Six players from Dragons RFC have today been called up by Steve Tandy as part of a 39-player squad as Wales return home for the November window of the inaugural Nations Championship. Uncapped duo Aneurin Owen and Che Hope are joined by Ben Carter, Seb Davies, Rio Dyer and Dillon Lewis in the squad.
Having played three away matches in July against Fiji, Argentina and South Africa, the Nations Championship continues this November with Wales hosting Japan, New Zealand and Australia at Principality Stadium during rounds four to six which take place over three consecutive Saturdays.
Dewi Lake captains the 1,042-cap squad for the campaign. There are three uncapped players among the 22 forwards and 17 backs named: Cardiff loose-head prop Rhys Barratt, plus the Dragons pair of scrum half Che Hope and centre Aneurin Owen.
Liam Belcher, Tomas Francis, Archie Griffin, Louie Hennessey and Dafydd Jenkins return having been unavailable for the July window of the Nations Championship.
There are also call ups for Taine Basham, Seb Davies and Rio Dyer in a Wales squad that has an average age of 27.
Tandy said: "It's great to welcome back the players who were unavalable for the first three rounds of the Nations Championship. Added to that, there are a number of players who've been in great form for their clubs and so we wanted to give them an opportunity in the squad this autumn.
“We’re excited to head into our three home rounds of the competition. Principality Stadium is a special place to play and means an awful lot to the players. When we assemble as a group next week all eyes will be on that first home fixture against Japan and preparing well to put in a good performance for the fans.”
The new competition culminates in a Finals Weekend with six matches taking place over three days at Allianz Stadium, Twickenham where all 12 teams will compete for their final placing in the Nations Championship, as well as to earn points for their group to decide whether north or south triumphs in the sport this year.
All matches will be broadcast live on ITV and S4C.
WALES SQUAD FOR THE NATIONS CHAMPIONSHIP NOVEMBER WINDOW (Competition rounds 4 to 6 followed by Finals Weekend)
Forwards (22)
Rhys Barratt (Cardiff Rugby – uncapped)
Taine Basham (Cardiff Rugby – 17 caps)
Adam Beard (Montpellier – 68 caps)
Liam Belcher (Cardiff Rugby – 5 caps)
James Botham (Cardiff Rugby – 24 caps)
Rhys Carre (Saracens – 31 caps)
Ben Carter (Dragons – 21 caps)
Seb Davies (Dragons – 17 caps)
Ryan Elias (Scarlets – 51 caps)
Tomas Francis (Sale Sharks – 82 caps)
Archie Griffin (Bath Rugby – 16 caps)
Kane James (Exeter Chiefs – 1 cap)
Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs – 31 caps)
Dewi Lake (Gloucester Rugby – 34 caps) Captain
Dillon Lewis (Dragons – 60 caps)
Alex Mann (Cardiff Rugby – 18 caps)
Jac Morgan (Gloucester Rugby – 27 caps)
Taine Plumtree (Scarlets – 15 caps)
Nicky Smith (Sale Sharks – 66 caps)
Gareth Thomas (Ospreys – 44 caps)
Aaron Wainwright (Leicester Tigers – 70 caps)
Teddy Williams (Cardiff Rugby – 10 caps)
Backs (17)
Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby – 72 caps)
Sam Costelow (Scarlets – 22 caps)
Rio Dyer (Dragons – 24 caps)
Dan Edwards (Ospreys – 13 caps)
Gabriel Hamer-Webb (Leicester Tigers – 1 cap)
Joe Hawkins (Scarlets – 13 caps)
Louie Hennessey (Bath Rugby – 1 cap)
Che Hope (Dragons – uncapped)
Eddie James (Scarlets – 11 caps)
Max Llewellyn (Gloucester Rugby – 13 caps)
Ellis Mee (Scarlets – 11 caps)
Reuben Morgan-Williams (Ospreys – 3 caps)
Blair Murray (Scarlets – 19 caps)
Aneurin Owen (Dragons – uncapped)
Louis Rees-Zammit (Bristol Bears – 43 caps)
Tom Rogers (Ospreys – 13 caps)
Tomos Williams (Saracens – 75 caps)
Wales Men’s Nations Championship fixtures NOVEMBER WINDOW - All at Principality Stadium and live on ITV and S4C.
- Round 4: Saturday 7 November 2026 – Wales v Japan, KO 16.40h
- Round 5: Saturday 14 November 2026 – Wales v New Zealand, KO 14.10h
- Round 6: Saturday 21 November 2026 – Wales v Australia, KO 20.10h
It's great to welcome back the players who were unavalable for the first three rounds of the Nations Championship. Added to that, there are a number of players who've been in great form for their clubs and so we wanted to give them an opportunity in the squad this autumn...
