Bristol's Callum Sheedy among 7 uncapped players in Pivac's Wales squad

Wales boss Wayne Pivac has named seven uncapped players in his 38-man squad for the upcoming autumn campaign which commences with an October 24 friendly versus France in Paris.  

Two uncapped forwards are named, hooker Sam Parry and back-row Josh Macleod, while five uncapped backs are included: Kieran Hardy, Callum Sheedy, Johnny Williams, Louis Rees-Zammit and Ioan Lloyd.

Bristol pivot Sheedy had been involved in a tug of war with England in recent times and, along with Williams, had played for England against the Barbarians.

RWC squad members Tomas Francis, Rhys Patchell and Jonathan Davies who all missed the Guinness Six Nations campaign earlier this year, return from injury to be included.

After kicking off their autumn fixtures in Paris, Wales will then prepare for their re-arranged Six Nations finale against Scotland at Parc y Scarlets on October 31. 

Pivac’s squad will then take part in the inaugural Autumn Nations Cup, kicking the tournament off on November 13 against Ireland in Dublin before fixtures against Georgia and England as well as the tournament’s play-off final on December 5.

“We are looking forward to getting back to international rugby and getting the squad together again,” said Wales head coach Wayne Pivac. “This campaign is hugely important looking to the future and long term to the RWC in 2023.

“We kick off the campaign with a game against France which will help prepare us for the re-arranged Six Nations match versus Scotland which is an important game and important we get a good performance from.

“We then go into the Autumn Nations Cup (ANC) which is an exciting tournament and a great opportunity for us.  It is a chance for us to continue developing our game, give opportunities to players and test them at this level. It is ideal preparation for the all-important 2021 Six Nations which will come around quickly after the ANC.”

WALES SQUAD – AUTUMN 2020

Forwards (21): Rhys Carre (Cardiff Blues, 8 Caps), Wyn Jones (Scarlets, 25 Caps), Nicky Smith (Ospreys, 35 Caps), Ken Owens (Scarlets, 77 Caps), Ryan Elias (Scarlets, 13 Caps), Sam Parry (Ospreys)*, Samson Lee (Scarlets, 41 Caps), Dillon Lewis (Cardiff Blues, 26 Caps), Tomas Francis (Exeter Chiefs, 48 Caps), Leon Brown (Dragons, 10 Caps), Alun Wyn Jones (Ospreys, 138 Caps), Will Rowlands (Wasps, 1 Cap), Jake Ball (Scarlets, 46 Caps), Seb Davies (Cardiff Blues, 7 Caps), Cory Hill (Cardiff Blues, 25 Caps), Aaron Wainwright (Dragons, 21 Caps), Ross Moriarty (Dragons, 45 Caps), Taulupe Faletau (Bath, 76 Caps), Josh Navidi (Cardiff Blues, 24 Caps), Justin Tipuric (Ospreys, 76 Caps), Josh Macleod (Scarlets)*.

Backs (17): Rhys Webb (Ospreys, 33 Caps), Gareth Davies (Scarlets, 53 Caps), Kieran Hardy (Scarlets)*, Dan Biggar (Northampton, 83 Caps), Rhys Patchell (Scarlets, 19 Caps), Callum Sheedy (Bristol)*, Owen Watkin (Ospreys, 22 Caps), Nick Tompkins (Dragons, 4 Caps), Jonathan Davies (Scarlets, 81 Caps), Johnny Williams (Scarlets)*, George North (Ospreys, 95 Caps), Josh Adams (Cardiff Blues, 24 Caps), Louis Rees-Zammit (Gloucester)*, Jonah Holmes (Dragons, 3 Caps), Leigh Halfpenny (Scarlets, 89 Caps), Ioan Lloyd (Bristol)*, Liam Williams (Scarlets, 63 Caps).