Wales travel to Argentina full of confidence after claiming a 39-24 victory over Fiji.
Steve Tandy’s side survived an early onslaught by the Pacific Islanders to get their Nations Championship campaign off to a winning start.
They now head to South America before a daunting trip to face the world champions.
Here are your winners and losers.
Jac Morgan
The outstanding openside produced a performance of relentless industry and intelligence, underlining his importance to Wales with a display that fully justified his player-of-the-match award.
Morgan finished as the game’s leading tackler with 17, while his influence at the breakdown repeatedly disrupted Fiji’s attacking rhythm.
His work over the ball slowed the visitors’ ruck speed at crucial moments, and he also demonstrated his eye for the try-line by crossing twice in a complete all-round performance.
There was an added significance to the occasion. Remarkably, this was Morgan’s first Test victory since the 2023 Rugby World Cup, making his display all the more timely as Wales seek to build momentum.
He will be a key player for Wales over the coming weeks.
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Steve Tandy
The 46-year-old inherited arguably the most demanding job in international rugby, taking charge of a Wales side whose confidence and standing had been badly eroded during the latter stages of Warren Gatland’s second spell in charge.
The early months have been predictably difficult, but there are now tangible signs of progress.
Wales remain some distance from the world’s leading nations, yet their trajectory is finally beginning to point in the right direction.
Not so long ago, they might have buckled under the sustained pressure of Fiji’s second-half assault.
Instead, they showed a resilience and composure that have too often been absent in recent seasons, finding a way to withstand the onslaught and close out the victory.
Tandy appears to have settled on a game plan that suits the players at his disposal.
The return of only two Test wins since his appointment underlines the scale of the rebuilding job, but results alone do not tell the full story.
But the structure is becoming clearer, the performances more cohesive and, for the first time in some while, Wales have genuine reason to believe they are moving in the right direction.
For that, Tandy deserves considerable credit.
Adam Beard
The 30-year-old was a favourite of Gatland’s but lost his place in Wales’ starting XV after a poor performance against France during the Six Nations.
That must have been a bitter pill to swallow but Dafydd Jenkins’ injury has catapulted Beard back into the starting XV.
He was excellent at Cardiff City Stadium and played a central role in Wales’ victory.
Beard was outstanding in the tight with the Montpellier lock highly influential at the lineout and the maul – two areas where Wales achieved dominance.
The former Ospreys second-row also made 13 tackles and won two turnovers.
Given the scale of the challenges that await against Argentina and the world champion Springboks, Beard’s importance will only grow.
Wales will need his authority at the line-out, his physicality and his experience if they are to match two of the most formidable packs in world rugby.
The Wales scrum
Wales took Fiji to the cleaners at scrum time.
Rhys Carré is better known for his ability around the park but he made mincemeat of the Fiji scrum.
Dillon Lewis is another player who wins more plaudits for his work around the park but he scrummaged very well.
Both replacement props Nicky Smith and Ben Warren also went well in this area, while credit must also go to both hookers Dewi Lake and Ryan Elias.
Wales will face a much sterner challenge over the next couple of weekends but this was promising.
Aaron Wainwright
Wainwright’s development over the past 12 months has elevated him into the upper echelon of international No 8s, and this was another compelling demonstration of his all-round quality.
The Leicester Tigers forward was consistently effective with ball in hand, repeatedly generating valuable post-contact metres, while his physicality and relentless work-rate ensured he remained an influential presence throughout.
Had the British & Irish Lions been touring this summer, Wainwright would have been difficult to overlook.
On current form, he would have been on that plane.
Losers
The crowd
The fixture may have been promoted as a home game for Fiji, but staging it in the Welsh capital inevitably invited scrutiny of the attendance.
A crowd of just 16,456 in a stadium capable of holding 33,280 represented a disappointing turnout for the inaugural match of a new tournament.
While Fiji oversaw the promotion, the sparse attendance also reflected the broader malaise that has settled over Welsh rugby after several difficult years.
There are signs that Tandy is beginning to steer Wales in a more encouraging direction and sustained improvement on the field should, in time, rekindle interest.
But the empty seats served as a reminder of the scale of the challenge facing the game in Wales.
WRU
It would be refreshing if Welsh rugby could enjoy a week in which the focus remained solely on events on the field.
Instead, the build-up to this fixture was overshadowed by yet another public dispute between the Welsh Rugby Union and the players, this time over match fees.
Although an agreement was eventually reached, the fact the issue remained unresolved until the week of a Test match reflected poorly on all concerned.
The matter was settled in time for Wales to produce an encouraging result, but these distractions have become an all-too-familiar backdrop to the national side.
If Welsh rugby is to rebuild its standing, such disputes need to be resolved long before they threaten to dominate the agenda.
Louis Rees-Zammit
He ended up on the winning side but it must have been a frustrating afternoon for the Wales wing.
The ball hardly came Rees-Zammit’s way and Wales were unable to get the Bristol Bears flyer into the game.
He also had a difficult afternoon up against the sensational Salesi Rayasi and Jiuta Wainiqolo.
But class is permanent and Rees-Zammit will bounce back this summer.
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