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late withdrawal

Williams in at fullback for Wales as Anscombe is ruled out

Warren Gatland has had to shuffle his starting XV ahead of today’s match in Dublin.

Updated at 13.55

WALES HAVE BEEN dealt a late blow ahead their Six Nations tussle with Ireland in Dublin this afternoon.

Fullback Gareth Anscombe has been ruled out through injury and Liam Williams has been promoted to the starting line-up.

Anscombe, a Kiwi who has three caps for Wales, suffered an ankle injury against South Africa in Wales’s Rugby World Cup quarter-final defeat to South Africa and only returned to action three weeks ago. The reason for his late withdrawal is not yet known.

Williams has had fitness issues of his own; he has only played once for the Scarlets since undergoing foot surgery to correct an injury sustained in Wales’s World Cup clash against Australia.

Williams was not named in Wales’s 23-man match-day squad but had travelled to Dublin as a reserve. Rhys Priestland and Alex Cuthbert, who were named on Wales’s bench, are other options for Warren Gatland at fullback.

The position is proving a troublesome one for Gatland with his first choice Leigh Halfpenny already ruled out of the tournament with a knee injury.

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