Jonny Wilkinson is in line to make his latest comeback from injury on Saturday. The England World Cup winner, who has not played since suffering a lacerated kidney at the beginning of November, has been passed fit by Newcastle's medical staff and is in contention for a place in the squad at Leicester.
"Jonny did some contact stuff on the bags last week and, in physical terms, he could not be fitter," said Newcastle director of rugby John Fletcher. "All he needs now is to play. He is away with England for the first three days this week and we have Thursday off, so it will be Friday before we can get a good look at him. I am keeping in touch with him . . .we will take it from there before deciding whether to chuck him in against Leicester."
Wilkinson has played only three matches for the Falcons this season.
Wilkinson's colleague on the 2005 Lions tour to New Zealand, Ospreys' wing Shane Williams, will miss Wales' opening match of the Six Nations against Ireland after suffering a hip injury against Sale in the Heineken European Cup last Saturday. Williams will be out for at least two weeks, leaving Wales short of cover on the wing after Mark Jones was injured earlier this month. Coach Gareth Jenkins yesterday announced a 33-man squad for the tournament, saying it marked the start of their campaign to win the World Cup in October.
There was a return for the thirtysomething forwards Colin Charvis and Mefin Davies, but a notable omission was the number eight Michael Owen, who captained Wales in the latter stages of their 2005 grand slam as well as last year. Jenkins has asked the Ospreys to play Gavin Henson at fullback against Ulster on Saturday, the position in which he is likely to be considered for Wales with James Hook emerging as the preferred choice at inside-centre.
"Gavin is an adaptable player," said Jenkins, who met the four Welsh regions yesterday to agree a programme for the management of elite players. "We have injuries in the back division with Sonny Parker, Shane and Mark out for a bit, while Tom Shanklin should return from injury on Saturday. We aim to win the World Cup, but one thing you cannot control is injuries. You need to keep your players fit and that is why a meaningful partnership with the regions is so important."
New Scotland captain Chris Paterson does not feel his place in the starting line-up is guaranteed despite his promotion. Coach Frank Hadden has given Paterson the honour of leading the team into the Six Nations next month but that does not mean the 28-year-old feels safe with that knowledge. And he is determined to be at the top of his game for the opening match against England on February 3rd.
"I'll be in the starting line-up if I put my hand up and perform - but competition for places in the back three is as fierce as it has been during the whole of my time involved with national squad," he said. "I don't think anyone would be guaranteed their place regardless of whether they are captain or not."
Paterson captained Scotland during a disastrous Six Nations whitewash in 2004 but he insisted there was no danger of history repeating itself this time around. "2004 speaks for itself. We came off the World Cup and lost a lot of senior players who were hard to replace and we didn't play well as a team or as individuals."
Scotland recorded wins over France and England in last season's Six Nations, but a 15-44 thumping by Australia in November underlined the need for Hadden's side to kick-on as the build-up to the World Cup intensifies.
WALES SQUAD:Backs: K Morgan, G Henson, C Czekaj, S Williams, Gareth Thomas, J Robinson, T Shanklin, G Evans, J Hook, H Luscombe, S Jones (capt), C Sweeney, D Peel, G Cooper, M Phillips. Forwards: G Jenkins, D Jones, A Jones, C Horsman, R Thomas, M Davies, M Rees, I Gough, B Cockbain, R Sidoli, S Morgan, AW Jones, R Jones, A Popham, M Williams, Gavin Thomas, C Charvis, G Delve.
