Liam Williams ‘I wasn’t walking too well’ – Halfpenny’s harsh workout

Leigh Halfpenny helped Wales reach the summit of rugby union’s world rankings just hours after a punishing training session in an altitude room.

Halfpenny returned to Test rugby in Wales’ 13-6 World Cup warm-up victory over England at the Principality Stadium.

It was the Scarlets full-back’s first international appearance since he suffered concussion after a challenge by Wallabies centre Samu Kerevi when Wales beat Australia nine months ago.

But it proved an unexpected call-up, being drafted in to start from outside the selected match-day 23 when Liam Williams experienced hamstring tightness during Wales’ final preparations less than an hour before kick-off.

Having initially not been required against England, Halfpenny’s training schedule featured gruelling work-outs on Friday and Saturday before he joined pre-match routines at the stadium as part of Wales’