Gareth Thomas to reach Welsh milestone
Gareth Thomas will become Wales’ most capped player when he leads his country into battle for the 93rd time in the first of two Tests on tour against Australia, to be played at Telstra Stadium, Sydney on Saturday.
Thomas – who was the 924th international – and his team-mates will contest the James Bevan Trophy, named after Wales’ first player, the Melbourne-born, Welsh-raised Bevan who was captain for the inaugural international against England in 1881.
“It’s a fantastic achievement, Gareth’s been a great example for all players and is the epitome of a quality professional,” said head coach Gareth Jenkins.
“He is a significant selection, his experience and enthusiasm is on display for everyone to see in training and he has a renewed sharpness and edge to his game that can only benefit this Wales team.
“You wouldn’t bet against him breaking through the 100-caps barrier with two games on this tour, three summer matches and then the Rugby World Cup just around the corner.
“He was inspirational after missing the first four matches of the Six Nations this year and he leads a team bubbling with international experience into a match we are looking to win.”
Thomas leads the charge from the right wing, with Chris Czekaj guarding the other flank, and the captain will be followed into battle by the new half-back pairing of scrum-half Mike Phillips and James Hook. Jamie Robinson and Sonny Parker form the centre partnership, with Robinson playing outside his New Zealand born colleague.
Colin Charvis is following fast on Thomas’ heels with a similarly impressive 84-caps, and more than 10-years international experience, which he adds to a forward pack formed entirely from 20-cap plus players – save hooker Matthew Rees who has 10 appearances to his name.
Adam Jones and Iestyn Thomas make up the front row, alongside Rees, and Aussie native Brent Cockbain partners Rob Sidoli in the second row.
Gavin Thomas – the only other player apart from the captain to have scored a try against the Wallabies – joins flanker Charvis and number eight Jonathan Thomas to complete the back row.
Prop Ceri Jones and lock/back row Scott Morgan are the only uncapped players in the match-day squad and both provide cover from the bench.
“With Colin it’s a case of us looking to him to reproduce his regional form on the international stage,” said Jenkins.
“We are looking for players of his versatility, like Jonathan Thomas he is capable of covering each position in the back row and he is without doubt a player of outstanding ability who could put his hand up on this tour.
“Gavin (Henson) is another player we will need to have a close look at.
“We felt we needed to introduce him slowly, but he his likely to play a part in the game at some stage and we can further assess his progress then.
“He simply has to play rugby sooner or later and he has been going well in training, full of smiles and really helping to energise the squad.
“On a final note it was sad to find out Gareth Williams has to leave the tour, he too has made an impact with everyone and he will be bitterly disappointed to miss out.
“We now look forward to welcoming two hookers Mefin Davies and Steve Jones to the squad this Friday.
“This team has a huge incentive with Rugby World Cup squad places up for grabs.
“And both sides will be looking for victory in order to gain psychological advantage before we meet in the World Cup.”
Wales: 15 Lee Byrne, 14 Gareth Thomas (c), 13 Jamie Robinson, 12 Sonny Parker, 11 Chris Czekaj, 10 James Hook, 9 Mike Phillips, 8 Jonathan Thomas, 7 Gavin Thomas, 6 Colin Charvis, 5 Rob Sidoli, 4 Brent Cockbain, 3 Adam Jones, 2 Matthew Rees, 1 Iestyn Thomas
Replacement: 16 Richard Hibbard, 17 Ceri Jones, 18 Michael Owen, 19 Scott Morgan, 20 Gareth Cooper, 21 Ceri Sweeney, 22 Gavin Henson
Date: Saturday, 26 May
Venue: Telstra Stadium, Sydney
Kick-off: 20.05 (10.05 GMT)
Referee: Jonathan Kaplan (South Africa)
Touch judges: Paul Honiss (New Zealand), Mark Lawrence (South Africa)
