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In and Out

Henson in, Stephen Jones out as Wales name Six Nations squad

Warren Gatland today named a 35-man squad ahead of next week’s Six Nations training camp in Poland.

WARREN GATLAND HAS handed Gavin Henson another international lifeline by recalling the utility back to the Wales squad ahead of the upcoming RBS Six Nations.

Henson, who turns 30 next month, has not played competitively for Wales since the 2009 Six Nations, after which he announced his plans to take a break from international rugby.

The Cardiff Blues star returned from his self-imposed exile ahead of last year’s World Cup in New Zealand, but was ruled out of the tournament with a broken arm and was then overlooked by Gatland for December’s international test against Australia.

Gatland today announced a 35-man squad which will travel to Gdansk for a pre-tournament training camp next week, including seven uncapped players – Scarlets trio Rhodri Jones, Liam Williams and Lou Reed, Ospreys pair Ashley Beck and Rhys Webb, and Blues winger Harry Robinson.

But there is no place for Wales’ record cap holder, Stephen Jones, whose international career could now be at an end.

The veteran fly-half, who turned 34 last month, won his 104th international cap when he came on during the final stages of the defeat against France in the World Cup semi-finals.

Rhys Priestland and James Hook were both preferred to Jones at 10 during the World Cup, and the Scarlets man was left out of Gatland’s 28-man panel for the Australia test.

“We have had to strike a balance with this squad, the majority are those players who excelled for Wales during the Rugby World Cup, but are also taking the opportunity to look at one or two youngsters before probably cutting our numbers even further before the start of the RBS 6 Nations,” Gatland told the WRU’s official website.

We have kept a couple of older heads and we have injuries, with Alun Wyn Jones, Josh Turnbull, Rob McCusker and Luke Charteris all unavailable to us, but the emphasis on development and planning for the future is there for everyone to see.

Backs: Mike Phillips, Lloyd Williams, Rhys Webb, Rhys Priestland, James Hook, Jamie Roberts, Jonathan Davies, Scott Williams, Gavin Henson, Ashley Beck, George North, Leigh Halfpenny, Alex Cuthbert, Harry Robinson, Liam Williams, Lee Byrne.

Forwards: Craig Mitchell, Adam Jones, Ryan Bevington, Gethin Jenkins, Paul James, Rhys Gill, Rhodri Jones, Matthew Rees, Huw Bennett, Ken Owens, Bradley Davies, Ian Evans, Lou Reed, Ryan Jones, Dan Lydiate, Sam Warburton, Justin Tipuric, Toby Faletau, Andy Powell.

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