The latest rugby news from Wales and around the worldRegan Grace of Wales celebrates scoring a try for Wales(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency Ltd)

These are your headlines on the afternoon of Friday, November 21.

‘Special’ Regan Grace to play on trial for Sale

Wales dual-code winger Regan Grace will make his first appearance since March after being named as a trialist for Sale Sharks in the Premiership Rugby Cup this weekend.

The 28-year-old has been without a club since leaving Cardiff at the end of last season but has spent the summer training with Sale in a bid to reignite his rugby union career.

While he has not been offered a contract, the Sharks have handed him a chance to impress in Saturday’s clash against his former club Bath, with a heavily-rotated side set to take the field.

Grace arrived in union after a glittering rugby league career with St Helens, where he scored almost 100 tries, won three Super League Grand Finals and lifted the Challenge Cup before brief spells at Racing 92, Bath and Cardiff.

Sale kicking coach Warren Spragg said the club had been impressed with the Welshman’s attitude and ability.

“Regan’s a great lad and we’ve really enjoyed having him around since the summer,” he said.

“There’s a special player in there – you don’t score that many Super League tries without having something about you.”

Barrett: We don’t want to get ‘smacked in face’ by Wales

New Zealand captain Scott Barrett says the All Blacks don’t want to get “smacked in the face” by Wales on Saturday after they made a raft of changes.

With Wales having only won two Test matches since the start of 2024, few would give Steve Tandy’s side much hope of ending the 72-year wait to beat the All Blacks.

New Zealand find themselves in a different place all together – with the pressure on after defeat by England last week.

“Everyone has been telling us that,” said Barrett when asked about the pressure on the two teams. “The last thing we want to do is turn up tomorrow and get smacked in the face by a Wales team that would desperately love to beat us.

“We’ve prepared accordingly, given them that much respect. What a place to play the last Test match of the year.

“I don’t think it’s our worst team or our second team. I think it’s a team that has been selected to do a job.

“It’s been a brutal tour. I think the guys stepping in have been given an opportunity and will bring plenty of energy.”

Doris: A lot riding on Ireland’s clash with Springboks

By Edward Elliot, PA, Dublin

Captain Caelan Doris admits the success of Ireland’s autumn campaign hinges on Saturday’s clash with back-to-back world champions South Africa.

Andy Farrell’s men began the month with an underwhelming defeat by New Zealand in Chicago before registering comfortable Dublin victories over Japan and Australia.

South Africa’s sole victory over Ireland in the past five meetings came in the opening Test of a 1-1 series draw on home soil in the summer of 2024.

Yet the Springboks sit top of the Test rankings and are viewed as favourites by bookmakers.

“There’s definitely a rivalry there,” said Doris. “There’s a strong understanding of how we both want to play the game.

“We’ve had some good results; they’ve beaten us over there in 2024. There’s a lot on the line tomorrow, that’s the feeling anyway and the lads are very excited about it.

“I think probably the success of this November hinges a little bit on our performance this weekend. Momentum has built nicely as the weeks have gone on but this is the real test now so there’s a lot of excitement for it.

“It’s a privilege to be involved in this game.”

Ireland are bidding for a fourth successive home win over South Africa following Aviva Stadium victories in 2014, 2017 and 2022.

The Springboks also suffered a 13-8 pool-stage defeat by Farrell’s team en route to retaining the World Cup in 2023.

Rassie Erasmus’s side have won 21 of 25 Test matches since lifting the Webb Ellis Cup two years ago.

“We’re not concerned with the external noise around that (Ireland being viewed as underdogs),” said Doris.

“There’s a good feeling in camp, there’s excitement about this game, there’s the awareness it’s going to be a proper challenge and we’re going to need to be at out best physically more than anything.

“But there’s definitely belief that we can do the job.”

Zander Fagerson returns for Scotland after months out

By Anthony Brown, PA

Zander Fagerson will make his first appearance in more than seven months after being selected to start Scotland’s final autumn Test against Tonga.

The Glasgow tighthead has been sidelined since April due to a combination of calf and knee injuries, but will be part of an experienced front row alongside fellow prop Rory Sutherland and hooker George Turner, who will win his 50th cap.

Captain Sione Tuipulotu is the only player to retain his place in the starting XV from last weekend’s defeat by Argentina as Gregor Townsend freshens up his squad.

Joint record try-scorer Duhan van der Merwe returns after being dropped for the last two Tests against New Zealand and the Pumas, with Kyle Rowe on the other wing and Tom Jordan at full-back.

Saracens fly-half Fergus Burke will win his third cap in place of Finn Russell, who drops out of the squad altogether.

In the back row, Magnus Bradbury will make his first start for three and a half years in the number eight jersey while flankers Andy Onyeama-Christie and Jamie Ritchie are handed their first appearances of the autumn.

Tonga debutant to break record

Tonga are set to field the oldest debutant in major Test rugby history when former Australia lock Sitaleki Timani runs out at Murrayfield to face Scotland on Sunday.

Timani, who earned 18 Wallabies caps between 2011 and 2013, has been named on the Tonga bench and is poised for his first appearance for the nation of his birth at the age of 39 years and 73 days.

While three players have debuted at an older age, those caps came in lower-tier fixtures, making Timani the oldest player to debut for one of rugby’s leading nations.

The second-row comes from a family steeped in international rugby and has enjoyed a globetrotting career. After spells with three Super Rugby sides, he moved to France, racking up almost 150 Top 14 matches for Clermont, Stade Français, Toulon and Brive. He now plays for Carcassonne in the French ProD2.

Tonga arrive in Edinburgh with one of the most experienced squads in world rugby. Captain Ben Tameifuna, the 34-year-old Bordeaux giant, leads a group in which not a single player is aged 25 or under.

Fellow prop Siegfried Fisi’ihoi is 38, with Siosiua Moala – brother of ex-All Black George – and scrum-half Sonatane Takulua also among the veterans.

Takulua will link up at half-back with Moana Pasifika’s Pat Pellegrini, who became a breakout star at last year’s Rugby World Cup. Pellegrini has been a key figure for Tonga in 2024, scoring nearly half of their points this year, including a hat-trick in their Pacific Nations Cup win over Canada.

Tonga face Scotland at Murrayfield on Sunday afternoon.

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