The Wales U20 head coach wants to put his team under pressure ahead of their U20 Six Nations campaign that kicks-off with two tough away trips to France and Italy.
The French have already sold out the 20,000 seater stadium in Vannes for their game on Saturday 1 February and Whiffin wants his players to get a taste of what they can expect by playing against a powerful U23 side.
While he knows the on-field test will be a tough one, he also wants to see as many fans as possible turn out to give his players a flavor of the atmosphere they will be facing on the road in France and Italy.
Both games kick off at 7.30pm, with the first at Cardiff Arms Park on Friday 10 January and the second at Llandovery’s Church Bank on Friday 17 January. Tickets are £5 at the gate and U16s go free with an adult.
“We have France and Italy away to start our Six Nations campaign, so playing against older players will test us. We’ll be playing against two heavy packs, which is just the build-up we need,” said Whiffin.
“A lot of boys are coming back from last year and since then they have had a lot of exposure in Super Rygbi Cymru (SRC) that will help push them and the team further forward.
“We’ve spoken from the first day about our goals and challenges and that is to get into the top four at the Junior World Cup. With a different bounce of the ball and result against New Zealand last year, that might have been achieved.
“But we’ve got to go out and learn how to win those close games. We’ve got to be better at managing tight situations.
“We’re a team that threatens well with the ball, but we’ve got to be better defensively, and our discipline definitely has to improve. That is a big area for us to focus on.”
Among those players returning from last season are Cardiff centre Steff Emanuel and Dragons lock Nick Thomas. They have both appeared in the EPCR Challenge Cup this season, while Cardiff wing Tom Bowen is another player to have broken through on the European front.
Aidan Boshoff has played Premiership Cup rugby at Bristol Bears this season, while the Gloucester Academy duo Deian Gwynne and Caio James both came on as replacements in an EPCR Challenge Cup game in Vannes earlier in the season.
Among the other players able to return from last year’s squad are Ioan Emanuel, Sam Scott, Harri Wilde, Harri Ford, Harry Rees-Weldon – who has two Dragons Development XV games under his belt this season – Elijah Evans and even Ospreys back rower Morgan Morse
“I came in this time last year and started from scratch with the playing group, this year we have had more contact with the players with 5 academy skills clinics & two fixtures against Scotland.
“That has meant we are far better prepared than last year. As a coaching group we have a better understanding of our strength in depth, and I feel we are starting from a stronger position.
“We’ve got a lot of good players coming through our academies, universities and SRC. We just have to be patient with them and understand it takes time for them to come through.
“Because we are also running an U19s programme as well as the U18s, and I am involved in that with Richie Pugh, it doesn’t actually feel as though there is a great turn over. Give or take, 50% of the squad are back from last year, although the team will be significantly different.
“There are some good U18s from last year coming through and it’s now about blending those players into the new squad. Ultimately, we want our players in a red jersey as much as possible.
“The U19 fixtures are great for those boys who only get one year at U18 and then one at U20. It allows us to get our hands on the players more often.
“The U23 Academies team creates another representative team for players to aspire to after they come out of the U20 set-up. It means they can get out of the comfort zone of their own clubs and work with different coaches and remain aspirational.
“It allows players who have gone through different routes to come together to put their hands up to try to get a professional contract if they don’t currently have one.
“The majority of the squad will be made up with academy players. There are a couple of university players who will also get an opportunity, as will some players who are playing well in the SRC.
“We want to be able to provide more opportunities for players to put on the Welsh jersey. This is a stepping-stone to create another team and to keep our Welsh players Welsh.
Logan Franklin has come in from the Dragons having got into their academy set up after performing well at Bargoed. He has really impressed me and is a potential bolter, while Scott Delnovo has been playing very well in the SRC with Aberavon.
“They both prove you can take a different route to the top.”
