Wales, last year's Grand Slam winners, carry the precarious tag as favourites to win a successive Six Nations Championship title. We take a look at the Welsh arsenal and previews their gruelling task ahead.

Rarely has a team, in this tournament, lived up to their branding as title favourites, nor is winning back-to-back titles commonplace. Wales might be the form team in Europe at present, but with just two scheduled home games and signs of resurgence from the other home nations, Wales will need to raise the bar even further.

Coach Warren Gatland has rotated his squad around an experienced core set of players, with the  'pleasant' headache of trying to manage some of Wales' new talented recruits.

The opening Test on February 8 against Scotland should provide the marker for where Gatland's team is at - after coming off a relatively indifferent autumn period. Wales have only won two out of 11 Test matches at Murrayfield, thus a strong start will be vital.

Strengths & Weaknesses: Wales have a host of threatening game-breakers in their fleet. On the wings, Gatland is blessed with the likes of 2008 IRB Player of the Year, Shane Williams and new boy Leigh Halfpenny, while stalwart Jamie Roberts or the mercurial Gavin Henson could make up a world class midfield.

Wales attacking prowess extends to the forwards, and there's no doubt Andy Powell will be gaining metres for his side with more of his bustling surges. The Welsh also have quality locks, although they could come unstuck with their mediocre front row against the scrumming giants of Scotland and England.

Flank Jonathan Thomas is a doubtful starter for the opening Tests after a menacing injury period, although Gatland may benefit from the return of veteran wing, Mark Jones, who is recovering well from surgery.

First-choice scrumhalf Gareth Cooper has also fallen prey to injury, but with Dwayne Peel drafted back into the side, there's unlikely to be problems at halfback.

Coach & Captain: Gatland is undoubtedly one of the most successful coaches of the modern era, and took Wales to their 10th Grand Slam title within months of his appointment in December 2007. Gatland has also been appointed as forwards coach for Ian McGeechan's British and Irish Lions tour to South Africa this year. 

After coaching Premiership champs London Wasps, as well as a tenure as Ireland national coach, the well-travelled New Zealander certainly knows the arena of European rugby better than most, whilst adding his Southern hemisphere expertise.

His captain, Ryan Jones, is another magnificent leader who has been named as the front-runner to take the Lions captaincy. Jones was handed the skipper duties when Gatland took the helm, thus the pair have enjoyed a successful relationship right from the start.

Lions to watch: With Wales being the in-form team, and the make-up of the Lions backroom staff being predominantly Welsh (although one hopes that wouldn't be as decisive), Wales has a plethora of Lions candidates.

In the backs, Shane Williams, Lee Byrne, Gavin Henson, Jamie Roberts, Dwayne Peel, Stephen Jones and even Leigh Halfpenny are likely candidates, while Williams, Henson, Stephen Jones, Peel or Cooper could be in line for their second Lions call-up after featuring in the New Zealand tour of 2005.

In the forwards, Ryan Jones is a near guarantee while it would be nice to see Adam Jones, Alun Wyn-Jones and Andy Powell get a shout. Gethin Jenkins and Martyn Williams could be in for their second Lions season while the wildcard could go to the versatile front row forward, John Yapp.

2008 Position:  Winners - W5 L0 - 10 pts 

Home Venue:  Millennium Stadium, Cardiff

iafrica.com Prediction: Wales have been tagged as favourites for a reason, and certainly appear to have the right balance of youth and experience. Unfortunately for the fans, the Welsh only play two home Tests this year and could well come unstuck either at Murrayfield or the Stade de France. Some have touted Wales to claim successive Grand Slams, which is a big ask. Consecutive Six Nations title however sounds more realistic and should still be theirs for the taking. 

Wales squad:

Forwards: Gethin Jenkins, John Yapp, Adam Jones, Rhys Thomas, Matthew Rees, Huw Bennett, Ian Gough, Alun Wyn Jones, Luke Charteris, Bradley Davies, Ryan Jones (captain), Jonathan Thomas, Dafydd Jones, Andy Powell, Martyn Williams, Robin Sowden-Taylor.

Backs: Mike Phillips, Gareth Cooper, Dwayne Peel, Stephen Jones, James Hook, Gavin Henson, Andrew Bishop, Jamie Roberts, Tom Shanklin, Shane Williams, Leigh Halfpenny, Mark Jones, Lee Byrne.
 
Schedule:

Sun, Feb 8 Scotland v Wales 15.00 (15.00), Murrayfield 
Sat, Feb 14 Wales v England 17.30 (17.30), Millennium Stadium  
Fri, Feb 27 France v Wales 21.00 (20.00 GMT) Stade de France
Sat, Mar 14 Italy v Wales 16.00 (15.00) Stadio Flaminio 
Sun, Mar 21 Wales v Ireland 17.30 17.30 Mullennium Stadium

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