World News – UK – George North recalled an unfamiliar outside center when Wayne Pivac named the Wales team to face Italy early on

Saturday marks North’s sixth test start for Wales with its 98th birthday. International game after winning three of his previous five tests in midfield

Wales gave George North an off-center start for Saturday’s Test against Italy in Llanelli after naming his team a day ahead of schedule. The veteran has been recalled after being fired from the national team after Wales lost to Ireland.

Saturday marks North’s sixth test start for Wales at 98. International game after winning three of his previous five tests in midfield and two tries. First pick off center Jonathan Davies was fit and up for grabs after missing the Georgia and England games but Pivac admitted « this is the time to get answers » as to the depth behind Davies.

« He was unlucky enough to get a red card out of lockdown so he just didn’t play rugby. It’s your off-ball reaction time and those little things that didn’t happen for him, « explained Pivac.

« He’s pretty hungry right now, having been to Clubland for the past few weeks. We believe it will be a good opportunity to race it there like we did at the beginning of the Six Nations. He looked really good in training at 13 so we’ll see how he’s doing. At 13, we think we’ll get him on the ball early in midfield with his power and strength. « 

Alun Wyn Jones will lead a team with several new faces that made their Test debut this fall. Sam Parry, James Botham, Kieran Hardy, Callum Sheedy, Louis Rees-Zammit, Johnny Williams and Ioan Lloyd are ready to add to their test caps. All of these groups except Lloyd, who impressed for Bristol in the Gallagher Premiership last weekend, were named in the starting XI against Italy.

Summing up a testing year that saw Wales lose seven out of nine Tests, Pivac admitted it had been a frustrating start to his tenure.

« The players were frustrated by not trying or by not rolling up their sleeves behind the scenes. It was a combination of reasons – we can see things slowly building up behind the scenes. The selection group remains confident of what we are doing. A good result at the weekend gives a headache when choosing the six-nation squad. « 

Wales were unhappy with the decisions umpire Romain Poite had made against England, particularly with two penalties against Samson Lee. Pivac announced that they are expecting feedback from World Rugby on Thursday.

« If we are in agreement, we don’t have to change so much. If the referees think some of the things we’re doing are wrong, we have to try and make a change, « said Pivac.

« At the moment we’re trying to be positive, to paint good pictures. The example we give is that if a loosehead’s feet are right back and he’s flat like a pancake and has clearly slipped, that’s not the narrow head’s fault. This happened once when Samson [Lee] was punished. There was another time when Samson was flat as a pancake, and so was Kyle Sinckler. It’s really all about consistency. « 

Another absence from the Wales pack is Josh Navidi. The Cardiff Blues flanker is still working its way back from a concussion in early October.

Pivac added: « He’s been able to train for the past three weeks but for the second half of the weeks he hasn’t felt 100 percent and we haven’t fully contacted him. Hopefully it’ll play in a week or two. « 

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Wales National Rugby Team, Wayne Pivac, George North, Italy National Rugby Union Team, Six Nations Championship