Cardiff under-18 have made six changes for Wednesday's winner-takes-all Regional Age Grade Men’s Championship clash against Dragons at Cardiff Arms Park (KO 7.30pm).
Both sides head into the final round of action with 100 per cent records, after racking up wins over their Ospreys, RGC and Scarlets counterparts, setting up a mouth-watering finale at the capital.
Dragons currently edge ahead in the table by one point, having secured the maximum 15 points from their three games. The match will be played live in front of the Rygbi Pawb cameras, while entry is included as part of the 2021/22 Cardiff Rugby Season Memberships.
Openside flanker Harry Beddall takes over captaincy duties for Wednesday’s clash and is re-joined by the returning Harper Chamberlain in the back row. Number eight Lucas de la Rua retains his place at the base of the scrum, having crossed the whitewash at Parc y Scarlets last time out.
Kenzie Jenkins moves into the boiler room to partner Tom Caple, while there is a new-look front row selected for the decisive clash.
Millfield loosehead, Ioan Emmanuel, is handed the number one jersey after a Player of the Match display from the bench against Scarlets, with Gavin Parry and Callum Dawe also brought back into the starting XV.
Orson James and Harri Wilde line up as half backs with Sam Harris and Morgan Bowen reunited in midfield. A back three of Jac Davies, Zak Wall and Louis Rochefort-Shugar complete the starting line-up.
Looking ahead to the clash, talent pathway manager, Aled James, said: “We’re really excited for the challenge on Wednesday. As always, our focus will remain on progression and development, both as individuals and as a group.
“In that regard, no matter what the result will be tomorrow, we will be able to reflect on a successful programme with pride, led by our talented group of coaches. We’re confident that the boys can take a lot from this campaign as they take their next steps in the game, and we pride ourselves in developing all-rounded people as well as rugby players.
“Wednesday will bring another set of new scenarios and challenges, but ones the group can hopefully enjoy and learn a lot from - before, during and after the 80 minutes on the pitch.
“We’ve been pleased with how they’ve managed the review of their performances to date, and how they’ve taken that onto the training ground over the last couple of weeks to prepare for Wednesday.
“Again, when it comes to new learning experiences, we’ve handed Harry the opportunity to lead the side out at home on Wednesday. It’s easy to forget that he’s playing above his age group but he’s shown natural leadership skills throughout the campaign and now we wanted to give him this learning curve as captain. Similarly, we've continually rotated our squad throughout as we look to give everyone an opportunity to gain experience and learn at this level.
“Finally we’d like to thank the local clubs within the region as well as our valued education partners, who have all contributed heavily into the success of this campaign. They can be very proud of how players from their system have represented the Cardiff badge in recent weeks.”
Cardiff Rugby under-18: Jac Davies; Zak Wall, Sam Harris, Morgan Bowen, Louis Rochefort-Shugar; Harri Wilde, Orson James; Ioan Emmanuel, Gavin Parry, Callum Dawe, Kenzie Jenkins, Tom Caple, Harper Chamberlain, Harry Beddall (capt.), Lucas de la Rua
Replacements: Evan Wood, Harrison Bellamy, Owen Popple, Rhys Burleton, Liam Jones, Finn Charles, Jacob Symes, Tom Weekley