With a new coaching team set to take Wales into the Six Nation the festive derbies have never taken on such importance, and one player who will have more of a point to prove than most is Cardiff openside Thomas Young.
He has recovered from injury to start for the Blue and Blacks in their Boxing Day clash with Dragons RFC at Rodney Parade (2.15pm kick-off).
Openside flanker is the most hotly contested position in Wales with the likes of Justin Tipuric, Jac Morgan, Taine Basham, Tommy Reffell and Josh Macleod all in the frame, but no player this season has been in better form than Young who has been a revelation since re-joining Cardiff from Wasps.
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Former Wales boss Wayne Pivac consistently ignored the 30-year-old on all but one occasion so it will be interesting to see whether Warren Gatland sees a place for him in his squad, especially given his ability to play across the whole back-row. During Gatland's first tenure in charge he awarded Young two caps while he was at Wasps but given he will now be available for every national training session it would be a surprise if the returning Wales head coach didn't seriously consider selecting the all-action openside.
Young has been selected in a very strong Cardiff back-row alongside Josh Turnbull and Taulupe Faletau. They go head to head with the Dragons loose forward trio of Aaron Wainwright, Harri Keddie and Ross Moriarty - a duel which will go a long way to deciding the result of this derby.
Cardiff director of rugby Dai Young has also bolstered his pack with the return of former Wallaby Lopeti Timani, who partners Rory Thornton in the second-row with Rhys Carré, Liam Belcher and Dmitri Arhip forming the front row.
After making a switch to full-back during the second half of last week’s win over Newcastle Falcons, Josh Adams will wear the No. 15 jersey in Newport, as Theo Cabango re-joins the back three. With Max Llewellyn ruled out for 10-12 weeks with an ankle injury, Ben Thomas takes his place at inside centre, while Tomos Williams partners with Rhys Priestland at half-back.
Dragons RFC head coach Dai Flanagan is also welcoming back players from injury with George Nott starting at lock alongside Joe Davies, while JJ Hanrahan, Angus O'Brien, and Steff Hughes come into the back-line.
Flanagan has urged his side to step up to the plate physically, saying: "We need to make sure physically and tactically we're on point. We want to win every game of rugby we play in, and we were really disappointed we lost out to Pau last weekend. We need to improve and there is no better place to do that than in a derby. We’re all looking forward to a big game in front of a big and vocal Rodney Parade crowd.”
Cardiff boss Young said: "We have a good record against the Dragons but we have rode our luck on a number of occasions recently and there are games where they probably deserved to win. They have continued their improvement this season, they have the strongest squad they have had in a long time and Dai Flanagan’s brought further positivity and confidence to their ranks. We will definitely need to be at our best and are preparing for a hugely physical challenge at Rodney Parade.
“We go into the encounter on the back of some good form with two bonus-point wins in the European Challenge Cup but we know this will be a step up in intensity and physicality. If we can perform to our best then we can kick off a busy Christmas period with a good win before facing the Ospreys and Scarlets back at the Arms Park. The group is hugely motivated and excited for a crucial run of fixtures, which could define our season.”
Dragons RFC: Angus O'Brien; Rio Dyer, Steff Hughes, Jack Dixon, Ashton Hewitt, JJ Hanrahan, Rhodri Williams; Rhodri Jones, Bradley Roberts, Chris Coleman, Joe Davies, George Nott, Aaron Wainwright, Harri Keddie (capt), Ross Moriarty.
Replacements: Brodie Coghlan, Aki Seiuli, Lloyd Fairbrother, Matthew Screech, Sean Lonsdale, Lewis Jones, Sam Davies, Sio Tomkinson.
Cardiff: Josh Adams; Owen Lane, Rey Lee-Lo, Ben Thomas, Theo Cabango; Rhys Priestland, Tomos Williams; Rhys Carré, Liam Belcher, Dmitri Arhip, Lopeti Timani, Rory Thornton, Josh Turnbull (capt), Thomas Young, Taulupe Faletau.
Replacements: Kristian Dacey, Corey Domachowski, Will Davies-King, Seb Davies, Ellis Jenkins, Lloyd Williams, Jarrod Evans, Mason Grady.
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