Wales rugby: Alex Cuthbert and Johnny Williams to get late World Cup chance
- Published
Alex Cuthbert is back in Wales contention having missed the latter stages of the 2023 Six Nations through injury
Alex Cuthbert and Johnny Williams are set to be handed a late chance to claim a World Cup place when Wales face South Africa on Saturday (15:15 BST).
Neither player featured in the back-to-back warm-up games against England.
Scarlets centre Williams injured his calf during the training camp in Switzerland while Ospreys wing Cuthbert has spent the summer in Wales.
Both are available to face the Springboks in Cardiff, though Dewi Lake and Taine Plumtree remain doubts.
Taine Basham could also be available for Wales' warm-up match despite failing a head injury assessment following the red card tackle by England captain Owen Farrell.
The Dragons flanker's injury was not confirmed as a concussion, meaning he can play at the Principality Stadium.
Hooker Lake (knee) and back-row Plumtree (shoulder) are expected to discover the extent of the injuries on Tuesday following scans, before Warren Gatland names his World Cup squad next Monday.
"You're damned if you do and damned it you don't when it comes to picking players for these [warm-up] games," said King.
"You need to be battle-hardened going into the World Cup but unfortunately injuries happen so we're keeping our fingers crossed for those two guys that they're not too bad
"It's been great to see Cuthy and Johnny back training. You can lose a couple and gain a couple but its all about building the depth of squad.
"It has been great to test people under the stress of Test matches and preparing ourselves for what's to come."
Scarlets centre Johnny Williams has five international caps
Lock Dafydd Jenkins and hooker Ryan Elias are expected to be out for a month while Taulupe Faletau and Gareth Anscombe have both been kept out of action as they try to recover in time for France.
France fly-half Romain Ntamack and England scrum-half Jack van Poortvliet have both been ruled out of the World Cup having suffered injuries at the weekend.
One Wales player who knows how that feels is Dan Lydiate, who missed the 2019 World Cup through injury but now has his sights set on being the oldest member of the Wales squad at what would be his third tournament.
"It's getting to the business-end of pre-season now but you can't look too far ahead," said the 35-year-old flanker.
"You take nothing for granted. You know you're only one injury away from not being involved or being out for a long time, as I know, so now it's all about this big game on the weekend - and selection soon after that.
"There is a lot of edginess and tension around camp at the moment but if there wasn't, then you probably shouldn't be here because going to a World Cup is the main goal.
"I've had my fair share of injuries, but if you go into a game thinking about getting injured then you are probably not in the right headspace to be taking to the field.
"As soon as the whistle goes, you have got to fly into it because if you don't that's when you are more likely to pick up injuries.
"Saturday is the last opportunity for Gats (Gatland) to see what you are about and what you can do, and if you are on the periphery, then you can certainly make a statement, and vice-versa."
Twickenham lessons
Gatland hinted that some players may have damaged their selection chances after Wales threw away a 17-9 lead against England on Saturday.
Wales built an eight-point advantage, with England at one point down to 12 men with Owen Farrell, Ellis Genge and Freddie Steward off the pitch.
But assistant coach King said: "The review this morning was a real learning experience but it's not an individual thing. It's about what to do collectively in certain situations and being better.
"The guys have been brilliant over the last 13 weeks and we're not going to let 14 minutes of rugby define us.
"But there was a lot of frustration that we didn't finish the job after putting ourselves in a winning position.
"We dealt with everything that was thrown at us and scored some good tries. We had been written off beforehand when the teams were announced but I know the strength of this squad, especially mentally."