Exeter's exciting Cardiff-born 21-year-old wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso is not in the squad amid rumours he will declare to play for Steve Borthwick's England; Dafydd Jenkins, 21, named captain of a squad which contains five uncapped players and further eight in line for Six Nations debut
Tuesday 16 January 2024 18:58, UK
Dafydd Jenkins has been named Wales captain for the 2024 Six Nations, but wing Immanuel Feyi-Waboso was not included amid reports he will represent England.
The squad is without wing Louis Rees-Zammit, who has announced he is to join the NFL's international player pathway programme this month and will depart Gloucester and Wales Rugby.
Jenkins, 21, leads a group which contains five uncapped players, with a further eight in line for a championship debut.
A number of experienced players have departed the set-up, with fly-half Dan Biggar and full-back Leigh Halfpenny retiring since the Rugby World Cup in France, and back-three Liam Williams moving to play club rugby in Japan. Second row Alun Wyn Jones and back-row Justin Tipuric retired before the tournament.
The uncapped players include Cardiff back-rows Alex Mann and Mackenzie Martin, plus their club teammates hooker Evan Lloyd and full-back Cameron Winnett, as well as Bath tighthead prop Archie Griffin.
Another eight players could make their first Six Nations appearance, including Keiron Assiratti, Corey Domachowski, Cai Evans, Kemsley Mathias, Joe Roberts and Teddy Williams who all made their international debuts last summer plus Scarlets duo Sam Costelow and Ioan Lloyd.
There are recalls for Ospreys centre Owen Watkin and Cardiff back-row James Botham in a Wales squad that has an average age of 25.
Talented back-row Jac Morgan, who was named co-captain of Wales at the World Cup, will miss the rest of the season due to a knee injury and so was unavailable, while experienced hooker Ken Owens remains out with a back injury.
No 8 Taulupe Faletau has not played since breaking his arm vs Georgia at the World Cup and is not scheduled back until later in February, while Exeter forward Christ Tshiunza recently suffered a setback in his recovery from a broken foot.
Gatland said: "There's a little bit of experience in terms of players like George North and Gareth Davies - we wanted a little bit of continuity with that and we're also thinking about the next Rugby World Cup cycle and giving some youngsters an opportunity, some youngsters that are not featuring regularly for their club sides.
"I'm really excited about those youngsters and that opportunity to develop them over the next four years.
"What I've learned in the past is that even though we've done all that hard work in terms of preparation and build up to the RWC. For me it's about going back the start a little bit, going back to honing the basics and hammering away at that and almost like starting again. You have to reset in terms of our goals and what we want to achieve."
Regarding the captaincy, Gatland added: "We've been incredibly impressed with Daf in terms of his professionalism and how he prepares. It's a great opportunity for Daf, he's captained Exeter on a number of occasions, he's a well-respected member of the squad. I rang and spoke to him and he was absolutely delighted to accept the role and I'm sure that he'll do a great job and get a huge amount of support from the rest of the squad."
Wales begin their 2024 Six Nations campaign at home to Scotland on Sunday February 4 (3pm kick off).
Forwards (19): Corey Domachowski (Cardiff Rugby - 6 caps), Kemsley Mathias (Scarlets - 1 cap), Gareth Thomas (Ospreys - 26 caps), Elliot Dee (Dragons - 46 caps), Ryan Elias (Scarlets - 38 caps), Evan Lloyd (Cardiff Rugby - uncapped), Keiron Assiratti (Cardiff Rugby - 2 caps), Leon Brown (Dragons - 23 caps), Archie Griffin (Bath Rugby - uncapped), Adam Beard (Ospreys - 51 caps), Dafydd Jenkins (Exeter Chiefs - 12 caps), Will Rowlands (Racing 92 - 29 caps), Teddy Williams (Cardiff Rugby - 1 cap), Taine Basham (Dragons - 16 caps), James Botham (Cardiff Rugby - 9 caps), Alex Mann (Cardiff Rugby - uncapped), Mackenzie Martin (Cardiff Rugby - uncapped), Tommy Reffell (Leicester Tigers - 13 caps), Aaron Wainwright (Dragons - 43 caps)
Backs (15): Gareth Davies (Scarlets - 74 caps), Kieran Hardy (Scarlets - 18 caps), Tomos Williams (Cardiff Rugby - 53 caps), Sam Costelow (Scarlets - 8 caps), Cai Evans (Dragons - 1 cap), Ioan Lloyd (Scarlets - 2 caps), Mason Grady (Cardiff Rugby - 6 caps), George North (Ospreys - 118 caps), Joe Roberts (Scarlets - 1 cap), Nick Tompkins (Saracens - 32 caps), Owen Watkin (Ospreys - 36 caps), Josh Adams (Cardiff Rugby - 53 caps), Rio Dyer (Dragons - 14 caps), Tom Rogers (Scarlets - 3 caps), Cameron Winnett (Cardiff Rugby - uncapped)
