Wales were left to count the cost of their Rugby World Cup victory over Georgia after number eight Taulupe Faletau suffered a broken arm and two other players were also injured.

Faletau, who has won more than 100 caps, will take no further part in the tournament as Wales build towards a quarter-final against probably Argentina or Japan in Marseille next weekend.

Wales head coach Warren Gatland said no decision had yet been made on a replacement for Faletau, although flanker Aaron Wainwright is an option to move across the back-row.

Fly-half Gareth Anscombe, meanwhile, withdrew 45 minutes before kick-off in Nantes following a groin problem suffered during the warm-up.

And full-back Liam Williams was on crutches after Gatland said he took a blow to his knee, but Wales are hopeful he will be fit for the quarter-final, with Wales ending their Pool C campaign as group winners with four successive victories following a 43-19 triumph.

“Toby (Faletau) has broken his arm so he will be out,” Gatland said.

“We are just going to assess Gareth over the next 72 hours. He has pulled his groin very high up.

“Talking to the medics, he has got a bit of power still in his leg which is a positive. It means he has not pulled it off the bone.

“We will probably know in the next 48-72 hours what we need to do with him. Whether we’ve got (time) for him to recover or replace him directly.

“We have got to look at a replacement for Faletau, whether that is directly as a loose-forward replacement or whether we look at another position.

“We’ve got a few sore players, particularly in the backs, after today’s game.

“If you do see Liam Williams on crutches, it is not that he has done anything significantly bad.

“He got a whack on the knee, and the medics, from a comfort perspective, have put him on crutches to save him walking around a bit.

“He has got a knock and probably won’t take a huge part in training in the early part of next week, but hopefully he will be fit for the quarter-final.”

Wales won their Rugby World Cup group and maintained an unbeaten march to the quarter-finals after beating Georgia 43-19 at Stade de la Beaujoire.

Warren Gatland’s team needed one point to finish top of Pool C after securing a last-eight place almost two weeks ago by defeating Australia in record-breaking fashion.

And they accomplished it on the same ground that 16 years ago Fiji condemned them to a World Cup pool-stage exit.

Wing Louis Rees-Zammit scored three tries, while there were also touchdowns for prop Tomas Francis, full-back Liam Williams and centre George North.

Wales ensured there would be no repeat of Georgia’s shock 13-12 success in Cardiff during the 2022 autumn Tests as they overcame fly-half Gareth Anscombe’s withdrawal just 45 minutes before kick-off due to a groin injury.

Anscombe’s late replacement Sam Costelow kicked five conversions and a penalty, although Georgia fought back to 24-19 adrift at one point through tries from Merab Sharikadze, Vano Karkadze and Davit Niniashvili, with Luka Matkava kicking two conversions.

A protracted mass brawl late in the game that spilled over the touchline and involved replacements from both sides saw Niniashvili and Wales substitute Taine Basham yellow-carded.

Wales were home and dry by this stage, although there was more injury concern when number eight Taulupe Faletau went off nursing what appeared to be a wrist problem.

Costelow mixed his running and kicking game well in the early stages, but Wales could get no change out of a well-organised Georgia defence.

There were plenty of errors in perfect playing conditions from both sides, but Wales broke the deadlock after 16 minutes.

A powerful lineout drive put Georgia on the back-foot, before Tomos Williams’ short inside pass resulted in Francis going over for a try that Costelow converted.

Wales had settled into a rhythm, and they struck from another attacking lineout just seven minutes later.

Lock Will Rowlands secured quality possession and, when the ball was moved wide Liam Williams finished impressively. Costelow’s conversion made it 14-0.

A Costelow penalty then opened up a 17-point advantage, and Wales appeared to be well on their way to a fourth successive pool victory.

Georgia regrouped as the first-half drew to a close, and Sharikadze claimed a try that Matkava converted following a sustained spell of pressure.

It was a warning for Wales that they could not switch off as they took a 17-7 lead into the interval.

Georgia began the second period on the front foot, but a midfield fumble saw North find Rees-Zammit, and the Gloucester speedster cruised clear from 60 metres out to claim his third try of the tournament.

Costelow converted, and it was exactly what Wales required after Georgia had threatened a fightback before the break.

Gatland changed the entire front row after 50 minutes, with Nicky Smith, Elliot Dee and Henry Thomas all joining the action.

And while Wales were comfortably ahead, Georgia kept searching for attacking opportunities in their final game of the competition after defeats against Australia and Fiji and a draw with Portugal.

