Today's rugby headlines as Wales boss Wayne Pivac shuts down 'cavalier' accusation

These are your rugby headlines on the morning of Wednesday, March 16.

Wayne Pivac has denied that the seven changes he has made to face Italy this weekend could be considered a "cavalier" selection.

The Italians haven't won a game in the Six Nations since 2015 and few would give them a chance of changing that run of defeats in Cardiff this weekend. However, with just one win under their belts in the tournament and a third-place finish - and the prize money that comes with it - to play for, some might question whether Pivac has made too many changes for the visit of Kieran Crowley's side. That's something Pivac disputes, though.

"I don’t think it’s cavalier," he said after naming his team. You can read all about the selection here.

"I think it’s believing in your squad. We’re working with these boys every day of the week and some of the players who are coming in are exciting players. There have been some close calls in selection over the last couple of weeks. It’s about showing belief and faith in our squad and in a couple of cases, there have been injuries to deal with. We believe we can get a result and that’s certainly what we’re going to try to achieve on the weekend with the squad we’ve named.

"If you look at the bench, there is a lot of experience to come into the game. Italy’s record says one thing, but they’re in a transition phase with Kieran Crowley and I see signs of some good rugby players there who are improving. They had some very good spells against Scotland last weekend so we certainly won’t be going into the game thinking it’s going to be one-way traffic at all. We’ll respect Italy and go out there and focus on what we need to do well and make sure we’re disciplined to do it over the 80 minutes."

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