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Steve Tandy addressed the press this morning ahead of his first Test match as Wales head coach this Sunday against Argentina. He has made seven changes to the side which beat Japan in Kobe over the summer, with the selection of Saracens loosehead Rhys Carré in the starting XV the big talking point, along with naming Louis Rees-Zammit on the bench. There will also be a first cap for Leicester Tigers backrower Olly Cracknell who is on the replacements bench. This is what Tandy had to say. How do you feel before this first test? "Yeah it's exciting. I'm excited to see the boys go out and play. "From a personal perspective having my first time in the Principality here wearing three feathers, leading the team which is amazing. "So for me it's just excitement, can't wait to see the boys get out there on Sunday and put a performance in." Rhys Carré , wasn't selected by your predecessor. Why is he ready now? "Look, I think you've got a look at his performances, what he's been doing in the club game, playing for a big club like Saracens. "He's played a lot of minutes and been playing really well. "I've had lots of conversations with Rhys. "Seeing Rhys coming into the camp as well, he's trained really well, as have the other looseheads - Nicky Smith and Gareth Thomas. Sign up to Inside Welsh rugby on Substack to get exclusive news stories and insight from behind the scenes in Welsh rugby. "Danny (Southworth) as well has brought something extra to it too, so we've got four really good looseheads. "But with Rhys, I think his performance with Saracens and having that ability to start him I think against Argentina is just exciting for us and for Rhys." His power game will help considering what you are up against this weekend? "Yes, there's some big boys out there. "But again, he's doing it week in week out in a great league, so for us again some of his ball carrying, what he's bringing to Saracens' game I'm sure he's going to transfer that on Sunday." What can Olly Cracknell bring off the bench? "I think his carrying ability. "He hasn't got a lot of Test match experience, but he's got a lot of experience. "He's played a lot of minutes for Leicester and played in some massive games as well. "They're going to the latter end of tournaments as well. So I think Olly, just to see him come into camp, the way he trains, super consistent. "And again, he's a big, tough, aggressive guy as well." Was there a temptation to start Louis Rees-Zammit? "Yeah, I think there's always a temptation to start someone like Zammo, but we've got to do what's right by him and the group. "For Zammo, in total he's probably played two games since he's come back and then he's had an injury. "It's his first full training week this week which has been awesome. "He's been doing some running and he's been ticking the boxes in sort of lots of the physical aspects but then you've got Tommy (Rogers) and Josh Adams who've trained really really well. "I thought Tommy up in the Sharks (Sharks v Scarlets ) was excellent as well. "We've got two boys who are match fit as well so I think as well it gives us something. "Bringing Zammo off the bench I think does add a massive opportunity to add impact to the game as well." A lot of column inches are written about Rees-Zammit because he's a match winner? "You've seen it before he went to American Football. "You see, I was watching moments in that Saracens game when he did get injured. "The power, he's bigger and he's faster than he was before. "So I think it's an amazing opportunity for us to get him on the park. "And then obviously as well, you look at Tom (Rogers), he played really well against the Sharks and then Josh, the way he's led and the way he's been playing for Cardiff has been outstanding too." A proud day for Tonmawr RFC as well. How many buses are coming up from the club? "Yeah, I think they're up to seven. It's only seven but it's a small village in fairness. "There's a block of the stand they've got. "It's the same thing for all the boys when you talk to them you represent more than yourself and I think that's where all the help and support we've had through my community, my club, my family, Karen (wife) and the girls. "The support from my village, and my family still live there, has been amazing. "When you represent your nation, you represent them more than yourself and that's the power of it all. "I think that's the exciting bit and I'm really emotional as well. "You see the support and what it means to others for you to go and represent your country. So yeah, it's going to be a big day for Tonmawr but it's going to be a big day for us and more importantly the team. "It's exciting times." International rugby passed you by as a player. What was that like for you? "I spoke to the boys on our first day. As a kid the only thing I ever wanted to do was play for Wales. "That's the only thing I ever wanted to do. I always had a rugby ball in my hand and that leads me back to my roots around Tonmawr. "That community feel. The first coach I had created an energy and wanted to be there and I think that transfers to my coaching and what I do as a coach. "International rugby passed me by but I loved every minute of my career and I think hopefully that has helped me become a coach because you want to give everything you can to these players to fulfil their dreams of and ultimately become better players. "So that's where I see it. And again, I loved my time playing for Neath, Ospreys , Tonmawr. "I had such an amazing time. Obviously I would have loved to play for Wales, but that wasn't what was meant to be for me. "But I think the support I had and also the challenges I've had as a player, whether it might not be fast enough or tall enough or whatever, but it was great. "And I think that I generally think when I'm coaching or selecting and things like that, you see it from a whole different perspective and when I speak to the boys about how much it means you see what you would love to have. "When we named the team on Monday and Olly (Cracknell) was announced you see the emotion. "I felt emotional seeing someone who's gone on such a journey to get that opportunity later on in his career. "I think it's an amazing story." Has it added to your