London (AFP) - Wales captain Ken Owens has urged his team to "put pride back in the shirt" when they kick off their Six Nations campaign against Ireland on Saturday.
Wales host Ireland in Cardiff looking to bounce back from a miserable 12 months in which they have won just three times, suffering humiliating home losses to Italy and Georgia.
Off the field, the Welsh Rugby Union has recently been rocked by sexism and discrimination allegations in the organisation.
Owens hopes the start of Warren Gatland's second spell as Wales boss -- following the dismissal of Wayne Pivac -- can herald a brighter period.
"It is disappointing what has come out of the past fortnight," said 36-year-old Owens, who will be captaining Wales for the first time since he was appointed skipper.
"I would be lying if I said we hadn't been talking about it within the squad, but at the end of the day we are in our own bubble as a Wales squad.
"For us, the only thing we can control tomorrow is a performance, to put pride back into the Welsh shirt after what has been a tough couple of years with consistency.
"The only way we can do that as players is by delivering a performance that is worthy for the red shirt."
Ireland have not won an away Six Nations game against Wales since 2013 but they arrive in the Welsh capital top of the world rankings and are among the favourites to win the tournament for the first time since 2018.
Owens is well aware of Ireland's threat, adding: "The way they play the game is high-tempo.Everybody is on the same page and they have got threats all across the park.
"They will go in as favourites, I think.Everybody is writing us off as a team but we know what we expect from ourselves, as a squad and as individuals.
"We are going to need to be on our money defensively and be a real tough team to beat.
"We are going to be a work in progress early on but there is enough quality and experience in the side for us to turn up tomorrow and put in a performance."
