Warren Gatland has warned the rest of the Six Nations to write off Wales “at your peril” and believes his youngsters are good enough to win the title.
Wales have finished fifth for the past two years having won just two of their last 11 games in the Championship.
And head coach Gatland has been forced to pick one of the youngest squads of his career following retirements, transfers and injuries to key players.
However he said: “We can absolutely win this tournament.”
Speaking at the competition launch in Dublin, Gatland added: “This is my 17th involvement in Six Nations, so I’ve been around for a while, and we’ve seen in the past how this tournament is all about momentum.
“It’s a great first game for us at home to Scotland. If we win that then we can go without fear to Twickenham, with England in a similar position to us by making changes.
“The third game is against Ireland in Dublin with potentially a Triple Crown to play for and everything up for grabs.”
Gatland, 60, is the tournament’s most experienced coach having started with Ireland before overseeing four titles – the last in 2019 – during his first spell with Wales.
But while his return for a second stint could not lift Wales last season, he faces an arguably tougher task this season given the players unavailable.
Of his World Cup squad, injuries have denied him Jac Morgan, Taulupe Faletau and Dewi Lake, the likes of Gareth Anscombe, Liam Williams and Louis Rees-Zammit are unavailable due to moves away from Welsh rugby, while Dan Biggar and Leigh Halfpenny have retired.
It means Dafydd Jenkins is set to become the youngest Wales captain since Gareth Edwards in 1968.
But Gatland insists there are positives behind the new generation of players emerging at regional level as the domestic game comes to terms with drastic budget cuts.
“Despite the doom and gloom, I’m excited about the youngsters we’ve got coming through and what we can potentially achieve” he told the Scrum V podcast.
“We’ve got five new caps and eight who have never experienced the Six Nations, but I see this as a period of real opportunity, for the whole of Welsh rugby, to have a reset.
“These youngsters have benefitted hugely from being exposed over the last few months and the national team is going to benefit from that.
“It has always been the case with Wales that you write us off at your peril. Do that and you could get caught with your pants down.
“We’ll work hard and be organised for that first game and if you win that, then the confidence and self-belief that comes means you can do well in this tournament.”
Wales squad for 2024 Six Nations
Forwards: Corey Domachowski, Kemsley Mathias, Gareth Thomas, Elliot Dee, Ryan Elias, Evan Lloyd, Keiron Assiratti, Leon Brown, Archie Griffin, Adam Beard, Dafydd Jenkins, Will Rowlands, Teddy Williams, Taine Basham, James Botham, Alex Mann, Mackenzie Martin, Tommy Reffell, Aaron Wainwright.
Backs: Gareth Davies, Kieran Hardy, Tomos Williams, Sam Costelow, Cai Evans, Ioan Lloyd, Mason Grady, George North, Joe Roberts, Nick Tompkins, Owen Watkin, Josh Adams, Rio Dyer, Tom Rogers, Cameron Winnett.
