Good form at regional level has given the likes of Ospreys forwards Ryan Jones, Ian Evans and Jonathan Thomas their chances against the Wallabies. Dragons second row Ian Gough joins Evans at lock and Blues back row forward Martyn Williams makes up the back five.
In the front row gritty performances for Llanelli Scarlets in the Heineken Cup have earned Matthew Rees the hooker berth and he is flanked by Blues prop Gethin Jenkins and Ospreys cornerstone Adam Jones.
Captain Stephen Jones is partnered by his regional half-back partner Dwayne Peel in the back division and the 2005 Grand Slam pairing of Tom Shanklin (Blues) and Gavin Henson (Ospreys) is re-united in the centre.
The back three is made up of Gareth Thomas (Toulouse) and Shane Williams (Ospreys) on the wings with Dragons full back Kevin Morgan claiming the No.15 jersey.
“We are blessed with an extremely strong squad in most positions and have had some tough decisions to make, but have selected on form and form alone,” said Jenkins. “This squad of 30 or so players is the strongest that Wales have been able to boast for some time, but we are at the beginning of a process as a management group and this is our first chance to get it right.
“Past reputations have been disregarded and we have looked at the form players in Welsh rugby and overseas and selected the players that we feel are at the top of their game. Australia will present us with a mighty challenge and there is no chance that we will underestimate them, but we have beaten them at international level before and we have picked a team to go out there and win a game of rugby on Saturday.
“It will be a big day for all of us, a full house at the Millennium Stadium and the eyes of an expectant nation upon us, but we must be ready to rise to the challenge that the Invesco Perpetual Series represents. Those players not selected today will be given their chances later in the series, but for now we must all get behind this group of players and create the right environment for them to succeed this weekend.”
Wales: Kevin Morgan; Gareth Thomas, Tom Shanklin, Gavin Henson, Shane Williams; Stephen Jones (C), Dwayne Peel; Gethin Jenkins, Matthew Rees, Adam Jones, Ian Gough, Ian Evans, Jonathan Thomas, Martyn Williams, Ryan Jones
Replacements: Rhys Thomas, Duncan Jones, Chris Horsman, Alun Wyn Jones, Michael Phillips, James Hook, Mark Jones
Wales
15 Kevin MORGAN (NEWPORT GWENT DRAGONS)
DoB: 23.02.77. 5’10”. 13st 4lbs
International record: 36 caps (W22, L14; 50 pts – 10T)
14 Gareth THOMAS (TOULOUSE)
DoB: 25.07.74. 6’2″. 16st 4lbs
International record: 88 caps (W 47, L 41; 180 pts – 36T)
13 Tom SHANKLIN (CARDIFF BLUES)
DoB: 24.11.79. 6’2″. 15st 7lbs
International record: 33 caps (W 15, L 18; 75 pts – 15T)
12 Gavin HENSON (OSPREYS)
DoB: 01.02.82. 6’0″. 15st 7lbs
International record: 20 caps (W 11, L 7; 127 pts – 3T, 29C, 17PG, 1DG)
11 Shane WILLIAMS (OSPREYS)
DoB: 26.02.77. 5’8″. 12st 13lbs
International record: 39 caps (W 19, L 19, D 1; 130 pts – 26T)
10 Stephen JONES (LLANELLI SCARLETS, CAPTAIN)
DoB: 08.12.77. 6’1″. 14st 12lbs
International record: 56 caps (W 26, L 29, D 1; 506 pts – 6T,91C,95PG,3DG)
9 Dwayne PEEL (LLANELLI SCARLETS)
DoB: 31.08.81. 5’9″. 13st 8lbs
International record: 45 caps (W 21, L 23, D 1; 20 pts – 4T)
1 Gethin JENKINS (CARDIFF BLUES)
DoB: 17.11.80. 6’2″. 19st 0lbs
International record: 37 caps (W 15, L 21, D 1; 15 pts – 3T)
2 Matthew REES (LLANELLI SCARLETS)
DoB: 09.12.80. 6’2″. 15st 11lbs
International record: 2 caps (W 1, L 1)
3 Adam Rhys JONES (OSPREYS)
DoB: 08.03.81. 6’0″. 19st 0lbs
International record: 33 caps (W 17, L 15, D 1; 5 pts – 1T)
4 Ian GOUGH (NEWPORT GWENT DRAGONS)
DoB: 10.11.76. 6′ 5″. 17st 4lbs
International record: 32 caps (W 14, L 16, D 2; 5 pts – 1T)
5 Ian EVANS (OSPREYS)
DoB: 04.10.84. 6’8″. 17st 0lbs
International record: 2 caps (L 2; 5 pts – 1T)
6 Jonathan THOMAS (OSPREYS)
DoB: 27.12.82. 6’5″. 16st 10lbs
International record: 24 caps (W 12, L 11, D 1; 20 pts – 4T)
7 Martyn WILLIAMS (CARDIFF BLUES)
DoB: 01.09.75. 6’0″. 15st 8lbs
International record: 62 caps (W 27, L 33, D 2; 43 pts – 8T, 1DG)
8 Ryan JONES (OSPREYS)
DoB: 13.03.81. 6’5″. 17st 10lbs
International record: 8 caps (W 6, L 2; 5 pts – 1T)
REPLACEMENTS
16 Thomas Rhys THOMAS (CARDIFF BLUES)
DoB: 23.04.82. 6’0″. 16st 6lbs
International record: 11 caps (W 5, L 5, D 1)
17 Duncan JONES (OSPREYS)
DoB: 18.09.78. 6’0″. 17st 4lbs
International record: 29 caps (W 12, L 16, D 1)
18 Chris HORSMAN (WORCESTER WARRIORS)
DoB: 02.02.78. 6’3″. 17st 6lbs
International record: 4 caps (W 2, L 2)
19 Alun Wyn JONES (OSPREYS)
DoB: 19.09.85. 6’5″. 17st 0lbs
International record: 2 caps (L 2)
20 Michael PHILLIPS (CARDIFF BLUES)
DoB: 29.08.82. 6’3″. 14st 0lbs
International record: 14 caps (W 7, L 6, D 1; 10 pts – 2T)
21 James HOOK (OSPREYS)
DoB: 27.06.85. 6’0″. 12st 11lbs
International record: 2 caps (L 2; 15 pts – 1T, 2C, 2PG)
22 Mark JONES (LLANELLI SCARLETS)
DoB: 07.11.79. 6’2″. 13st 7lbs
International record: 22 caps (W 8, L 12, D 2; 45 pts – 9T)
