, Max Llewellyn, Gareth Anscombe and Josh Hathaway have returned to their club side during the Six Nations fallow week, but will not play this weekend.
READ MORE: Matt Sherratt's likely Wales team to face Scotland tells its own story
Gloucester take on the Falcons in the Premiership Rugby Cup and, given they are prioritising the league, they will field an inexperienced team made up of a number of youth players and loaned-in players, too.
And, in training, Gloucester's clutch of Welsh players have been used to ready the patched-up side for the test this weekend, with defence coach Dom Waldouck saying: “The quality of the session today was unbelievable.
"We've got a team defending today against Santi Carreras, Chris Harris, Seb Atkinson, Max Llewellyn, Tomos Williams. You're not going to defend against a backline like that very often. Josh Hathaway on the wing as well.
"So it was a good test for the lads but they stood up to it. It's brilliant training against that sort of opposition; it is only developing the young players which is exactly what we're trying to do with this Premiership Rugby Cup squad.”
Mee: Mum cried during my debut and I was nervous all week
Ellis Mee has talked through the rollercoaster of emotions leading up to and during his Wales debut at the weekend.
The Scarlets flyer impressed on his first outing in a Wales shirt, nearly scoring a wonderful try which would have really turned up the heat on the Irish, only for it to get ruled out by the TMO for the smallest of knock-ons during grounding.
Nevertheless, the 21-year-old made a real impression on his first outing in the Test arena and you'd have been forgiven for thinking there were no nerves at all - however the truth is very much to the contrary.
"Unreal experience," he said in an interview with fellow new-boy Blair Murray on the " target="_blank" class="link"> WRU's YouTube channel. "First half, we went in up at half-time, so being able to take them to the wire was unreal. Getting that try at half-time was massive.
"When the team was announced I was so nervous all week. When Saturday came, I could barely sleep (the night before). I had so many messages I had to reply to them all weekend.
"Once the first whistle went I was fine, before that it was nerve-wracking. It was definitely a hard experience and a step up from the Scarlets."
Of that nearly-try, he added: "Inches away! So close. The TMO was going for so long, I was struggling! First time watching it on the big screen I thought it was a try, the second angle I thought 'Ah, short!'"
Mee's mother is from Newport and, understandably, she was quite emotional during her son's first outing for his country.
"My brother had an old-school Reebok one on, a white one, when I told him I'd been picked to come into camp, he said he spotted a top on eBay and he had to buy it, it was like £150!" he added.
"Throughout the day my mum was so nervous. Then we finally get into the game and she started crying, bless her, then when the final whistle went, she was fine."
Mee is likely to play a big role in the final two rounds of the tournament, with Scotland next before the big one against England. Speaking about those tests, he said: "We have just got to take it to them, both Scotland and England and end the Six Nations on a high with a win. Get it done."
Jarrod Evans in disbelief after recall
Jarrod Evans has said he is "grateful" to run back out on the pitch in a Wales shirt again and admitted he thought he'd never do it again.
The Harlequins fly-half was unfancied by former head coach Warren Gatland, but Cardiff Rugby boss and interim Wales head coach Matt Sherratt knows Evans' qualities better than most, having worked with him at the Arms Park outfit.
He was straight on the blower to Evans, who had been wowing players and pundits alike for his performances at The Stoop this season, with many in disbelief that he wasn't in Gatland's initial Six Nations squad.
Evans came on against the Irish, with his last cap in 2021, and impressed with ball-in-hand, side-stepping his first man at will while showcasing his passing game on the outside of Ireland's defence. And he was clearly in disbelief after the game.
"Something I never thought would happen again," he wrote on social media. "Grateful to be back out there. Let's keep the positivity."
Doris is ‘in with a shout’ of France return
By Ed Elliot, PA
Ireland captain Caelan Doris is “in with a shout” of facing France in next weekend’s pivotal Guinness Six Nations showdown.
Number eight Doris missed his country’s 27-18 win away to Wales in round three of the tournament because of a knee issue. The 26-year-old and hooker Ronan Kelleher, who sat out in Cardiff due to a neck problem, trained with Simon Easterby’s squad on Thursday morning at an open session at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.
Prop Tadhg Furlong was again absent, having yet to feature in this year’s championship because of a calf injury after missing Ireland’s autumn fixtures with a torn hamstring.
Assistant coach Paul O’Connell provided an upbeat update on the trio and back-rower Jack Conan, who started in place of Doris and scored the opening try at the Principality Stadium before being forced off by a back injury, on Thursday afternoon.
“Everyone is fine,” O’Connell told reporters, according to RTE Sport. “Caelan has been running for the last week, he ran today so he’s certainly in with a shout of being involved.
“I know Ronan Kelleher trained today. No one is ruled out, they are all carrying bumps and bruises but they’re OK.”
Back-to-back Six Nations champions Ireland host title rivals France on Saturday, March 8 before concluding their campaign in Italy a week later.
Tighthead Furlong has returned to Leinster, who play Cardiff on Saturday in the United Rugby Championship, to continue his rehabilitation.
“He’ll be rejoining us next week so no one is ruled out at this point,” added O’Connell. “I don’t think he’s available for Leinster this weekend, no.”
Asked about the uncertainty surrounding the 32-year-old, O’Connell replied: “I just think because there’s been a few false starts, he wants to be sure about it, and the medics want to be sure about it and not have another false start.
“I’d say if he had no history with that calf he might be back by now but they just want to make sure and he wants to feel sure and feel confident himself as well.”
