5 things we learned from the Welsh win over Uruguay

Kevin Beirne

Wales got off to a good start at the World Cup by beating Uruguay by 54 points to 9.

With the bonus point secured by half-time, it was more of a case of seeing how many points they could add after the break

Here are the five key things to take away from this game.

Welsh injury woes continue

After seeing three of their starting backline go down injured before the tournament even began, Wales now have to hope that Liam Williams can be fit for next Saturday’s game against England after he left the field with a suspected dead leg in the first half.

Things only got worse for Warren Gatland’s men in the second half, as hattrick hero Cory Allen limped off with the help of a trainer around the 55 minute mark while Dan Lydiate left the game with five minutes remaining after coming on for Sam Warburton. With five backs out injured, Wales are going to have to lean heavily on their backups.

Samson Lee remains key

With so many injuries in the backline, the pack will have to step up and lead this team if they are going to have any chance of getting out of this pool. Lee left the game at halftime with a tight calf and would be a massive loss for Wales.

Lee’s presence is key to this as a strong scrum is vital to easing the pressure on a makeshift backline. He looked strong and took his try well before being removed at the half. His ability to contribute in the loose too puts him head and shoulders above the rest of the current Welsh tightheads.

TRY! Samson Lee secures Wales' first score – brought to you by @SamsungUK | #SamsungRugby http://t.co/R6DiByr2fO

— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) September 20, 2015

TMO’s influence is growing

It seems that the 2015 World Cup will be remembered as the one with all the TMO referrals. We’re only three days into the tournament and already people are growing tired of the constant input from the television match official.

Referees simply aren’t backing themselves to make decisions anymore, with Romain Poite stopping the clock to ask his video ref to take a look at things too often.

It was unsurprising when Poite’s decision to ask the TMO for help after Cory Allen’s first try was met by a chorus of boos from the Millennium Stadium crowd.

TRY! Allen goes over for Wales under the posts – brought to you by @SamsungUK | #SamsungRugby http://t.co/fL1iKgc2zK

— ITV Rugby (@ITVRugby) September 20, 2015

Simple errors could prove costly

They got away with it today, but the Welsh players looked slightly off the pace as they made a number of basic handling errors against a vastly inferior Uruguayan side.

Rhys Priestland didn’t do himself any favours by misplacing a number of kicks, including failing to find touch with a penalty early in the second half.

Uruguay did not have the quality to punish these basic mistakes, but a more talented team like England or Australia – or even Fiji – would surely take advantage.

Gatland faces back row headache

Coming into this game, it was no secret that Warren Gatland has a difficult decision to make on his starting back row against England on Saturday. While he has tended to stick with the trio of Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton and Toby Falateu; Justin Tipuric gave his coach something to think about with another strong showing.

Gatland is not known as a coach who chops and changes too often, but it is possible he will play both Warburton and Tipuric against Australia in order to counter the poaching abilities of David Pocock and Michael Hooper. Although Lydiate’s late injury might take that decision out of his hands.