Prince William and Princess Kate visited injured rugby players at the England vs Wales Six Nations match at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff. The royal couple, who are also patrons of the Welsh Rugby Union and English Rugby Football Union, respectively, renewed their rugby rivalry as they cheered on opposing teams.
They met players supported by the Welsh Rugby Charitable Trust and shared details about their sons’ love of rugby and spending “freezing” weekends watching them play. A recording of the meeting shows the Prince and Princess being greeted as they walked into a room inside the Welsh stadium.
Prince William shakes hands with a greeter while Princess Kate follows closely behind. She then peels off and begins speaking with onlookers. The royal pair are then seen sitting at a table and speaking to injured rugby players.
Prince William is heard telling one supporter that there was a lot at stake in tonight’s match and that he felt England would squeak through with a win. One of the players goes on to say he had had a baby boy since the last time he and Prince William met.
It comes as England and Wales players had to be separated as they squared up to one another in an intense first-half inside Cardiff’s Principality Stadium.
Matt Sherratt’s side were frustrated after finding themselves 14-0 down at home and staring at the Wooden Spoon, while their opposite numbers have a chance at a Six Nations title win. When the visitors were just one try ahead, Wales had a try controversially disallowed as Tomos Williams was adjudged to have been in an offside position when he challenged Tom Curry.
The contentious decision came as an England hand was the last to touch the ball. Shortly after, the players got to know each other even closer as they squared up to one another moments after Tommy Roebuck’s try.
Aaron Wainwright and Dafydd Jenkins squared up to Ollie Chessum after a scrum, which Nicky Smith also got involved in as handbags were thrown on the side of the pitch. They grabbed each other by the top of the shirt as Chessum looked worse off, with Wainwright laughing at the English lock before his skipper Maro Itoje attempted to calm the affairs down.
As the referee told off both sets of players, BBC commentator Andrew Cotter explained the incident: “This is Curry and Nicky Smith and then Aaron Wainwright took exception to that…”
His Beeb colleague Jonathan Davies shut down the notion that there was anything sinister about the incident, adding: “It’s absolutely nothing.”
The hosts then found themselves back in the game on the 30th-minute mark through Ben Thomas after a fizzing pass under pressure by Williams.