Their resilience was then rewarded with 20 minutes left when replacement hooker Karkadze went over and Matkava converted.

And Georgia immediately conjured a third try, this time from Niniashvili, making it 24-18 and giving Wales plenty to be concerned about.

Gatland’s team were in danger of unravelling, but just when they needed it, Rees-Zammit applied a brilliant finish for his second try which Costelow converted, making it 31-19.

Biggar joined the action deep into the final quarter, and when Rees-Zammit claimed his hat-trick try, Wales were home before North’s try – and Wales’ sixth – completed the scoring, with Japan or Argentina now awaiting as their quarter-final opponents.

Jonathan Humphreys says that Wales “cannot afford to go off-script” when they tackle Rugby World Cup opponents Georgia in Nantes on Saturday.

Wales need a point from their Pool C finale to win the group, having already secured a quarter-final place through beating Australia by a record 40-6 scoreline nine days ago.

They lost 13-12 at home to Georgia when the countries last met almost a year ago, and Wales assistant coach Humphreys has emphasised a fierce sense of determination in the camp.

“There has been a bit of an edge about training, which is what we want,” forwards specialist Humphreys said.

“We are just keen to continue the progress that we’ve shown. That is a big driving force for us, and we have talked constantly about that.

“I expect them (Georgia) to play a bit, and they are strong up-front – we are under no illusion about that.

“They are a dangerous outfit, and we cannot afford to go off-script.”

Few could have imagined Wales reaching the last eight just 11 months after Georgia triumphed 13-12 in Cardiff, and Humphreys added: “We’ve had five months together. We are more like a club team than an international team.

“We came in earlier than most teams, we know what we wanted to improve and we haven’t deviated from that.

“Probably the messages that went out in May, they haven’t changed at all.

“Every day, it has been working on those fundamentals that we felt were important and would make a difference.”

Wales head coach Warren Gatland has made six changes for the Georgia clash, with Dewi Lake captaining a side that also sees starts for wing Rio Dyer, fly-half Gareth Anscombe, scrum-half Tomos Williams, lock Dafydd Jenkins and flanker Tommy Reffell.

Centre Nick Tompkins will continue his midfield partnership with George North, meanwhile, and look to maintain the form that has made him among Wales’ most impressive performers at the tournament.

“We want no dip in our performance,” Tompkins said.

“We want to get better, we don’t want to take our foot off the pedal – that’s the last thing we want. We want confidence and momentum and to keep on going.

“I want to just keep getting better and keep pushing myself. There are a lot of things I need to improve on.

“I am happy with some areas, but there are some things I really need to push myself on.

“You look at some of the other centres out there and how well they are doing, and you want to emulate that.

“Being together as a squad for five months means you can have those little conversations and make little tweaks.

“You are all looking for little things to tweak and improve. It has been really healthy, and it has been all of us pushing each other.”

Tompkins has also voiced his support for the World Cup bunker system, whereby incidents of foul play can be referred and a yellow card retained or upgraded to red.

“I like it,” Tompkins added.

“Decisions are tough at the moment anyway, referees are under a lot of a pressure to keep the game moving quickly and get the right decision.

“I think it is brilliant, I like that model. To cut down the pressure we put on referees, especially, is good.”

Wales head coach Warren Gatland has made six changes to his starting line-up for next Saturday’s Rugby World Cup clash against Georgia in Nantes.

Hooker Dewi Lake will captain the team, with his co-skipper Jac Morgan rested from the matchday 23.

There are also starts for wing Rio Dyer, fly-half Gareth Anscombe, scrum-half Tomos Williams, lock Dafydd Jenkins and flanker Tommy Reffell.

Wales scrum-half Gareth Davies says he is enjoying his rugby again during a World Cup campaign that has seen him produce record-breaking form.

Davies’ early touchdown in the 40-6 rout of Australia set a new World Cup best of eight tries for a scrum-half.

And it represents an impressive return to international rugby after he missed out on Wales’ South Africa tour last year, the 2022 autumn Tests and Six Nations campaign two months later.

Wales head coach Warren Gatland’s predecessor Wayne Pivac preferred players like Tomos Williams, Kieran Hardy and Dane Blacker in the scrum-half position.

And although Gatland was in charge for last season’s Six Nations, Williams, Hardy and Rhys Webb fought for the number nine shirt.

Crucially, though, a door opened for the 33-year-old when Gatland named Davies in the World Cup training squad, and he has not looked back.

