WALES boss Wayne Pivac says he has got the reaction he wanted from Elliot Dee after handing the Dragons hooker a recall.

The 26-year-old from Newbridge will win his 30th cap off the bench in the Autumn Nations Cup opener against Ireland in Dublin tomorrow evening.

Dee made his last Test appearance in the World Cup bronze match loss to New Zealand in 2019 before featuring in the uncapped fixture against the Barbarians that started the Pivac era.

The Dragons front rower missed the Six Nations through injury and was initially a shock omission from the squad for the autumn.

He was added when Ken Owens suffered a blow for the Scarlets and has watched on while Ryan Elias and Sam Parry played in the losses to France and Scotland.

Dee will get his chance to shine as a replacement against the Irish at the Aviva Stadium with the head coach expecting him to make an impact.

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“I'm looking for plenty of energy from Elliot,” said Pivac. “He is very good in the wide channels and has a very nice passing game; he is a good decision maker in those areas of the park.

“Elliot has gone away and had a long, hard think about his game and his passion and desire to play at this level.

“He has come back in and I have got to say that he has been very, very impressive in training after the early disappointment of not being selected.”

After making his debut against Georgia in November 2017, Dee became a trusted member of Warren Gatland’s matchday squad.

He featured in 29 of 31 possible Test up to the All Blacks encounter in Japan but tomorrow evening will be the first time he has got the nod from Pivac and forwards coach Jonathan Humphreys.

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“You could say the same thing happened with Samson Lee in the Six Nations. There are some guys that have been asked to go away and do certain things,” said Pivac.

“I am pleased to say that in Elliot's case he has come back much the better for it. I am looking forward to seeing how he goes.”

Dee is joined on the bench by Dragons teammate Aaron Wainwright, who backs up the starting back row of Shane Lewis-Hughes, Justin Tipuric and Taulupe Faletau.

There is no place for Rodney Parade backs Nick Tompkins and Jonah Holmes.

Back rower Ross Moriarty has suffered another blow to his ankle in training and will be out for another couple of weeks.

Tighthead Leon Brown came into Wales camp with a knee injury but is now back in full training and in contention for the remaining Autumn Nations Cup fixtures.