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Six Dragons named by Wales U20

13/03/2019

Wales Under-20 Head Coach Gareth Williams has named his side to face Ireland at Zipworld Stadium on Friday night in the final round of the Six Nations (kick-off 7.05pm) – and includes six Dragons in the match day squad.

Aneurin Owen, Dafydd Buckland and Ed Scragg all start the fixture while Will Griffiths, Tom Devine and Dan Babos are named among the replacements.

The side contains seven changes, two positional, in the starting XV from the side which lost to Scotland last Friday evening in Meggetland.

In the backs, Tomi Lewis returns to the wing in place of Alex Morgan while Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler gets his first start of the campaign, with Max Llewellyn dropping to the bench.

Sam Costelow, after a bright cameo as a replacement against Scotland, starts at fly half with Cai Evans moving to full-back while Ioan Davies switches to the wing from No 15.

Up front, Rhys Davies and Ed Scragg return to the front row and second row respectively.

"It was a big aim of ours to win the championship but that is obviously off the table after our disappointing defeat to Scotland last time out but Friday is still a Test match at international level, against a traditional rival in Ireland so I’m sure it will be a fantastic occasion," said Williams.

"Ireland will be very driven to finish the job off after claiming the championship with one round to go but if we show the quality and passion from the England game then we should be able to give a good account of ourselves."

Williams hasn’t been afraid to juggle his team selections around and this one is no different, with Costelow earning his first start at U20 level.

"It’s a reward for how he has been performing throughout the Six Nations, especially for that 15-20 minutes against Scotland. Cai Evans has been retained in the team because he has been quality throughout the competition and is yet to miss a kick at goal.

"Dragons second row Ed Scragg gets another start, also as a reward for his performances and he continued his good form against Scotland as a second half replacement.

"We know Ireland are seeking a Grand Slam, but we are focused on ourselves, we’re appreciative on how well they have done this campaign and they are a real threat and possess leadership across the park. But the boys are determined to finish the campaign off on a high note in front of a big home crowd."

Wales U20 v Ireland: 15 Cai Evans (Ospreys) 14 Tomi Lewis (Scarlets) 13 Tiaan Thomas-Wheeler (Ospreys) 12 Aneurin Owen (Dragons) 11 Ioan Davies (Cardiff Blues) 10 Sam Costelow (Leicester Tigers) 09 Dafydd Buckland (Dragons); 01 Rhys Davies (Ospreys) 02 Dewi Lake (Ospreys – CAPT) 03 Ben Warren (Cardiff Blues) 04 Ed Scragg (Dragons) 05 Teddy Williams (Cardiff Blues) 06 Ellis Thomas (Llanelli) 07 Jac Morgan (Aberarvon/Scarlets) 08 Iestyn Rees (Scarlets)

Replacements: 16 Will Griffiths (Dragons) 17 Tom Devine (Dragons) 18 Nick English (Bristol Bears) 19 Jac Price (Scarlets) 20 Ioan Rhys Davies (Cardiff Blues) 21 Dan Babos (Dragons) 22 Max Llewellyn (Cardiff Blues) 23 Ryan Conbeer (Scarlets)

Dragons second row Ed Scragg gets another start, also as a reward for his performances and he continued his good form against Scotland as a second half replacement...
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