He starred in the tournament warm-up victory over England and regained the number nine shirt for key Pool C wins against Fiji and Australia

“I love World Cups,” Davies said. “I love the build-up to them.

“It is the only time that we really get a full pre-season (with Wales). It has been a tough couple of months, but I have enjoyed it.

“Physically and mentally, I feel like I am in the best shape of my life. I am really enjoying my rugby again.

“We are all back to where we want to be under this management. We are fighting for each other, playing for each other and the environment is good, which is the main thing.

“We are enjoying our time off the pitch as well. We’ve got a good bunch of boys, and it shows.”

Davies, who made his Wales debut nine years ago and was the team’s starting scrum-half during the 2015 and 2019 tournaments, is once again excelling under Gatland’s direction.

He scored five tries at the 2015 World Cup, then two more in Japan four years later – including an interception effort in a pool-stage win against Australia.

“Warren has got his way,” Davies added. “It works for me and it obviously works for everyone else in the squad. It gets us all going.

“The other coaches as well, Mike (Forshaw) with defence, Kingy (Alex King) in attack and Humphs (Jonathan Humphreys) with the forwards. We’ve had a lot of changes with coaches, and I think that’s made the difference, to be honest.”

Wales’ crushing success against Australia secured a quarter-final place – the fourth World Cup in a row for them to achieve that under Gatland – and has set up a potential last-eight appointment with Argentina in Marseille on October 14.

“I thought our win in 2019 against Australia in the World Cup was big, but this is right up there,” Davies said.

“Momentum is key, especially in World Cups. We had a good week’s training preparing for the game, and I thought it showed on the pitch.

“We obviously won’t look too far ahead of ourselves. We have got a few days off to recover, and then we will focus on Georgia the following weekend.

“We have still got a job to do against them first, and then we will start looking at the quarter-final draw.”

Warren Gatland has hailed Wales’ ability to keep “punching above our weight” after clinching a place in the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.

It maintains Gatland’s 100 per record of reaching the last-eight in four World Cup campaigns as Wales head coach.

And the achievement is further underlined by where Wales were just six months ago on and off the pitch.

They finished fifth in the Six Nations, with a solitary win being against Italy, while Welsh professional rugby was engulfed by financial issues and contractual uncertainty for many players.

That scenario almost led to Gatland’s squad going on strike in protest over the situation just days before Wales faced England in Cardiff.

Now, though, they find themselves at the business end of a World Cup, having progressed from Pool C with one game to spare and seemingly on course for a quarter-final clash against Argentina in Marseille on October 14.

“There were a lot of things going on before the Six Nations,” Gatland said, following a record 40-6 victory over Australia that confirmed Wales’ progression to the knockout phase.

“Contract issues and the players getting offered them, and then just understanding the frustrations from them in terms of security, future, families and stuff.

“I probably didn’t realise at the time the impact that had on the coaching staff and probably even myself.

“I had to sit back and let things unfold until after the Six Nations, when you can get a squad together.

“We have been together for four months now. You know you can put the detail, preparation and hard work in that we always pride ourselves on.

“We are such a small nation as a tier one nation in terms of playing numbers, and we are proud that our success has been based on hard work and punching above our weight.

“Everyone has made a lot of sacrifices in the last four months, and the message from me beforehand was ‘you get what you deserve in life’ from putting that hard work and effort in.

“We have been through some pain and tough times. We have pushed some players right to the edge, and they have fronted up.

“We have got a brilliant balance in this group in terms of taking the mickey out of each other and some real banter, which is brilliant.

“But when they are asked to front up and perform at training, they get their heads on and they knuckle down.”

Wales were World Cup semi-finalists in 2011 – the first time for 24 years – and 2019, with that achievement now having an outstanding chance of being repeated.

Among Wales’ many successes in the tournament so far has been co-captain Jac Morgan’s form and leadership, which he highlighted through an immense display against Australia.

It evokes memories of New Zealand in 2011 when a 22-year-old Sam Warburton was handed the captaincy reins and delivered magnificently. At 23, flanker Morgan is so far ticking every box.

Gatland added: “He is still a young man, and I threw him in at the deep end. He has been absolutely outstanding.

“I have a huge amount of admiration for him. He is definitely a player who leads from the front, and he did exactly that (against Australia). It was a brilliant performance from him.”

Warren Gatland says Wales will not start looking further down the track than necessary after they cruised into the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a record 40-6 win against hapless Australia.

Wales made it three successive victories in Pool C, leaving Eddie Jones’ team close to group-stage elimination.

