Wales head out to Dublin widely written off ahead of the Six Nations curtain-raiser against Ireland this weekend.
Wayne Pivac is having to manage in excess of 700 caps' worth of experience being absent through injury, while the hosts are almost boasting a clean bill of health.
Andy Farrell's side are some people's tip to win the entire championship, which puts an exclamation point on the challenge facing Wales this weekend.
Here are what our writers think will unfold...
Simon Thomas: Why Irish eyes will be smiling
The inescapable fact of the matter is just about everything points to an Irish victory this weekend.
If you look at the two teams’ autumn campaigns, Wales were somewhat unconvincing, stuttering to victories over 14-man Fiji and Australia.
In contrast, Ireland were imperious, recording a famous win over New Zealand and thumping both Argentina and Japan.
Plus, what has happened since then has merely compounded the disparity.
Wayne Pivac is faced with a series of injury issues, denying him something like half a dozen first-choice starters, while a number of his available players are pretty undercooked in terms of game-time due to Covid-related issues and, of course, there have been the well-documented struggles of the regions.
Andy Farrell, on the other hand, has essentially a full deck to pick from, while his players are used to winning, with the Irish provinces having been in fine fettle.
Then you’ve got the home advantage provided by a full house at the Aviva.
So, logically, it’s hard to see anything other than a triumph by the men in green.
Ireland 24-10 Wales
Ben James: Breakdown the key to victory
To say expectations differ either side of the Irish sea heading into this Six Nations opener would be something of an understatement.
For the Irish, only the fear that Wales so often defy convention is tempering widespread predictions of a comfortable victory in Dublin.
Back home in Wales, things are a little more morose.
With Wayne Pivac's defending champions decimated by injuries, few expect anything from a visit to the Aviva Stadium - where Wales haven't won competitively in a decade.
Their last two visits straddled the emergence of Covid in 2020. A 24-14 Six Nations defeat in February was followed by a 32-9 blowout in the autumn.
It would take something special to triumph there this time - perhaps anything as good as Pivac would have achieved as Wales coach.
Ultimately, what those two defeats mentioned above came down to - and what Saturday will largely be decided by - was the breakdown.
Wales couldn't live with Ireland's speed and efficiency on both sides of the ruck. It's hard to see how they manage this weekend, with a pack missing around 700 caps.
Beyond that, it's things like Wales' set-piece fortunes and the Josh Adams experiment in midfield that will determine whether this is a close encounter or the wide margin of victory many in Ireland are expecting.
Ireland 23-10 Wales
Mark Orders: Forward march to an Irish win
There is an old adage in rugby that suggests the team with the strongest pack always wins, and the backs decide by how many points.
Dispiritingly for Wales, it is almost always true.
One occasions when it wasn't true was in the famous Welsh Cup tie between Pontypool and Cardiff in 1977-78, when the visitors to The Park had five attacks and scored with four of them, but, then, not every team has in their ranks a genius like Gerald Davies, who came up trumps with each of the touchdowns. as his side won 16-11.
Wales this weekend? Their backline looks good on paper — fast, skilful and inventive, especially in the back three.
But the fear for Wayne Pivac is that Ireland will do a number on his side in the front five to the point where not even Gerald Davies would have been able to do much about it.
Ireland have a strong set-piece game and carry powerfully, with New Zealand having to make 160 tackles in the opening 40 minutes in their loss at the Aviva Stadium in November.
But the men in green are also trying to play at pace and with their 11 Leinster players in their starting XV they will try to open Wales up via quick ball, a defence coach's nightmare. The visitors will look to Ellis Jenkins and Taine Basham to try to slow down Ireland's possession, but the All Blacks found the challenge a difficult one.
Andy Farrell’s team are also trying to pass more instead of dying in contact.
For Wales, they first have to be safe on their own ball at scrums and line-outs and find a way of putting a brake on Ireland’s rapid recycling. One to five will need to be at their very best and so will the back row.
Winning in Dublin isn’t impossible for visiting teams and Ireland will need to guard against complacency amid expectations of a big win this weekend, but Wales are missing so many players a potentially difficult afternoon beckons for Pivac's team.
Ireland 29-15 Wales
Matt Southcombe: It looks ominous for Wales
Any pack in the world would look at this Irish front five with envy at the moment. Even the Springboks would probably be a little concerned by it.
Maybe I'm a little scarred by recent history in Dublin - Wales haven't won a competitive match there since 2012 - but there's just an ominous feeling about this one.
I recall Wales going there at full strength in 2018 and getting absolutely manhandled in the tight and that is no hyperbole.
Ireland will look to strangle the life out of this game and dominate possession. How do Wales stop this?
They have to win the collisions. They have to slow down Ireland's ruck speed because if the hosts play relatively unimpaired rugby, then it will be curtains.
There is a big onus on the Welsh back-row to slow down Ireland's ball and, when they have it, this Welsh backline - which is still littered with stardust - has to be razor sharp.
Wales won't get many chances so it is pivotal they take the ones that come their way.
Given the context of the match, the 700 caps missing for Wayne Pivac's side, it's tough to back against Ireland. Were Wales to pull it off, it would be the greatest win of Pivac's reign so far.
Ireland 27-13 Wales
