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World Cup skipper Colin Charvis, currently
playing
for second division French club Tarbes, retains the captaincy in the
Wales’
Six Nations squad named by coach Steve Hansen on Monday.
Wales, hoping to build on encouraging displays in the World Cup
against New
Zealand and England, kick off their Six Nations campaign at home to
Scotland
on February 14.
Only two of the squad – Charvis and Leeds back-row forward Alix
Popham –
are not involved in Wales’ new regional set-up.
It is Hansen’s last season in charge before returning home to New
Zealand,
where he is expected to become All Blacks supremo Graham Henry’s
assistant
coach.
European quarter-finalists Llanelli provide seven squad members,
as do
Cardiff Blues, while there are eight Celtic Warriors representatives
and five
from Neath-Swansea Ospreys. Hal Luscombe and Michael Owen fly the
Gwent
Dragons’ flag.
Rhys Williams, Garan Evans and Gareth Thomas would appear to be
the
full-back options, with Kevin Morgan currently sidelined through an
ankle
injury.
“We are happy with the form of all the players, and the more
competition we
have the better it is,” Hansen said.
“The process has been made more difficult than normal due to
the number of
players who have been in good form throughout the regions.
“But rather than seeing this as a negative, we look at that
as a positive.”
Wales’ squad:
Backs
Garan Evans (Llanelli Scarlets), Rhys Williams (Cardiff Blues),
Shane
Williams (Neath-Swansea Ospreys), Craig Morgan (Cardiff Blues),
Gareth Thomas
(Celtic Warriors), Hal Luscombe (Gwent Dragons), Jamie Robinson
(Blues), Mark
Taylor (Scarlets), Tom Shanklin (Blues), Sonny Parker (Warriors),
Iestyn
Harris (Blues), Ceri Sweeney (Warriors), Stephen Jones (Scarlets),
Dwayne Peel
(Scarlets), Gareth Cooper (Warriors)
Forwards
Iestyn Thomas (Scarlets), Duncan Jones (Ospreys), Adam Jones
(Ospreys), G
Jenkins (Warriors), Robin McBryde (Scarlets), Gareth Williams
(Blues), Mefin
Davies (Warriors), Robert Sidoli (Warriors), Brent Cockbain
(Warriors), Gareth
Llewellyn (Ospreys), Michael Owen (Dragons), Colin Charvis (Tarbes,
FRA,
capt), Dafydd Jones (Scarlets), Jonathan Thomas (Ospreys), Martyn
Williams
(Blues), Alix Popham (Leeds)