Wales v England: Cardiff business and fans relieved game is on

Wales and England will clash in the Six Nations on Saturday after a tumultuous week that threatened the game.

The Cardiff encounter had been in doubt as Welsh players considered strike action over their contract dispute.

Fans and businesses breathed sighs of relief when a compromise was reached that meant the match will be played.

Wales captain Ken Owens said the team had been "galvanised," but as the clock ticked closer to kick-off, fans' confidence in the team remained mixed.

Jason Parry, 47, from Kenfig Hill in Bridgend county, was "apprehensive" because of the "distractions".

"There's still a bit of excitement to see how the new blood coming into the team do," he said.

"Getting the youngsters on is important because I think we need to give them the experience to develop their game and go further in the competition."

He said the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU) needed to "get their house in order" after the Owens dubbed Wales a "laughing stock" on Wednesday.

But for the moment the focus is on the game.

"It's about us turning up tomorrow and doing what we need to do," he said.

His son, Jayden, 12, said: "We're not doing well at the minute. I think we just need to play rugby."

Jamie Uren, from nearby Cornelly, said it was time Wales got back on top, but he worried the team could only do that if things behind the scenes were running smoothly.

Despite this he predicted a Welsh win.

The 31-year-old said: "The boys aren't going to be behind the scenes drinking coffee, they'll be knocking lumps out of each other and they're still going to be fired up.

"We don't need any extra fuel on an England match, we'll come out firing."

Kenfig Hill RFC secretary Richard Underhill said everyone at the club had been left downhearted by "everything that's been going on" at the WRU.

"People just want to get on with playing and put all the off-field stuff behind them and concentrate on playing the match," he said.

He forecast a tight game, but said: "I think there'll be a big response from the players."

Earlier this week Cardiff Licensees Forum chairman Nick Newman said it would have been a "catastrophe" had the game been called off.

Rob Toogood, of the Fuel rock club, in the city centre, said businesses pinned their years on the autumn internationals and Six Nations games.

Match days could pull in a week's trade in a night, he said.

He said: "You put up with a lot of road closures for getting your stock in, but you put up with that and you love it, because of the things that come with it, the economic benefits to the city, the thousands of people here."

"It's going to be a great weekend," he said.

Fans travelling to the game have been advised to plan ahead.

Drivers are warned the M4 is likely to be busy and are urged by Cardiff council to use the park and ride system.

Numerous roads in Cardiff will be closed and some buses will be diverted.

Transport for Wales is running a full rail timetable, but trains are expected to be busy.

Chief operations officer Jan Chaudry-Van der Velde,said: "We're expecting another very busy weekend.

"In addition to the extra capacity provided by Great Western Railway, we'll be running our full TfW rail timetable, and every available carriage will be in use to provide as much capacity as possible."

Fans are advised to leave plenty of time for their trip.

"We're also running a number of return coaches to Cardiff from across south and west Wales to complement our rail services and add extra capacity," Mr Chaudry-Van der Velde said.