enthusiasm coming into the role that this is the first time you are representing Wales for the first time? "Yeah, I think most kids, no matter what it is, you want to represent your nation. "First of all, you pick up the game for fun because you love it and I think that is the biggest part of it and we want to create fun in international rugby as well. "I think my enthusiasm has always been to try and help people and to make them better. As a coach it's probably passed down to me from some of the coaches I've had as well. I think you want to be the best you can be and represent the highest honours. "It's a massive privilege for me as a coach to have the opportunity to do that." Wales have been criticised in recent times of not crossing the gain line and stopping other teams doing it. This is a similar squad so what can you do to fix that? "I think for me it's how we do it together. "We can't change our physical attributes but we have got some big aggressive boys as well. "The mindset of our group is outstanding to see where they are at and where they will put their bodies to. It's probably about tweaking things. "How can we do it in pairs rather than singles so there is a little bit of adaptation. "The one thing with the boys is you know what it means to play for Wales and where they are going to go physically and again there will be bigger nations than us. "But also we've got to adapt the game that suits our physicality, our strengths and how we want to go and play, not just in a defensive lens but also when we've got the ball or when we transfer. We've got to play to our strengths and how we see our physical strengths too." You've gone for smaller players at 12 (Ben Thomas) and six (Alex Mann) when you had bigger alternatives. Was it tempting to pick the biggest side you've got? "I think so and I think it's the style we want to go down. "Ben (Thomas), Joe (Hawkins) and Nick (Tompkins) they've all got real qualities. "Ben has played really well. He is that second pair of hands, he's got a really good attacking kicking game as well so he can support Dan and how we see the game, how we can potentially get the ball to the wider boys and find the edges. "With Manny (Alex Mann) I think the way he has been playing for Cardiff both sides of the ball and the way he's come into training (has impressed). "He might be a little bit smaller than most but the speed the energy that he brings to training and in games for Cardiff has been exceptional. "He brings lineout ability too. You see the game now is evolving as well, lots of kick chase, and he's got that ability, his speed and his repeatability has been huge. "I think other boys can do similar things for us, but I think if we just focus on trying to pick the biggest men then is that necessarily going to suit how we want to play on Sunday? "It's always challenging playing big nations like Argentina but I think what we've always spoken about as a group as well is making sure we're looking ourselves in the mirror with regards what we can bring to games. "We've got to be aware of what Argentina can bring, but we've got to play to our strengths too." A chance for Dan Edwards to nail down the number 10 shirt? "It's a pretty big shirt to fill! "But in fairness, I know it's probably generic but the three tens that have come in have been brilliant. I think the way they've gone about it, they're supporting each other, challenging each other. "It's been great to have that sort of competition and the selection in that area was great for us as coaches because I don't think it was a straight up decision because I think Callum's been playing really well, Jared offers something completely different as well so that's exciting for us. "I thought for such a young man, the pressure around that second Test in Japan, then I think how he's come back and just kept kicking on with the Osprey's has been excellent. "He's mature for a young man and he's got a bit of cheek about him as well. So I think that is needed in a 10 spot. So yeah, Dan's got that first opportunity, but the other two guys are, have been outstanding in the training environment too." Does he have confidence to brush mistakes off? "Yeah, I think it's an important quality, in particular for a 10, but I think it's an important quality for all our boys and I think it's for any team. "The game is full of imperfections and I know everyone wants it to be perfect and we see it from our seats or sofas and we think we can play it the way it is but I think the best players brush it off really quickly and get to the next part of the game. "Argentina are going to have moments, we're going to make mistakes but ultimately we want to put the product we want to put out there in the field." How do you get the best out of Rhys Carre? "I think everyone's played a part and I think Rhys has played his own part too in around putting performances in. "He's come into the environment, he's been excellent. We're talking to him about bringing his strengths as well. "I think a lot of times I think we can always focus on what people can't do but ultimately we can see what Rhys can do and at the end of the day he has played really, really well for Saracens which for me is first and foremost. "It's not just about picking him because he's a big ball carrier. "He's got to be performing, so for us he's been performing really well and what's been really positive for us is the way he's been in the environment meetings, contributing on the training field. "His work has been outstanding and at the end of the day the past is in the past, the only thing we can focus on is the here and now. "Whenever I've spoken to him he's been really positive. "We're always having big connections around how the team environment is. There's lots of that going on and it's been very very positive. "I can't wait to see Rhys go out there on Sunday and put that performance in." Follow all of our channels to ensure you stay up to date with the latest Welsh rugby news. Sign up to our free daily newsletter here and our WhatsApp channel here for all the breaking news. You can also follow us on social media on our X account , Facebook , Instagram and TikTok. For more exclusive stories and in-depth analysis, you can sign up for the Inside Welsh Rugby substack newsletter here .
