WELSH rugby skipper Sam Warburton and Welsh netball captain Suzy Drane met up at the WRU Centre of Excellence this week to chat over plans for their upcoming World Cup campaigns.

Both teams meet Fiji in their pools, although Warburton and his players will have home advantage at the Millennium Stadium on October 1.

Drane's side will face the Fijians, ranked one place higher than them in the world rankings, in Sydney, Australia, in the opening game of their Netball World Cup campaign on August 7.

"It was great to meet Suzy and on behalf of the Welsh rugby squad I'd like to wish her and her Welsh side the best of luck in their World Cup campaign," said Warburton.

"Both camps are going through some pretty heavy training at the moment, but with exactly the same goal – to make the whole of Wales proud of their teams competing on the biggest of sporting stages.

“It is going to be exciting, demanding and, hopefully, very successful.

"I know that Suzy will be one of four players in the 12-strong Welsh netball squad who have been to a World Cup before and that experience will be vital in Australia.

“Wouldn't it be great if they could set the tone for both teams by beating Fiji in their opening game.

"We will be supporting them all the way and all the boys will be looking out for their results when the tournament begins.

“Before then, though, it would be nice if they could beat England in their warm-up game in Merthyr next week!"

The Welsh netball team host England in Merthyr on July 8 and have four warm-up matches in Tasmania before group matches against Fiji, Uganda and Zambia, starting on August 7.

Included in the squad is goal shooter Georgia Rowe from Caerleon.

She said: “Our target is the top eight but we’re more focused on our performances rather than the outcome.

“As a team we’re looking for everyone to give 100 per cent and that’s all we can ask.”

Head of elite performance Trish Wilcox added: “We need to get off to a flying start and victory over Fiji would set us up perfectly for a strong tournament.

"Although we expect our pool games to present different challenges, we believe they are all within the range of this Welsh team.