Injury Forces Tomos Williams Out of Wales Autumn Series, Kieran Hardy Called Up

Scrum-halves Kieran Hardy and Tomos Williams were members of the Wales squad that secured the 2021 Six Nations title. The upcoming Autumn Nations Series fixture between Wales and Australia is scheduled for Sunday, 17 November, at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, with kick-off at 16:10 GMT. Coverage will be available live on S4C, BBC Radio Wales, Radio Cymru, and via live text and commentary on the BBC Sport website and app. Gloucester scrum-half Tomos Williams has been withdrawn from the remainder of Wales’ autumn series due to injury. Ospreys number nine Kieran Hardy has been named as his replacement in the squad. Williams sustained a shoulder injury during Sunday’s 24-19 loss to Fiji. The 29-year-old had previously been declared unavailable for Sunday’s match against Australia, and his absence has now been confirmed for the game against South Africa on 23 November. Cardiff scrum-half Ellis Bevan is set to start against Australia on Sunday, while Rhodri Williams has been included on the replacements bench. Should Dragons number nine Williams participate in the match, he would establish a new record for the longest interval between appearances for Wales. The current record is held by Newport hooker Bunner Travers, who earned his eighth cap against Ireland in March 1939 and his ninth against England in January 1949. Williams’ return would exceed this gap by 10 months. Additionally, Cardiff wing Mason Grady withdrew from the Wales squad earlier this week, having damaged his ankle in the defeat by Fiji. Warren Gatland’s Wales team has not secured a Test victory since their win against Georgia during the World Cup pool stage in Nantes, which occurred over 13 months ago. A further defeat for Wales would result in an unprecedented streak of 11 consecutive international losses, surpassing their previous record for worst results sequence, established under Gatland’s compatriot, New Zealander Steve Hansen, in 2002 and 2003. The forwards in the squad are: Nicky Smith, Gareth Thomas, Kemsley Mathias, Ryan Elias, Dewi Lake, Evan Lloyd, Henry Thomas, Keiron Assiratti, Archie Griffin, Freddie Thomas, Christ Tshiunza, Ben Carter, Will Rowlands, Adam Beard, Taine Plumtree, James Botham, Jac Morgan, Tommy Reffell, Aaron Wainwright. The backs are: Kieran Hardy, Rhodri Williams, Ellis Bevan, Sam Costelow, Gareth Anscombe, Ben Thomas, Nick Tompkins, Max Llewellyn, Eddie James, Owen Watkin, Blair Murray, Rio Dyer, Josh Hathaway, Tom Rogers, Cameron Winnett.