Tomas Francis: Wales prop targets fourth World Cup after international return

Francis returned to Wales for this November campaign after being named in the squad alongside fellow tight-head props Griffin and Dillon Lewis, who started the first three Nations Championship matches in July.

With Griffin starting the 28-21 win against Japan in Cardiff last weekend, Francis, who is the oldest member of the squad, came off the replacements bench to win his 83rd cap.

Wales emulated their victory against Japan in Cardiff in November 2025 but Francis states the post-match reaction was different.

“In the changing room afterwards, we weren’t celebrating like the last time we beat Japan,” said Francis.

“It was quite sombre because we knew we hadn’t hit the heights we wanted to.

“We’d left points out there and hadn’t put in the performance we wanted so we’re now not celebrating just scraping a win.

“We’re looking at what’s next and asking how we get better.”

The New Zealand challenge is next as Wales look to break a 34-match losing sequence against the All Blacks that stretches back to 1953.

Francis says it is these sort of event that attracted him back to the international stage.

“It was an amazing occasion,” said Francis.

“I remember watching Wales play New Zealand in Cardiff last year when I was in France. I sat at home and got goosebumps.”

With concerns about the size of the Cardiff crowd, Francis hopes Wales can inspire and be inspired by the home faithful.

“We talk about the Principality Stadium as a group, that we want to try and get the crowd in the game as much as possible,” said Francis.

“For me, it might be a scrum or a maul penalty or it could be Zammo [Louis Rees-Zammit] or Blair [Murray] going through tackles.

“You hear the electricity in that stadium and it lifts us. The more moments we can develop like that, the more fans we can get to watch and the more we keep pushing each other.

“It’s the best ground in the world with the roof closed and when the supporters are behind you, it’s amazing.”