Gatland’s men are guaranteed to top the group if they defeat Georgia next month, setting up a likely quarter-final clash against Argentina in Marseille.

But Gatland said: “We haven’t looked past anything yet, it has been one game at a time.

“Australia came into this game feeling confident about winning. We felt confident to produce a performance today. I thought we were clinical.

“Our focus will be on Georgia, a team we lost against in the autumn (last year).

“We need to rectify that and we need to make sure we don’t drop our standards. I think these players are well aware of that – they have worked incredibly hard.

“We have put a lot of work in the last four months as a team together. We are a momentum team, we build on confidence in terms of performances.

“Today was an outstanding performance in terms of what we wanted to achieve. We were blowing a bit at half-time, but I thought we went out and controlled the second half fantastically well.”

Wales overcame the early loss of injured fly-half Dan Biggar to boss Australia in every key department and coast home through tries from scrum-half Gareth Davies, centre Nick Tompkins and captain Jac Morgan, while Biggar, who kicked an early conversion, saw his replacement Gareth Anscombe boot 23 points.

It was Wales’ record win against Australia, overtaking a 25-point margin in 1975, and former England boss Jones will be left to face the music as the Wallabies lurch towards World Cup oblivion.

On Biggar, Gatland added: “Dan has stretched his pec. I haven’t spoken to the medics, but I spoke to Dan and they are saying it is probably a couple of weeks.

“We have got 13 days’ break before we take on Georgia, so that potentially rules him out of that match, just to recover. It’s not a significant injury, just a pec strain.”

Anscombe, who landed six penalties, a drop-goal and conversion after going on for Biggar in the 12th minute, said: “We talked a lot this week about family and the people we care about.

“We talk about the red wall, and to concede only six points against Australia is just remarkable.

“Dan Biggar means so much to this team, and I knew I had to just come on and do my role, and that was all I was focused on.

“The boys were really calm and we got off to a really good start. Our boys up-front were outstanding, they dominated the set-piece and I was just able to keep rolling forward.”

Warren Gatland says Wales will not start looking further down the track than necessary after they cruised into the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals with a record 40-6 win against hapless Australia.

Wales made it three successive victories in Pool C, leaving Eddie Jones’ team close to group-stage elimination.

Gatland’s men are guaranteed to top the group if they defeat Georgia next month, setting up a likely quarter-final clash against Argentina in Marseille.

But Gatland said: “We haven’t looked past anything yet, it has been one game at a time.

“Australia came into this game feeling confident about winning. We felt confident to produce a performance today. I thought we were clinical.

“Our focus will be on Georgia, a team we lost against in the autumn (last year).

“We need to rectify that and we need to make sure we don’t drop our standards. I think these players are well aware of that – they have worked incredibly hard.

“We have put a lot of work in the last four months as a team together. We are a momentum team, we build on confidence in terms of performances.

“Today was an outstanding performance in terms of what we wanted to achieve. We were blowing a bit at half-time, but I thought we went out and controlled the second half fantastically well.”

Wales overcame the early loss of injured fly-half Dan Biggar to boss Australia in every key department and coast home through tries from scrum-half Gareth Davies, centre Nick Tompkins and captain Jac Morgan, while Biggar, who kicked an early conversion, saw his replacement Gareth Anscombe boot 23 points.

It was Wales’ record win against Australia, overtaking a 25-point margin in 1975, and former England boss Jones will be left to face the music as the Wallabies lurch towards World Cup oblivion.

On Biggar, Gatland added: “Dan has stretched his pec. I haven’t spoken to the medics, but I spoke to Dan and they are saying it is probably a couple of weeks.

“We have got 13 days’ break before we take on Georgia, so that potentially rules him out of that match, just to recover. It’s not a significant injury, just a pec strain.”

Anscombe, who landed six penalties, a drop-goal and conversion after going on for Biggar in the 12th minute, said: “We talked a lot this week about family and the people we care about.

“We talk about the red wall, and to concede only six points against Australia is just remarkable.

“Dan Biggar means so much to this team, and I knew I had to just come on and do my role, and that was all I was focused on.

“The boys were really calm and we got off to a really good start. Our boys up-front were outstanding, they dominated the set-piece and I was just able to keep rolling forward.”

Warren Gatland believes there will be degrees of desperation on both sides when Wales tackle Rugby World Cup rivals Australia on Sunday.

Victory for Wales would send them into a fourth successive World Cup quarter-final with one group game to spare.

Australia, meanwhile, know that defeat realistically condemns them to a pool-stage exit for the first time in World Cup history.

