Dan Biggar has clambered out of an oxygen chamber to try to breathe life into Wales’s Six Nations title challenge. The Northampton-bound fly-half has made an earlier than expected return from a shoulder injury to face Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.

Biggar will be up against Johnny Sexton, his Lions colleague in New Zealand last summer, and is the only member of Wales’s back division who does not have a link with the Scarlets. Five of the other six play for the region, while Liam Williams left for Saracens last summer.

“It has been a tough five weeks with plenty of rehab,” the Ospreys No 10 said. “I did 10 days on the bounce in an oxygen chamber, 90 minutes at a time. It was pretty monotonous but I stacked my iPad and got through a series of Suits.

“It was frustrating. I am a terrible watcher, because you cannot make a difference. We started well against Scotland and to secure a losing bonus point at Twickenham was not the worst. It is down to the team selected on Saturday to do the job and keep us in the tournament.”

Wales are unbeaten in their last two visits to Dublin. “We know it will be difficult,” Biggar said. “They are a fantastic, well-coached side and if you look at our two away games [this season] they are about as difficult as it gets.

“Johnny is a vital cog for them. I like him a lot. He has that streak in him: he knows what he wants, dictates play and has a real drive. I picked his brains last summer and it was good to spend time with him and Owen Farrell.”

Despite the defeat by England, Wales are more buoyant than they have been in recent years. “The Scarlets boys are in good form and the rest of us have to slot into that,” Biggar added. “A big difference this campaign is that we are a really confident team. It did not work out at Twickenham but the belief we had was evident.”