Wales U20 out to prove a point

There are six changes and one positional in the Wales U20 side to take on Scotland in the World Rugby U20 Championship 7th place final tomorrow (Manchester City Academy Stadium, 4.30pm).

Rhun Williams and Harri Millard return from injury in the backline having missed Monday night’s New Zealand game, and Jarrod Evans starting at outside half. Dafydd Hughes returns at hooker, while Bryce Morgan and Morgan Sieniawski get their first starts at lock and openside flanker respectively. Harrison Keddie is handed the captaincy of the side with Tom Phillips ruled out through illness and Shane Lewis-Hughes moves to the blind side flank.

Wales U20 head coach Jason Strange said, “The boys are determined to put in a good performance in response to Monday night’s defeat and in order to finish the tournament and the season on a high. Scotland will provide a tough challenge – we won a very tight game in the Six Nations and Scotland have beaten England and Australia this season.

“While it was disappointing to lose heavily on Monday, it is not a true reflection of our season. Our main purpose is to develop players and learn about them, which we have done without a doubt, especially in the Six Nations, and we have been able to give other players opportunities during this tournament through call-ups and injury, which is positive for the future. We must also continue to develop our strength in depth, a need that is emphasised when you play the likes of New Zealand twice in five days with a depleted squad.

“Having said that, injuries and unavailability are part and parcel of sport, and there’s no doubt our players will grow stronger and learn lessons from the adversity they are experiencing at the moment.”

The match will be streamed live on www.worldrugby.org and highlights will be shown on S4C on Saturday evening following the New Zealand v Wales highlights.

Wales U20 v Scotland:
Rhun Williams (Cardiff Blues); Tom Williams (Ospreys), Joe Thomas (Ospreys), Harri Millard (Cardiff Blues), Jared Rosser (Newport Gwent Dragons); Jarrod Evans (Cardiff Blues), Reuben Morgan-Williams (Ospreys); Corey Domachowski (Cardiff Blues), Dafydd Hughes (Scarlets), Dillon Lewis (Cardiff Blues), Bryce Morgan (Dragons), Seb Davies (Cardiff Blues), Shane Lewis-Hughes (Cardiff Blues), Morgan Sieniawski (Cardiff Blues) Harrison Keddie (capt, Newport Gwent Dragons)

Replacements: Liam Belcher (Cardiff Blues), Rhys Fawcett (Scarlets), Kieron Assiratti (Cardiff Blues), Leon Brown (Newport Gwent Dragons), Kieran Williams (Ospreys), Declan Smith (Scarlets), Daniel Jones (Scarlets), Joe Gage (Ospreys)