Over the years, we’ve become accustomed to expecting the unexpected with Warren Gatland’s squad announcements.

The Wales head coach continued his trend since returning to the role of picking young, inexperienced squads as this complement of players travel to Australia with an average age of just 25.

There are first call ups for Ellis Bevan, Keelan Giles, Josh Hathaway, and Jacob Beetham, with only Giles above that 25 year mark.

Even with the return of older players in Liam Williams, Cory Hill, and Matthew Screech, the likes of Christ Tshiunza, Mackenzie Martin, Evan Lloyd, and Cam Winnett all bring the average age down.

For today’s squad, we had some clues about the ‘surprise’ call ups: the return of Cory Hill and Liam Williams were trailed for a little while; the call ups of uncapped wingers Keelan Giles and Josh Hathaway due to the absence of Josh Adams and Judgement Day injuries to other hopefuls Tomi Lewis and Theo Cabango; the inexperience of Harri O’Connor and Archie Griffin due to the lack of availability from more seasoned frontrowers Dillon Lewis and Henry Thomas.

In Gatland’s adjoining remarks about the squad, he said that his side are building towards the 2027 World Cup.

“I think everyone appreciates and realises we’re building towards 2027,” Gatland said.

“It’s pretty young. Pretty exciting. We’re happy with the players we’ve got. We’ve tried to keep some continuity. The big focus is trying to build some depth.”

The question for a lot of Welsh fans will be: why is the team building a tournament that seems ages away, compared to the dismal 2024 Six Nations, which is still fresh in the mind.

It seems logical to pick players from a winning team and, while they have not been truly outstanding this season, the Ospreys are by far and away the most successful Welsh region this season, reaching the quarterfinals of both the URC and Challenge Cup.

And yet only six of the 37 names in the squad are members of the Ospreys squad, with notable absentees including Morgan Morris, James Ratti, Reuben Morgan-Williams, and Rhys Henry.

On Morgan Morris specifically, Gatland said that the number eight needs to work on “both sides of the ball.”

“It’s not just the attack stuff,” Gatland said.

“It’s both sides of the ball. When we got through the videos with players, it’s stuff off the ball.

“He’s had some really good games for the Ospreys. We’ve got a load of good players in that position. For him, it’s working on those things.”

It’s true, Wales do have lots of talent in the back row. With Jac Morgan returning, the promising Alex Mann is left out, while Aaron Wainwright and Tommy Reffell were standouts in the Six Nations.

Even still, Gatland has prioritised continuity at this early stage of the World Cup ‘cycle’. Mackenzie Martin and Taine Plumtree are travelling and, while both being undoubtedly excellent prospects, they have not had better seasons than Morris, or indeed his Ospreys back row teammate Harri Deaves.

Moving away from the lack of Ospreys players, one thing Gatland will no doubt preach over these coming weeks will be patience.

This is a young squad, but it has some serious talent in it. The traditional Welsh positions of strength of back row, hooker, and wing are brimming with talent, while a chance to see some new centre and second row combinations will be welcome.

Wales have a growing pool of leaders that will put them in excellent stead for the future. Dewi Lake, Jac Morgan, Dafydd Jenkins, and Adam Beard have all worn the armband in recent matches, while Aaron Wainwright, Tommy Reffell, Gareth Thomas, and Rio Dyer have all now been in several squads and are taking more and more responsibility on the pitch.

Gatland will argue that giving Martin, Winnett, Mason Grady, and Evan Lloyd time on the pitch in international rugby is the best way to prepare them for their future careers and it is hard to doubt that. However, coming from a Cardiff team that has won four times all season, these are players that are not brimming with confidence, something the Wales coaching staff will have to instill themselves.

That coupled, with the prospect of Ben Thomas or Jacob Beetham at fly-half is exciting, if not decisions that will win Wales games in the here and now.

With Tshiunza and Jenkins unavailable against South Africa, Wales will most likely line-up with a Dragons second row against the likes of Eben Etzebeth, Franco Mostert, and RG Snyman. That is certainly not an ideal prospect for those looking for a response to the Six Nations where Wales looked underpowered compared to their rivals.

The issue for this group is how long the fans will give them before demanding more than promise.

The last two Six Nations have been somewhat forgiven for the positive progress in last year’s World Cup, but with Gatland already asking us to look to 2027, expectations will have to be managed.

That is not to say that these matches do not matter. Wales cannot continue to lose the majority of their games while maintaining the ‘jam tomorrow’ line. Gatland needs to show that this set of players are growing and improving under his leadership. Otherwise, the questions asked will become demands.

Wales Squad in full:

Forwards: Corey Domachowski (Cardiff Rugby), Kemsley Mathias (Scarlets), Gareth Thomas (Ospreys), Elliot Dee (Dragons), Dewi Lake (Ospreys), Evan Lloyd (Cardiff Rugby), Sam Parry (Ospreys), Keiron Assiratti (Cardiff Rugby), Archie Griffin (Bath Rugby), Dillon Lewis (Harlequins), Harri O’Connor (Scarlets), Henry Thomas (Castres Olympique), Ben Carter (Dragons), Cory Hill (Secom Rugguts), Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs), Matthew Screech (Dragons), Christ Tshiunza (Exeter Chiefs), Mackenzie Martin (Cardiff Rugby), Jac Morgan (Ospreys), Taine Plumtree (Scarlets), Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers), Aaron Wainwright (Dragons).

Backs: Ellis Bevan* (Cardiff Rugby), Gareth Davies (Scarlets), Kieran Hardy (Scarlets), Sam Costelow (Scarlets), Mason Grady (Cardiff Rugby), Ben Thomas (Cardiff Rugby), Nick Tompkins (Saracens), Owen Watkin (Ospreys), Rio Dyer (Dragons), Keelan Giles* (Ospreys), Josh Hathaway* (Gloucester Rugby), Liam Williams (Kubota Spears), Jacob Beetham* (Cardiff Rugby), Cameron Winnett (Cardiff Rugby).

* – Uncapped Player

2024 Summer Fixtures

Saturday 22 June: South Africa v Wales
Twickenham Stadium
KO 14.00 BST

Saturday 6 July: Australia v Wales
Allianz Stadium, Sydney
KO 10.55h BST / 19.55h local time

Saturday 13 July: Australia v Wales
AAMI Park, Melbourne
KO 10.55 BST / 19.55h local time

Friday 19 July: Queensland Reds v Wales
Suncorp Stadium, Brisbane
KO 10.55 BST / 19.55h local time