Teenager North gets Wales nod

WALES coach Warren Gatland has tipped teenager George North to be “an absolute star” of the future after handing him his RBS 6 Nations debut.

The 18-year-old Scarlets wing will replace an injured Shane Williams against France in Paris, returning to Test rugby following a four-game absence because of shoulder trouble.

North underlined rich credentials by scoring two tries on his debut when Wales lost to world champions South Africa in November, and Gatland is excited by what he could offer under the Stade de France floodlights.

“We think George is a real quality player of the future, someone who is going to be special,” said Gatland, whose other enforced change from the side that beat Ireland last weekend sees prop Adam Jones replacing dislocated shoulder victim Craig Mitchell.

“He is still learning his trade, but in a year or two I think he is going to be an absolute star in the game. It was a hard call on someone like (wing) Morgan Stoddart, who has done really well for us. It was a toss of the coin decision which way we went”.

Williams has said on several occasions he will quit international rugby following the World Cup in New Zealand later this year. North is clearly viewed as the long-term successor, but he realises Williams is a tough act to follow, especially given his strike-rate of a Wales record 53 tries in 79 Tests.

“Shane is a legend of the game,” said North. “It’s a huge ask to get close to his sort of performances.

“If I play half as well as Shane, then I will have had a good game. It’s a great honour to play in Shane’s position.

“I’ve been back playing three or four weeks now, and the shoulder feels good. I can’t complain.

“I feel I am ready, it’s just the waiting for it now. I want to get the ball in my hands and show what I can do.”

Jones, despite playing only 20 minutes’ rugby since suffering an elbow injury in January, will be given the task of subduing powerful French loosehead Thomas Domingo, whose return is among five changes from the side humbled by Italy.

Wales still have an outside chance of winning the Six Nations title, but they would need to beat France by 20-plus points and hope Grand Slam-chasing England suffer a similarly sized defeat against Ireland in Dublin.

France, meanwhile, are striving to avoid a third defeat in one Six Nations campaign for the first time since 2001.

“We are just concentrating on ourselves and getting ourselves right for Saturday night,” said Gatland.

“France are really dangerous when they are a wounded bull, and for the players coming in this weekend it is a great opportunity for them to make a mark. With World Cup selection a few months away, they will be extremely motivated and see it as an opportunity, and for the players re-selected they will be disappointed by their loss in Rome, so we are expecting a desperate French team to come out against us.

“We are going into the final round of the championship in second place and still with a shot at the title. That’s pleasing, but it is not good enough yet — we need to finish the job and win in France.

“The luxury we have is that we are going to know the results of the other two games beforehand. I think Ireland have got a chance of beating England in Dublin, it’s a tough place to go. It is important we go out and play positively, and the key for us is to be a lot more clinical than we have been.”