Tuesday 10 March 2015 09:43, UK
Wales centre Jonathan Davies says Warren Gatland's men must target Ireland fly-half Johnny Sexton on Saturday.
The Irish can move one step away from a Six Nations Grand Slam with victory at the Millennium Stadium and Davies, who played with Sexton on the 2013 British & Irish Lions tour of Australia, admits the Leinster playmaker's game-management will be difficult to deal with.
"He is obviously their general and marshals their troops," Davies said. "I noticed that in Australia. He expected high standards at training. He knew his role and expected everyone else to know them. If you didn't, he gave you an earful.
"That's what professional rugby is about. He is one of the best in the world at the moment at marshalling the game.
"Ireland are (ranked) third in the world and they have won 10 games in a row," Davies added. "They are a very good team, they are defending (Six Nations) champions and are well-coached.
"It's a tough task for us, and we have to make sure we get a good week's preparation and really focus on the game."
While much has been made of Sexton's half-back pairing with Conor Murray, Davies has also highlighted the promise of Ireland's new-look centre partnership of Jared Payne and Robbie Henshaw, who have stepped in to the voids left by Brian O'Driscoll and Gordon D'Arcy.
But Davies is one half of a fearsome midfield partnership himself along with fellow Lion Jamie Roberts and is confident Wales can overcome Joe Schmidt's side and continue the revival of their bid for the championship, which continued with a hard-fought 20-13 victory in France last time out.
"Their centre partnership is a good one," Davies said. "They are big boots to fill, and they seem to be doing quite well.
"They have played well together and seem to have a good understanding, which is important for a centre pairing.
He expected high standards at training. He knew his role and expected everyone else to know them. If you didn't, he gave you an earful.
"They understand their roles and what each other is doing. That normally takes a bit of time, but they seem to have taken to it really quickly.
"There is always pressure on anyone with the Welsh jersey on to perform. We put that on ourselves, to make sure that we deliver a performance worthy of the jersey and make sure we get the victory.
"It's sometimes difficult to put your mark on the game. What me and Jamie Roberts try to do is make sure we get as many touches on the ball and influence the game in a positive manner.
"Against France, as a team, we played some decent stuff at times and we controlled the game really well, I thought.
"The game-management was excellent from the half-backs, and although France came at us sometimes, we weathered the pressure and came out on top.
"We have just got to keep doing everything we can to be there (in title contention).
"We have done that the last two games after the disappointment against England, and we just have to make sure we keep playing and executing well what we do. It's not going to fall into our laps as such, but we're ready to pounce."
