Will Wales tackle reliance on Williams before World Cup?

There are few, if any, players more secure of a starting spot at next year's World Cup in Australia than Wales scrum-half Tomos Williams.

France superstar Antoine Dupont has a rival for the nine jersey in Maxime Lucu, a talisman for back-to-back European champions Bordeaux-Begles.

Malcolm Marx, World Rugby's current player of the year, fights hard for his start as South Africa's hooker but must also be prepared for 'bomb squad' duty from the bench.

The best players on the planet usually have a rival pushing them hard, but there is a gulf between 2025 British and Irish Lions tourist Williams and his fellow Welsh nines.

Wales have 12 or 13 fixtures to play before their 2027 World Cup opener against Zimbabwe in Adelaide on 2 October.

Steve Tandy needs wins to build momentum but does the head coach, who names his Nations Championship squad on Tuesday, also need to work on a contingency plan at scrum-half?

Williams has started every Test he has been available for since Tandy took the reins in the summer of 2025.

The only fixtures he has missed - last November's defeat by South Africa and June's win in the uncapped game against the Barbarians - were outside World Rugby's international window.

The former Cardiff scrum-half, who swapped Gloucester for Saracens in the summer, has played past the hour in every outing under Tandy.

Wales won three Tests in 2025-26 and Williams played the full 80 minutes against Japan and Fiji, while he came off with just two left against Italy.

The 31-year-old played 378 minutes in the 2026 Six Nations, with 10 of those minutes on the sidelines due to a yellow card against Ireland.

In comparison, France's Dupont played 357 (Lucu was injured), Ireland's Jamison Gibson-Park 323 and Scotland's Ben White 302.

Williams has shared matchday squads with just two scrum-halves under Tandy - Ospreys' Kieran Hardy and Reuben Morgan-Williams.

Hardy, who started against South Africa and the Baa-Baas, made five brief appearances off the bench while Morgan-Williams came on three times.

But there is likely to be a new inclusion when Tandy names his group for the Nations Championship.

Hardy faces a lengthy lay-off after suffering a knee injury against Dragons earlier this month.

His misfortune could lead to more opportunities for Morgan-Williams, who has had to show patience at international level.

Ospreys head coach Mark Jones said of him last season: "He's a real competitor and has got a real appetite on both sides of the ball. He injects speed into the game.

"What I like about him is his personality. He's just straight-talking, no messing around."

Tandy must find a third specialist as he counts down to the World Cup, where he will have another decision to make.

Warren Gatland initially went with two scrum-halves in 2023 - Williams and Gareth Davies - before adding Hardy for injured number eight Taulupe Faletau ahead of the quarter-final defeat by Argentina.

The scrum-half will be 37 when the World Cup takes place but his former team-mate Jonathan Davies believes age is not a problem.

"He has always been one of the most fiercely-competitive animals in the rugby environment," said the former Scarlets, Wales and Lions centre on Scrum V podcast.

"He looks after himself and is a great pro. He can definitely still do it."

Davies has been suggested as an emergency option for Wales, but Scarlets coach Dwayne Peel is quick to point out the qualities of Dane Blacker, who has started all three United Rugby Championship (URC) games so far.

"He's a player who wants to play the game quickly and he's been very, very good for us," said former Wales scrum-half Peel.

"I'm really happy with the way he's gone about his business. He's one who could definitely push if you want to play that quick, expansive game."

Ten Welsh scrum-halves have played for regions so far this season - Blacker, Gareth Davies and Archie Hughes at Scarlets, Hardy, Morgan-Williams and Luke Davies at Ospreys, Hope and Rhodri Williams at Dragons, Ellis Bevan, Aled Davies and Sion Davies at Cardiff.

Wales are blessed with a world-class scrum-half in Tomos Williams, but Tandy might have to prepare a plan B.