“It will be one hell of a game, and that will be down to not just them being desperate, but us being desperate to progress through this pool,” Wales head coach Gatland said.

“There is definitely desperation for us because a loss or no points and the group could potentially come down to points difference.

“That is the last position we want to be in. I think that, when you’ve worked so hard and made as many sacrifices as the coaches and players have made in the past four months, that creates its own desperation.

“Why give yourself a get out of jail card when you don’t need to do that? We are desperate for the right reasons.”

Wales co-captain and hooker Dewi Lake has missed out on a place in Wales’ matchday 23 for the Lyon showdown.

Gatland has named the same team that defeated Fiji 12 days ago, with Ryan Elias starting at hooker in a side skippered by flanker Jac Morgan.

Elliot Dee provides cover for Elias on the bench, while lock Adam Beard will win his 50th cap. There is also a spot among the replacements for former England prop Henry Thomas, who is on course to make his Wales World Cup debut.

Flanker Tommy Reffell, a late withdrawal due to a tight calf muscle before Wales faced Portugal last weekend, also misses out, with Taine Basham providing back-row bench cover.

“He (Lake) was disappointed. He hasn’t had a lot of rugby, he has been carrying an injury and that was probably the decision we made for that one,” Gatland added.

“I have always been a fan of Elliot Dee in terms of his lineout throwing and how he brings energy off the bench. I know Dewi was disappointed, but it doesn’t mean that he is not going to feature in further games.”

Gatland is relishing another coaching encounter with Australia head coach and former England boss Eddie Jones, who has come in for considerable criticism following the Wallabies’ 22-15 defeat against Fiji last weekend.

That result has left Australia in the last-chance saloon as they look to navigate their way out of Pool C and onwards in the competition.

“You have come to realise what to expect from an Eddie team,” Gatland said.

“With regards to the way they are going to play on Sunday, we have prepared for a couple of scenarios.

“I was surprised at their tactics against Fiji. There were 11 less minutes ball-in-play time to us (Wales against Fiji), so I am not 100 per cent sure tactically how they will come at us.

“As coaches, we all come under pressure at times – it is part of the job.

“In fairness to Eddie, he is trying to take as much pressure off the players as he can, saying he is responsible for the results and that things aren’t good enough.

“Our relationship has always been good. We have been out on a number of occasions and had meals together. I find his company good – he is engaging.

“If you look at the recent record of games between Wales and Australia, there is never much in it. They won’t lie down and roll over for us.

“What I am happy about at the moment is putting some pride back in that Welsh jersey. It doesn’t take long to lose it.

“I don’t think we had the respect of the rugby world in terms of performance and results. That has been an objective of ours over the last few months, and players have made a lot of sacrifices.”

Warren Gatland believes that a 24-nation Rugby World Cup would help to grow the game.

An expansion from the current 20 countries for Australia 2027 or the United States four years later has been mooted in some quarters.

The current tournament in France has already been highlighted by outstanding performances from lower-ranked teams.

Uruguay pushed France for large parts of a gripping Pool A encounter before losing 27-12, while Portugal gave Gatland’s Wales plenty to ponder and Chile had their moments in games against Japan and Samoa.

“I thought Uruguay were outstanding – it is brilliant for the game,” Wales head coach Gatland said, following a 28-8 victory over Portugal.

“Portugal were fantastic and showed a lot of enterprise, and you could argue that Uruguay were pretty unlucky in a few situations (against France).

“I think it is important that we continue to develop from a rugby perspective to help develop these tier two nations.

“There might be a situation where we can increase the number of teams in the World Cup to 24, and that would continue to help grow the game.

“That is an important aspect. You don’t want top tier nations dominating, you want upsets – as long as I am not a part of it!

“I think it’s a real positive going forward to see teams competing and pushing other teams close.”

Portugal returned to the World Cup stage following a 16-year absence when they tackled Wales at Stade de Nice.

They qualified for the tournament by winning a repechage competition in Dubai, and full-back Nuno Sousa Guedes has no doubt that regular exposure against leading nations is what Portugal require.

Guedes and company made life tough for Wales, trailing by just four points approaching half-time, while they did not concede a bonus-point try until the game’s closing seconds.

“If we could keep playing games like this, it is the main thing,” Guedes said.

“For the kids back home who are starting out, it would be a very good step.

“In Portugal, it is always soccer. We want to show the world that it is not only soccer.

“We have the numbers in terms of rugby and some good kids coming up. I think we have the capacity.”

