Tandy excited to bring Carre in from the cold

Steve Tandy has spoken of his excitement at being able to recall Saracens prop Rhys Carre to his first squad as Wales head coach.

Carre, 27, has not played for his country since 2023 and was ineligible under the Welsh Rugby Union's selection policy because he has 20 caps, five short of the required number for those playing for clubs outside Wales.

But there are loopholes, as demonstrated when Wales selected Jarrod Evans in the Six Nations earlier this year despite the Harlequins fly-half having fewer than 25 caps – because he was not given a reasonable offer to remain with former club Cardiff.

It seems the same applies to Carre, who left Cardiff last year to join Saracens for a second time.

He was overlooked under previous Wales head coach Warren Gatland, but Tandy is glad to be able to bring the prop in from the cold.

"The Professional Rugby Board have approved him to play. That gives me real excitement to have him available for us and to bring him into the autumn," said the former Scotland defence coach.

"The way he's playing for Saracens is outstanding. Saracens are playing really well at the minute and he's having huge impacts. It's really exciting to have him back. We've got some really good loose-heads but it adds to that depth which is great."

Carre will become available for the other home nations in 2026 because it will have been three years since he previously played for Wales.

Tandy, however, says did not contribute to his decision to recall the prop.

"I never want to be a coach who just captures people," he said. "That's not the way to look at it or the way I want to work.

"For me, Rhys is playing well and we can't overlook the fact he's playing for one of the top clubs in Europe and having a massive impact. He seems to be really enjoying his rugby.

"You've seen the way he's played – not only the set-piece stuff but the dynamism. You saw at the weekend in the 79th minute he made a break down the wing and offloaded inside.

"For me, it's all about the rugby and that's the most important bit. He's a quality rugby player playing at the highest level."