Welsh fly-half Sam Davies missed three penalties before putting Wales ahead, but Luke McGrath crashed over for the Irish, Tom Daly converting to put the visitors 7-3 ahead at the break.

A Dion Jones try and two more Davies penalties put Wales in the ascendancy, but with 20 minutes remaining Daly went over to reduce the deficit to 14-12.

Davies and Daly then exchanged a penalty each as the Welsh edged just past Ruddock’s troops, but the former Worcester Warriors coach thinks his side are constantly improving.

“We need to cut down on the penalty count and work on our scrimmaging – but there were a lot of positives, from our continuity to our tackling,” he said.

“We outscored them by two tries to one and feel that there is a lot we can improve on. It is a learning process for the boys.

“Of course we are disappointed not to win but we can take a lot from the game and look for a better performance the next time out. That’s what it is all about.”