Wales boss Warren Gatland declared it a case of “job done” by beating Portugal 28-8 at Stade de Nice and taking another step toward the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals.

It was not pretty at times, and Wales only claimed the bonus-point try they coveted when number eight Taulupe Faletau scored in the dying seconds, but Gatland’s team now have 10 points from 10 in Pool C.

“If someone said you would have 10 points from the first two games, we would have been pretty happy with that,” Wales head coach Gatland said.

“Look, there were aspects of today where we probably tried to play a little too much rugby early on and didn’t play a bit more territory and be a bit more direct.

“But some of those players haven’t had a lot of rugby. I just said to them in the changing room, ‘job done’. We’ve got the five points.

“They had thrown everything at us in those first 20 minutes. They probably didn’t have the same opportunities in the second half in terms of putting us under that sort of pressure.

“When we ran hard and won those collision, that is when we looked dangerous. Probably at times we were a little bit lateral.

“It’s good we have given everyone in the squad an opportunity and some rugby. We have a little bit more time in terms of preparation before Australia and we can start looking forward to that game.”

Gatland confirmed flanker Tommy Reffell was suffering from a tight calf muscle that saw him pulled out of the starting line-up just minutes before kick-off, with Jac Morgan called up.

“Tommy said his calf was a bit tight,” Gatland added.

“I think he was still quite keen to take the field, but if he pulled that calf, that would have been his World Cup over.

“To put Jac in as a straight replacement with very limited preparation, I thought he was good.”

Gatland’s much-changed side struggled throughout for control and fluency in the contest, the highlight of which was Portugal’s attacking flair.

Wing Louis Rees-Zammit, captain Dewi Lake, Morgan and Faletau scored tries, while Leigh Halfpenny kicked three conversions and Sam Costelow landed one, yet a vast improvement will be required against Australia in Lyon next weekend.

Portugal gave as good as they got for large parts of the game and they undoubtedly deserved more than flanker Nicolas Martins’ try and a Samuel Marques penalty.

Their exciting back division stretched Wales’ defence in all directions, although wing Vincent Pinto blotted the copybook when he was red-carded late in the game following a bunker review after his boot caught Josh Adams in the face.

Asked if he was surprised by Portugal’s physicality, Lake said: “No, I don’t think we were surprised as we had done our homework on the team that we were facing.

“We understood what they were going to bring to the table from a physicality standpoint. Gats spoke in the week about them being a mini-Fiji in terms of an off-load game.

“They’ve got players who want to snipe and want to run. In terms of physicality, we won that battle over 80 minutes.”

Portugal lost 102-11 when they last played Wales in 1994, although captain Tomas Appleton struggled to mask his disappointment at the latest outcome.

“We really wanted to win this game. We really worked hard for that,” Appleton said.

“We lost many areas of the game, we didn’t have a solid scrum, we made mistakes in the backs and when we are playing at this level we get penalised and we suffer with those mistakes.

“We couldn’t quite show the rugby that we have, the good level of fast rugby we can play, and at the end of the day we are frustrated.

“We are not here to just be a presence, we are here to compete and win. When you are playing at this level you have to be cool-headed, and I think a lot of times we made bad decisions.”

Warren Gatland has underlined Wales’ desire to go one better than in three previous Rugby World Cup campaigns and reach the final.

They were semi-finalists in 1987, and then twice under Gatland – 2011 and 2019 – bowing out at that stage on each occasion.

A bonus-point victory over Pool C rivals Fiji last weekend sent Wales off and running, and if they repeat the feat against Portugal on Saturday it would further strengthen quarter-final ambitions.

Australia and Georgia still await, before a possible last-eight appointment with England or Argentina in Marseille next month.

“We have always been confident in the past about World Cups and the opportunity to get the team together for an extended period,” Wales head coach Gatland said.

“We think that we have done well in previous World Cups and would like to get to a final of a World Cup.

“I stated beforehand don’t write us off and that this team is capable of doing something special, and I still believe that.

“Part of the key themes and key message before this World Cup was to make sure we are a hard team to beat, and if we are a hard team to beat then things can happen for you.

“The first priority is to be a really tough team to beat, and if we do that and get things right and our preparation is good and we don’t pick up too many injuries, then there is no reason why we can’t continue to progress a long way into this tournament. That is the plan.”

Portugal are next up, with Gatland making 13 changes to the team that started against Fiji, retaining only wing Louis Rees-Zammit and number eight Taulupe Faletau.

