WALES will warm up for WXV2 by taking on Australia at Rodney Parade a fortnight before the rivals lock horns in South Africa.

The fixture will be the first senior rugby international at the historic ground since 1912, when France men were triumphant in Newport.

The game will be a tune-up for WXV2 in Cape Town, with Ioan Cunningham's side having beaten Spain in a play-off to earn a spot in the second tier competition.

They will face the Aussies at DHL Stadium before facing Six Nations rivals Italy at Athone Stadium on October 4 and Japan at the same venue the following week.

Wales will tune up for the competition with a pair of fixtures in September with Scotland first up at the Hive in Edinburgh on Friday, September 6 (kick-off 7pm).

They will then host the Wallaroos at Rodney Parade on Friday, September 20 (kick-off 7pm), the night before the Dragons get their United Rugby Championship campaign under way with a derby against the Ospreys.

Full ticket information is yet to be released by the Welsh Rugby Union and Dragons.

Head coach Cunningham expects competition for places to be fierce in the countdown to next year’s World Cup.

He said: “The display against Spain saw what we have been working on since the last World Cup come to fruition and we know we have the talent to mix our game and crossing for eight tries.

“We will come together at the end of July to start pre-season to prepare for what will be the beginning of the most exciting and biggest season in the history of women’s rugby, with the World Cup in England on the horizon.

“To prepare we have two Test matches against two nations - Scotland and Australia - who will be in WXV2 and have also qualified for the World Cup and who we have had really close fought games with.

“We know them well and there is a mutual respect, but this is an opportunity to have a look at our squad, to give some young players an opportunity and to develop our game as we head to South Africa.

“Our World Cup preparation will start at the end of July, and we know have the nucleus of our squad, but we need competition for places and to build the depth in the squad ahead of England 2025.

“We have paid close attention to Wales U20s in the Six Nations Summer Series and look forward to the upcoming Transatlantic Quad Series tournament and will reward any player we feel has the potential to make the step up to the senior squad.

“Five players who were under 21 made their debuts in the recent Six Nations campaign and they all showed real potential at the highest level, and it is part of our approach to give young players an opportunity to prove themselves ahead of the World Cup.”