Wales Names Uncapped Dragons Aneurin Owen and Che Hope in Nations Championship Squad
BBC Sport Wales reports that Wales has included uncapped Dragons players Aneurin Owen and Che Hope in their Nations Championship squad. Steve Tandy, the head coach, has selected a 39-strong group for the November Tests, with Dewi Lake named as captain.
Notable Selections and Absences
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Uncapped Players:
- Aneurin Owen (Dragons center)
- Che Hope (Dragons scrum-half)
- Rhys Barratt (Cardiff loose-head prop)
- Rio Dyer (Dragons wing)
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Notable Absentees:
- Tommy Reffell (Leicester flanker)
- Taulupe Faletau (fit again, number eight)
Wales will face Japan, New Zealand, and Australia in Cardiff, culminating in a southern hemisphere opponent during finals weekend at Twickenham.
Key Points
- Aneurin Owen, despite being part of the Wales squad in 2021, gets his chance due to an injury to Cardiff's Ben Thomas.
- Che Hope joins Tomos Williams, Reuben Morgan-Williams, and Kieran Hardy (out due to a knee injury) in the scrum-half position.
- Seb Davies (Dragons lock) and Taine Basham (Cardiff number eight) return to the squad for the first time since Tandy took over as national coach.
- Rio Dyer, who has started the season strongly, earns a recall, while in-form Scarlets wing Macs Page is left out.
- Gabriel Hamer-Webb (Leicester) returns after missing out in the summer.
- Lock Dafydd Jenkins, tight-heads Tomas Francis and Archie Griffin, hooker Liam Belcher, and center Louie Hennessey also return after being unavailable for the July Tests against Fiji, Argentina, and South Africa.
Tandy expressed enthusiasm about the squad's depth and the opportunity to welcome back players who were unavailable for the previous Tests.