The countries have met just once before – a World Cup qualifier in Lisbon 29 years ago that Wales won 102-11 – with Portugal making a first appearance in the tournament’s pool stage since 2007.

Gatland added: “From past experience with Taulupe, he is a player that gets better with more game-time.

“He hasn’t had a lot of rugby, didn’t play any warm-up games, so it’s just backing him up.

“With Louis, it’s the same sort of situation. He has been fantastic in the last five or six weeks, and I just want to keep him playing as well.

“They (Portugal) are kind of a similar version of Fiji. They play a lot of rugby, they’ve got some exciting players, they like to move the ball around, so we are kind of prepared almost in the same way we prepared against Fiji.

“I thought from a neutral last week if you were watching the games, it (Wales against Fiji) was probably the most exciting game of the weekend in terms of the rugby that was played.

“It wasn’t great being a coach sitting in the box in the last 10 minutes, I can promise you that, but hopefully we can produce another great game of rugby.”

Fiji almost wiped out an 18-point deficit during a frantic final quarter in Bordeaux, while centre Semi Radradra couldn’t gather a pass in the dying seconds that might have led to him scoring a match-winning try.

Wales, though, held on in nerve-shredding fashion to claim a victory that has installed them in many quarters as favourites to win their group.

“We were delighted with the win, delighted with the preparation, everything was going brilliantly for 60-odd minutes with the scoreline. And typical Fiji, they get a bit of a sniff and they came back at us really strong in the last period,” Gatland said.

“That game is done and dealt with, it is past us now and the focus is on Portugal. Hopefully we will do a good job on Saturday and then move on to Australia next week.

“It is a great opportunity for players on Saturday to stake a claim, and if they go out there and someone has a great performance then they are definitely in contention. That’s the way I look at it.”

Warren Gatland reflected on a “pretty significant” victory for his team after Wales brought the Rugby World Cup quarter-finals within sight by beating Fiji 32-26 at Stade de Bordeaux.

Wales held their nerve in a frantic and pulsating Pool C clash. It was tense throughout, especially when Fiji scored twice in the last seven minutes and centre Semi Radradra knocked on close to the line in the game’s last play.

At 32-14 ahead deep inside the final quarter, Wales looked home and dry, but Fiji had other ideas.

Asked if he had his heart in his mouth during the closing stages, Gatland said: “Absolutely. With seven minutes to go I wondered about just going down to the changing rooms and waiting until the final whistle.

“I am absolutely delighted with the result. I think it is pretty significant for us.

“With 65 minutes on the clock we were comfortable, and we needed to control that. We gave away some unnecessary penalties, lost a little bit of composure.

“We’ve always been a team that builds on confidence and get better in tournaments. So that is exciting.

“I was pretty frustrated and angry about the last period of the game, but it’s about being honest and making sure we learn from it.

“I am delighted with the win, but we made it a lot harder for ourselves than we needed to, made some dumb decisions in the last 15 minutes.

“We changed a few things at half-time. We really wanted to go for them up front in terms of taking it out of their legs.

“A few of their players looked a bit tired and we looked in control, but typical Fiji – they never say die, get a couple of sniffs of a try and come back at you.”

Wales ultimately prevailed through tries from Josh Adams, George North, Louis Rees-Zammit and Elliot Dee, with fly-half Dan Biggar adding two penalties and three conversions in a bonus-point success.

Fiji claimed tries through captain Waisea Nayacalevu, flanker Lekima Tagitagivalu and replacements Josua Tuisova and Mesake Doge – Frank Lomani converted two and Teti Tela also added a conversion – yet Wales gained the victory they craved ahead of remaining Pool C appointments with Portugal, Australia and Georgia.

Wales were close to a staggering 250 tackles in the game, and Biggar said: “It was absolutely exhausting. The last 10 minutes felt like the clock never moved.

“We put everything into it, Fiji came strong at the end, but I am really thrilled for this group of players that we managed to see it through because the work we’ve put in over the past few months has just been incredible.

“It puts us in such a good position in the group. I am just absolutely drained.”

Captain Jac Morgan said: “We have that mentality of never giving up, always working hard for each other.

“We’ve been through a couple of camps with some tough training over the past couple of weeks, and it has really brought the boys close as you saw.”

Fiji took two losing bonus points from the game, which might prove critical in terms of the group’s finishing places and race for a last-eight spot.

Head coach Simon Raiwalui said: “We had our opportunities. We weren’t clinical enough. There were a couple of disallowed tries, and we had a chance at the end.

