Wales head coach Ioan Cunningham is excited by the prospect of playing France next weekend after a “reality check” against England.
Wales won their opening two fixtures with bonus points secured, but against England at Kingsholm on Saturday they came unstuck, eventually losing 58-5 after an impressive first-half showing saw them only trail 19-0 at half-time against the best team in the world.
Despite that defeat to England, Cunningham’s side are still in with an outside chance of winning the TikTok Women’s Six Nations title, but their next challenge is another extremely tough one – France.
Les Bleues are level on points with England, 15 points from a possible 15, and represent another stern test of where this Wales team is at just over six months from the Rugby World Cup.
Cunningham though insists his team are focused on righting their own wrongs as they look to bounce back with a win.
He said: “We have looked at a number of areas where we didn’t perform as well as we know we can.
“That includes our discipline again but playing the top teams in the world as we have done recently with England, Canada and USA shows us the level of intensity we need to cope with and play at consistently in order to close the gap and really compete.
“The England match gave us a reality check if it were needed and shows us we have a lot of work to do.
“We also need to remember England are much further down the road of professionalism, but we must take on board these learnings if we are to make further progress this year.”
The match against France on Friday 22 April at Cardiff Arms Park is one that will capture the attention of the nation and Cunningham is thrilled by the prospect of facing Les Bleues in front of a home crowd again.
“We are really excited about playing France. It gives us a chance to show we have taken on board some of the lessons as we grow as a group,” he added.
“We know France will be another tough challenge. They are one of the top three teams in the world and they have some great ball carriers and play with speed, momentum and typical French attacking style.
“We need to be more accurate with the ball and make sure we take our opportunities. The crowds have been brilliant so far, it would be fantastic for our players to create another electric atmosphere at the Arms Park next Friday night.”
