Wales expect home clean sweep against Japan, All Blacks and Australia as World Cup countdown begins

Wales prop Nicky Smith has declared that his side expect to win every home game this autumn, including fixtures against New Zealand and Australia, as the squad frames the Nations Championship campaign as the opening chapter of their 2025 Rugby World Cup preparation.

Smith, 32, is set to earn his 67th cap when Wales host Japan in Cardiff this weekend, the first of three successive home Tests that also feature the All Blacks and the Wallabies. Wales’ World Cup campaign opens against Zimbabwe in Adelaide in just over 11 months.

“In this group we’re expected to win all the home games,” Smith said. “I think that’s the expectation of the team now. We understand the challenges of that and we’ve got Japan, New Zealand and Australia, all tough games in their own right.”

Smith is clear about the broader objective. “We want to go into that World Cup with great momentum, and the autumn is a brilliant starting point for that. Having a positive autumn really puts us in a good stride — Six Nations, World Cup camp, warm-up games, and then that first group game in Australia. We want to be going in full of momentum, full of positivity about our performances and where we are as a team.”

The Sale loosehead, who swapped Leicester for the Salford club this summer, was part of the Wales squad that reached the semi-finals under Warren Gatland at the 2019 World Cup. He is one of 14 England-based players in Steve Tandy’s Nations Championship squad, alongside Montpellier lock Adam Beard.

Smith was full of praise for fellow Welsh exiles making an impact in the Gallagher Premiership. Captain Dewi Lake and flanker Jac Morgan left the Ospreys for Gloucester, while number eight Aaron Wainwright has played a key role in Leicester’s rise to the top of the table since departing the Dragons.

“The Welsh boys are doing Wales proud,” Smith said. “A lot of boys who haven’t played in the Prem before have stepped up and you’d swear they’ve been there for years. Dewi, Jac and Aaron are world-class players and playing for good teams — it’s a recipe for them to play on a big stage, and they’ve been brilliant.”

Wales arrive at the autumn Tests with defensive frailties to address after their summer Nations Championship campaign produced one win and two defeats. They conceded 16 tries and missed 106 tackles across Tests in Argentina and South Africa following an opening win over Fiji in Cardiff.

Defence coach Peter Murchie acknowledged the work ahead. “From my side in the summer, we can be much better. I wasn’t happy with the defence overall and I think there’s much more in us. We want to be extremely tough to break down and a tough team to play against.”