“We weren’t clinical enough to finish off, and we move on to Australia next week.

“We made mistakes at critical moments, and we had to chase it at the end. It was a very good Welsh team.”

Corey Domachowski believes that Wales can reap the rewards from “15 weeks of hell” in their Rugby World Cup campaign.

The Cardiff prop is a Test rugby newcomer, making his debut against warm-up opponents England last month.

His impact was sufficient for Wales head coach Warren Gatland to select him not only in the final World Cup squad, but also hand him a place among the matchday 23 to face opening World Cup opponents Fiji on Sunday.

Wales have moved south from their Versailles training base to the first match venue of Bordeaux.

They were greeted by temperatures of 35 degrees as the heat in France shows no sign of relenting, and even though Sunday’s encounter does not start until 9pm local time, it is set to be only eight degrees cooler.

Wales, though, are fully prepared, with the players being put through their paces at punishing pre-World Cup camps in Switzerland and Turkey during a training phase that began in late May.

“We’ve trained hard for this,” Domachowski said.

“We had 15 weeks of hell, to be honest. It has been absolutely savage.

“And I genuinely think if we put what we’ve done on the training field on to the playing field, then we are going to be a tough team to beat.

“That’s something ‘Gats’ and the other coaches have drilled into us. We are not going to worry about any opposition. We know we have got quality in the squad.

“There is a lot of competition in that squad, and whoever goes on the field will give everything they’ve got for that jersey.”

Domachowski has already made a World Cup impression, leading the Wales players in a rendition of the Welsh hymn Calon Lan during the squad’s World Cup welcome ceremony in Versailles.

“As you can tell, I am a bit of a character, so ‘Nugget’ (team manager Martyn Williams) came up to me and asked me if I would lead it,” Domachowski added.

“So I said yes, and the boys were winding me up saying I could go on my own at first, but to be fair to ‘Gats’ he said we would all do it together.

“So I had to just lead it up, we had a couple of lessons and it went well.”

Warren Gatland says that Wales are “in a good place” as they prepare to launch their Rugby World Cup challenge against Fiji.

Gatland, taking charge of his fourth World Cup as Wales head coach, has been boosted by the return to fitness of 100-cap number eight Taulupe Faletau.

He will make his first Wales appearance since last season’s Six Nations after recovering from a calf muscle problem that sidelined him for Wales’ three-Test warm-up schedule.

Faletau goes straight into the starting line-up, packing down alongside back-row colleagues Aaron Wainwright and skipper Jac Morgan.

“We’ve had some good clarity about what we want to achieve and the way we want to play on the weekend,” Gatland said.

“The boys are looking sharp, there is a great environment in this group – players working for each other, enjoying each other’s company.

“We are in a good place and can’t wait to get out there and get our Rugby World Cup campaign under way.”

While Faletau returns, though, hooker and Morgan’s co-captain Dewi Lake does not make the matchday 23.

The Ospreys hooker suffered a knee injury during Wales’ encounter against England at Twickenham last month, and Gatland added: “The medical team has done a fantastic job getting Dewi back to full fitness.

“He has not had as much training under his belt as the other hookers since he picked up that knock to his knee, so Ryan Elias and Elliot Dee are selected for us for this game.”

Elias starts, and there are also opportunities for the likes of centre Nick Tompkins and scrum-half Gareth Davies.

Flanker Tommy Reffell, meanwhile, has been named among the replacements, being passed fit after missing training on Wednesday due to a knock.

There are five World Cup debutants in Gatland’s starting line-up and it will be the fifth successive World Cup where Wales and Fiji meet.

Centre George North joins a select group of Welsh players to feature in four World Cups, emulating Alun Wyn Jones, Stephen Jones and Gethin Jenkins.

Scarlets number nine Davies has won Gatland’s starting vote ahead of Tomos Williams as he clocks up World Cup number three.

“Twelve months ago I probably wouldn’t have thought I would be involved in the first game of a World Cup, but anything can happen in rugby, as we all know.” Davies said.

“I have worked extremely hard over the last year to work myself into contention, and hopefully I can show that on Sunday.

“Playing in a World Cup is the pinnacle. We have a few young guys in the squad – they are really excited about it – and plenty of experience.

“Fiji are going to be a very tough team to beat, but it is a challenge we are looking forward to.”

Since being dumped out of the World Cup by Fiji 16 years ago in Nantes, Wales have reeled off three successive wins.

Sunday’s encounter is huge in the context of a group where Australia and ever-improving Georgia will also be vying for qualification.