Peel left out of Wales' Six Nations squad

RUGBY – SQUAD NEWS: British and Irish Lion Dwayne Peel has been left out of the Wales squad for this season's RBS Six Nations Championship.

The Sale Sharks scrumhalf, who has won more than 60 caps, misses out on a place in coach Warren Gatland's 28-man group.

Gatland has named two specialist scrumhalves in Gareth Cooper and Mike Phillips, who returns to Wales duty after missing the entire autumn Test series through injury.

Gatland has trimmed his squad from the one required last November, and Peel is joined by Ospreys hooker Richard Hibbard in failing to make the cut, along with Morgan Stoddart, Dan Biggar, Martin Roberts and Eifion Roberts.

Ospreys lock Ian Evans, meanwhile, is sidelined through injury for the rest of this season, so there is a call-up for 22-year-old Cardiff Blues Heineken Cup hero Bradley Davies, while prop Duncan Jones is another injury absentee.

Davies, the solitary uncapped player in Gatland's party, scored Blues' winning try against Gloucester at Kingsholm yesterday that secured a quarter-final place.

Wales, the reigning Six Nations champions, are strengthened by the return of 2008 Grand Slam heroes like fit-again Ospreys trio Phillips, Gavin Henson and Jonathan Thomas.

Ospreys fullback Lee Byrne is named, despite suffering an ankle injury and limping off against Heineken Cup opponents Perpignan on Saturday, and recent appendicitis victim Mark Jones also makes it.

But Peel's omission is a major surprise, and could seriously dent his chances of making a second successive Lions tour after claiming the Test number jersey in New Zealand in 2005.

"There are a few important players back from injury,” said Gatland. "Huw Bennett is back with us, and the likes of Mike Phillips, Gavin Henson and Jonathan Thomas have been unavailable to us for some time now, so we think they are going to really strengthen the squad.

"We had a very hard decision to make at scrum-half, but were greatly impressed by the performances of Mike Phillips last year during the Six Nations and felt Gareth Cooper has done well, both on tour in the summer and in the autumn series.

"It's a decision that we debated long and hard, and the result is really difficult.

"It probably boiled down to the fact that Mike Phillips has played more rugby than Dwayne Peel since the autumn, but it doesn't mean that the door is always going to be shut for him or anyone.

"We've tried to keep the squad relatively similar to the last Six Nations campaign.

"Part of that philosophy is to keep everything nice and tight and everyone in the squad feeling there is an opportunity to play for Wales, and also make it difficult for people to come into the squad - make players really earn the right."

Wales, currently ranked fifth in the world, launch their campaign against Scotland at Murrayfield on February 8th. They are the bookmakers' favourites to stage a successful title defence.

Gatland added: "We will accept the challenge of being favourites - it's a new experience for a lot of coaches, as well as players.

"We have to make sure we are mentally right for Scotland.

"We have different pressures on us, perhaps a fear of failure, and the expectation is on us to go out there and perform.

"But it will be very much like last year - win the first game and create momentum for success, lose that first game and we come home to England and away to France and it could be a completely different story."

Wales squad:

Forwards: Gethin Jenkins, John Yapp, Adam Jones, Rhys Thomas, Matthew Rees, Huw Bennett, Ian Gough, Alun-Wyn Jones, Luke Charteris, Bradley Davies, Ryan Jones (C), Jonathan Thomas, Daffyd Jones, Andy Powell, Martyn Williams, Robin Sowden-Taylor

Backs: Mike Phillips, Gareth Cooper, Stephen Jones, James Hook, Gavin Henson, Andrew Bishop, Jamie Roberts, Tom Shanklin, Shane Williams, Leigh Halfpenny, Mark Jones, Lee Byrne