Wales World Cup tilt two years in the making — Edwards

TOYOTA CITY, Japan: Six Nations champions Wales have been preparing for their tilt at a first World Cup for the past two years, assistant coach Shaun Edwards said Sunday.

The Welsh, briefly ranked World Rugby’s number one team in the lead-up to the tournament in Japan, kick off their Pool D campaign against Georgia at Toyota City on Monday.

“We have been preparing for this for a very long time -- two years in the making,” said Edwards, a reference to the return of head coach Warren Gatland from a sabbatical coaching the British and Irish Lions to a drawn series against World Cup champions New Zealand.

“It is going to be physical against Georgia, but we are here to compete,” added the former Wigan and Britain rugby league legend.

But he stressed that Wales, who have been rocked by attack coach Rob Howley being sent home over betting allegations, were not thinking beyond the Georgia match.

“You can’t look too far ahead. We have to overcome Georgia first and then we’ll look at Australia. As to how far we can go? I’m not one to make predictions. I just know we’re to ready to play on Monday.”

Wales will be up against some familiar faces in Georgia head coach Milton Haig’s backroom staff in the shape of ex-England internationals Graham Rowntree and Joe Worsley -- the latter having played under Gatland and Edwards at Wasps.

“They will have them fired up,” acknowledged Edwards. “Graham is a very charismatic character, Joe is a very detailed sort of person, so we know they will be prepared.

Worsley, a member of England’s 2003 World Cup-winning squad, won 78 international caps and was a Wasps stalwart in Gatland’s 2002-5 reign during which the club won three English Premiership titles and the European Cup.

“I’ve been watching Warren (Gatland) since he left Wasps. I saw what he did at Wasps, I experienced it, and I’ve seen from afar what he’s done with the Welsh team,” said the former flanker, who has spent the last seven years coaching at Bordeaux-Begles in the French Top 14. - AFP