Centre Hawkins determined to make World Cup

Wales centre Joe Hawkins says missing the previous World Cup has made him more determined to make the next global tournament in Australia in 12 months. Following his move from Ospreys to Exeter in 2023, Hawkins was deemed ineligible to play for Wales by Welsh rugby's Professional Rugby Board (PRB) because of the 25-cap rule. The rule says players who have fewer than 25 caps are unavailable to play for Wales if they are not involved with a Welsh club. This ruled him out of the 2023 World Cup in France but Hawkins has since returned to the national side after signing for Scarlets. "It would have been nice to have a World Cup under my belt already, but that just makes me even more excited for potentially what's ahead over the next year.

"I loved my couple of years in Exeter with the life experience and playing in the Prem, where you can see a lot of the boys are thriving in now." Wales have a minimum of 12 matches before the World Cup, starting with the Nations Championship opener against Japan in Cardiff next Saturday. "It's always in the back of your mind, knowing you're going into a World Cup year," said Hawkins. "You can probably see from performances from other boys in all positions in the squads