George North feels they finally began to show their class on Friday night after they beat Ireland in the Six Nations.
North scored two tries at the Principality Stadium as the hosts ran out 22-9 winners, with Wales having previously struggled for form in the competition.
A 33-7 win against Italy in the opening fixture was followed by defeats to England and Scotland but Wales - and North in particular - were much improved in Cardiff.
"We knew we could play a lot better than we had been doing," said North.
"Unfortunately, we let the England Test go [Wales lost 21-16] and obviously the Scotland game was very disappointing.
"I think we showed [against Ireland] what it meant to all of us to go out and really want to put it right.
"It was the hurt. The fact we knew we were much better than we had been showing, and the fact results didn't go our way.
"The quality of players we have in our squad is amazing, and against Scotland we didn't fire on all cylinders, which really cost us a lot. It's been hard.
"It is a very honest camp we have. We all put our hands up and were accountable for what we did or didn't do, and the performance we gave.
"It was a tough start to the week. It was a case of drawing a line underneath it [the Scotland defeat] and moving on as quickly as we could, focusing 100 per cent on the Ireland game.
"It was a particularly good training week. Everything felt like it was a bit more accurate, and it showed in the game.
"I think the way we played showed what we can do. We went up a gear.
"For me, I am just happy to be back playing with a bit of confidence and a bit of form now, and hopefully we can carry it forward into France next week, both individually and as a team."