Wales Under 20 scrum half Aled Davies has suffered a torn AC knee ligament in training and will miss this Saturday’s clash with England at Parc y Scarlets.
The injury will require surgery, with an approximate recovery time of six months, ruling Davies out of action for the rest of the season. He has been replaced in the starting line-up by Dragons No 9 Jonathan Evans, with Pontypridd’s Lewis Jones coming onto the bench.
Wales U20 head coach Darren Edwards has selected Blues and Cardiff lock Macauley Cock as his Six Nations captain and is upbeat about the fixture.
Cook said, “It is a great honour to play for your country, but to be given this opportunity to captain the side for the Six Nations is fantastic. I have a number of quality players around me and I just hope to put in a good performance and lead by example.”
Edwards added: “You don’t get many bigger challenges than playing a strong England side at home to kick off the Six Nations and we need to make sure we stay focussed on our own game. This will be a tough opener for us but it will give us a clear idea of where we are and where we need to go.”
Jonathan Evans said of his inclusion: “It’s unfortunate for Aled to pick up an injury like this, I certainly wasn’t expecting to start, but training has been going well and I just want to take my chance now on Saturday.
“I played against England U18s last year in Swansea. England were very good and came at us quickly in the first ten minutes. It was certainly the toughest game I’d played in up until that time and a steep learning curve for me.
“My aim this season was to get into the Under 20 squad so I’ve achieved that and more by playing for the Dragons already.
“I just want to challenge myself now to improve throughout this competition and the rest of the season. A win on Saturday would give us great momentum for the rest of the tournament, that is obviously our aim at Parc y Scarlets.”
Wales U20 v England: Liam Williams (Llanelli), Harry Robinson (Blues), Ben John(Ospreys/ Aberavon), Jack Gadd (Bristol), Eli Walker (Ospreys / Swansea); Matthew Morgan (Ospreys / Swansea), Jonathan Evans (Dragons / Newport); Rhodri Jones (Scarlets / Llanelli), Kirby Myhill (Scarlets / Llanelli), Will Taylor (Ospreys / Swansea), Macauley Cook (capt, Blues / Cardiff), Matthew Screech (Blues / Pontypridd), Edward Siggery (Pontypridd), Calum Thomas (Blues / Pontypridd), Ben Thomas (Ospreys / Bridgend).
Replacements: Rob Evans (Scarlets / Carmarthen Quins), Sam Parry (Llandovery), Cory Hill (Blues / Pontypridd), Luke Hamilton (Blues / Glamorgan Wanderers), Lewis Jones (Pontypridd), Steve Shingler (Scarlets / Llanelli), Owen Williams (Blues/Cardiff). Travelling reserve: Adam Warren (Llandovery),
Wales Under 20 Six Nations fixtures 2011
Wales v England – Saturday 5 Feb – 18.30 – Parc y Scarlets
Scotland v Wales – Friday 11 Feb – 19.30 – Sterling
Italy v Wales – Friday 25 Feb – 19.00 – Cosenza
Wales v Ireland – Friday 11 March – 19.10 – Parc y Scarlets
France v Wales – Friday 18 March – 20.30 – Albi
Tickets for Wales’ home games at Parc y Scarlets are just £10 for adults and £5 for Under 16s and are available from the Parc y Scarlets ticket office (tel / 0871 871 8088 and to personal callers up until kick-off.
