Harris joins list of wounded Welsh players ahead of clash with Italy

IESTYN HARRIS has been added to the list of injury doubts for Wales’s final RBS 6 Nations Championship clash against Italy at The Millennium Stadium on Saturday.

Harris pulled out of Wales’ team for the 31-21 defeat against England last weekend the day before the game and is still struggling with a knee problem.

It looks likely that Tom Shanklin will continue at centre.

Coach Steve Hansen, preparing for his final match in charge of Wales before returning to New Zealand next month, also confirmed Brent Cockbain and Jonathan Thomas are injury concerns.

Cockbain limped off after only 25 minutes at Twickenham with a sprained left ankle and Thomas picked up a bruised shoulder and hip.

“We will make an assessment later in the week and give them time to recover,” said Hansen.

Skipper Colin Charvis, scrum-half Gareth Cooper and centre Mark Taylor have recovered from minor knocks.

Meanwhile the Welsh Rugby Union yesterday announced a four-year extension to their deal with kit suppliers Reebok. The new multi-million pound deal will run through the next World Cup in 2007 and up to 2008.

It will mean the WRU and Reebok will have been commercial partners for 12 years and more than 100 international matches.

“This is great news for Welsh rugby and further evidence of the growing commercial strength of our produce,” said WRU chief executive David Moffett.

“Reebok is one of the world’s great sports brand companies and we take it as a great compliment that they value their association with the WRU and the Welsh team so highly.”

Reebok said they were delighted to be associated with Welsh rugby.

“Reebok is very proud to announce this extension to its long standing relationship with the WRU,” said Reebok UK managing director Dave Singleton.

“We feel the team is on the verge of a major breakthrough thanks in no small part to the good work of Steve Hansen and his coaching team.”

With the kit supplier sorted it leaves the WRU to find a shirt sponsor to replace Rockport, whose deal runs out at the end of the summer tour to Argentina and South Africa.

Emirates Airlines has been widely tipped to be unveiled as the new shirt sponsors.

However, Moffett confirmed the WRU are still in talks with four or five potential companies.