DAI YOUNG is building more than a team at the Blues and has put faith in his squad and youngster Rhys Jones for their must-win Magners league clash against Munster.
Outside-half Jones is set to start his first match for the Blues since signing on-loan from Sale Sharks in December last year and will be joined by several players more used to starting on the bench than the pitch.
A win against Munster would put the Blues in at least third place ahead of their trip to Stradey Park on March 21 for what could be a pivotal game against the second-placed Scarlets. If the Scarlets slip up away to Ulster the Blues would go second.
But Young is conscious it is as a result of his squad that the Blues are still competing for both the Magners league title and the Heineken Cup.
“It’s always my philosophy as a coach to build a squad not just a team,” said Young. “The squad has put us in this position challenging for things so it’s important we recognise that.”
Abergavenny-born Jones, 20, has featured for Wales at under-18, 19 and 20 level and it was as part of the under-19 squad that he first worked with Young.
Young, now the Blues’s Director of Rugby, said: “He is creative and has got a lot of talent. He’s a great kid with a great attitude. It has always been my intention to get him some game time and have a real look at him.
“The changes [to the team] are more of a reflection that we go through the rest of the season with players that have played rugby.”
Richie Rees comes in at scrum-half in place of Jason Spice, Jamie Robinson returns at centre alongside Gareth Thomas and in the scrum, T Rhys Thomas and Gary Powell get the chance to join John Yapp from the off.
All eyes will be on Rhys Jones’s debut at outside-half bar those of Warren Gatland, who will be carefully monitoring three returning Welsh internationals, Deiniol Jones, Robin Sowden-Taylor and Jamie Roberts.
Tal Selley is back from international duty with the Welsh sevens's squad and lines up on the wing.
Munster welcome back senior internationals of their own in the form of Paul O'Connell, Alan Quinlan, Tony Buckley and Peter Stringer.
With seven games left to play in the Magners League, the Blues remain in the running for the title. They lie fourth in the table, level on points with third-placed Munster, and two points behind the Scarlets.
They trail the leaders, Leinster, by eight points after losing to them 24-17 in Ireland earlier this month.
“I said to the players after the game we couldn’t say we played poorly and there’s far more positives came out of the game than negatives,” said Young. “In saying that we were all hugely disappointed that we didn’t come away with the result,” he added.
“To make no bones about it we were the better team. We were the team that tried to play the rugby and on occasions we probably tried to play too much rugby. Mistakes let them back into it.”
Young admitted the Blues need a favour from elsewhere to halt Leinster’s run-in to the title, but it is in the Welsh side’s own hands to overhaul both Munster and the Scarlets; starting on Saturday, St David’s Day.
Cardiff Blues: 15 Ben Blair, 14 Tal Selley, 13 Jamie Robinson, 12 Gareth Thomas, 11 Jamie Roberts, 10 Rhys Jones, 9 Richie Rees, 1 John Yapp, 2 T Rhys Thomas 3 Gary Powell, 4 Deiniol Jones, 5 Paul Tito, 6 Mamma Molitika, 7 Robin Sowden-Taylor, 8 Xavier Rush (c). Replacements: 16 Tauf’ao Filise, 17 Gareth Williams, 18 Scott Morgan, 19 Ben White, 20 Jason Spice, 21 Nick Macleod, 22 Dafydd Hewitt.
Outside-half Jones is set to start his first match for the Blues since signing on-loan from Sale Sharks in December last year and will be joined by several players more used to starting on the bench than the pitch.
A win against Munster would put the Blues in at least third place ahead of their trip to Stradey Park on March 21 for what could be a pivotal game against the second-placed Scarlets. If the Scarlets slip up away to Ulster the Blues would go second.
But Young is conscious it is as a result of his squad that the Blues are still competing for both the Magners league title and the Heineken Cup.
“It’s always my philosophy as a coach to build a squad not just a team,” said Young. “The squad has put us in this position challenging for things so it’s important we recognise that.”
Abergavenny-born Jones, 20, has featured for Wales at under-18, 19 and 20 level and it was as part of the under-19 squad that he first worked with Young.
Young, now the Blues’s Director of Rugby, said: “He is creative and has got a lot of talent. He’s a great kid with a great attitude. It has always been my intention to get him some game time and have a real look at him.
“The changes [to the team] are more of a reflection that we go through the rest of the season with players that have played rugby.”
Richie Rees comes in at scrum-half in place of Jason Spice, Jamie Robinson returns at centre alongside Gareth Thomas and in the scrum, T Rhys Thomas and Gary Powell get the chance to join John Yapp from the off.
All eyes will be on Rhys Jones’s debut at outside-half bar those of Warren Gatland, who will be carefully monitoring three returning Welsh internationals, Deiniol Jones, Robin Sowden-Taylor and Jamie Roberts.
Tal Selley is back from international duty with the Welsh sevens's squad and lines up on the wing.
Munster welcome back senior internationals of their own in the form of Paul O'Connell, Alan Quinlan, Tony Buckley and Peter Stringer.
With seven games left to play in the Magners League, the Blues remain in the running for the title. They lie fourth in the table, level on points with third-placed Munster, and two points behind the Scarlets.
They trail the leaders, Leinster, by eight points after losing to them 24-17 in Ireland earlier this month.
“I said to the players after the game we couldn’t say we played poorly and there’s far more positives came out of the game than negatives,” said Young. “In saying that we were all hugely disappointed that we didn’t come away with the result,” he added.
“To make no bones about it we were the better team. We were the team that tried to play the rugby and on occasions we probably tried to play too much rugby. Mistakes let them back into it.”
Young admitted the Blues need a favour from elsewhere to halt Leinster’s run-in to the title, but it is in the Welsh side’s own hands to overhaul both Munster and the Scarlets; starting on Saturday, St David’s Day.
Cardiff Blues: 15 Ben Blair, 14 Tal Selley, 13 Jamie Robinson, 12 Gareth Thomas, 11 Jamie Roberts, 10 Rhys Jones, 9 Richie Rees, 1 John Yapp, 2 T Rhys Thomas 3 Gary Powell, 4 Deiniol Jones, 5 Paul Tito, 6 Mamma Molitika, 7 Robin Sowden-Taylor, 8 Xavier Rush (c). Replacements: 16 Tauf’ao Filise, 17 Gareth Williams, 18 Scott Morgan, 19 Ben White, 20 Jason Spice, 21 Nick Macleod, 22 Dafydd Hewitt.
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