Wilkins the centre of attention

Feb 24 • General News, International • 2256 Views • Comments Off on Wilkins the centre of attention

Cardiff Blues teenager Robyn Wilkins earns her first start of the Six Nations campaign as one of two changes for Friday night’s clash against France at Stade Sapiac in Montauban.

The midfielder replaces Gemma Rowland who moves down to the replacements bench while Shona Powell Hughes returns at No 8 which means a reshuffle in the pack.

Captain Rachel Taylor moves back to the second row with Jenny Hawkins joining Rowland on the bench with Sioned Harries switching from No 8 to the flank to accommodate Powell-Hughes’ return.

Expecting a stern battle against the championship contenders, Wales head coach Rhys Edwards has stacked the replacements bench with five forwards and just three backs.

France and Wales are the only teams left with an unblemished record after the opening two rounds with Wales currently on top of the points table courtesy of a slightly better points difference.

“Selection proved a difficult task on this occasion as no-one deserved to be dropped but we opted for Robyn instead of Gemma in the centres as she offers a subtle difference in attack. Jenny hasn’t put a foot wrong in the engine room so she is unfortunate to miss out but we’re lucky to have so many players pushing for a starting berth at the moment.

“The team is back to the one which beat England, with the exception of Robyn, and bringing back Shona Powell-Hughes in to the pack is a bonus as we missed her presence against Scotland.

“We know it is going to be extremely difficult to come away with a result against France. They have plenty of experience up front and have brought in a couple of players from Sevens. We know we have to stop their pack from rumbling forward. If we can do that, I see no reason why we can’t come away with a positive result and gain revenge from the defeat in the World Cup,” he said.

Wales Women v France Women
Stade Sapiac, Montauban, Fri 27th Feb 15, KO 7.55pm
15 Dyddgu Hywell (Pontyclun/Scarlets)
14 Elen Evans (Waterloo/Scarlets)
13 Adi Taviner (Skewen/Ospreys)
12 Robyn Wilkins (Llandaff North/Blues)
11 Laurie Harries (Llandaff North/Blues)
10 Elinor Snowsill (Dragons)
9 Amy Day (Llandaff North/Dragons);
1 Caryl Thomas (Bath Ladies/Scarlets)
2 Carys Phillips (Skewen/Ospreys)
3 Catrin Edwards (Llandaff North/Scarlets)
4 Rebecca Rowe (London Welsh/Dragons)
5 Rachel Taylor (Bristol Ladies/Dragons)
6 Sian Williams (Worcester/Dragons)
7 Sioned Harries (Whitland/Scarlets)
8 Shona Powell Hughes (Skewen/Ospreys)

Replacements:
16 Amy Lawrence (Skewen/Ospreys)
17 Jenny Davies (Caernarfon/Blues)
18 Amy Evans (Skewen/Ospreys)
19 Jenny Hawkins (Llandaff North/Blues)
20 Melissa Clay (Pencoed/Ospreys)
21 Keira Bevan (Skewen/Ospreys)
22 Gemma Rowland (Wasps/Dragons)
23 Kerin Lake (Skewen/Ospreys)