Wasps' new signings line up for opener
Fri, 03 Sep 2010 16:59
Four new signings will all line up for London Wasps in their Aviva Premiership opener against Harlequins as part of the London double header on Saturday.
New signings Nic Berry, Riki Flutey, Richard Haughton and Andy Powell all start for Wasps, making their debut for the Club in front of over 70,000 fans at Twickenham.
On the back of a successful pre-season, Director of Rugby Tony Hanks made only two changes to the XV that secured a 36-17 win over Glasgow last weekend.
Amongst the backs debutant Berry, who joined the club from Racing Metro in the off-season, comes in for Joe Simpson - who is ruled out with a tight hamstring.
Berry partners with the returning Flutey, named at flyhalf, whilst a strong centre partnership of Waldouck and Jacobs is complemented with wings Haughton and Varndell. Mark Van Gisbergen is named at fullback and also acts as first choice kicker.
In the pack John Hart has been ruled out late with a shoulder injury and makes way for Powell, who pulls on black and gold for the first time since signing with the Club in July.
A strong front row features a rejuvenated Phil Vickery, back to form after a strong pre-season and recovery from a neck injury which limited game time last season.
Club stalwarts Birkett, Shaw and Worsley, with a staggering 826 Club appearances between them, are named alongside captain Tom Rees who completes the line-up.
Strength and depth is also seen on the bench with regulars Ben Broster, Zak Taulafo, Serge Betsen, Dan Ward-Smith and Dave Walder joining young guns Tom Lindsay, Jack Wallace and new signing scrumhalf Charlie Davies.
Looking ahead to the game, Hanks said: "There's a real sense of excitement going into this game.
"We are ready to play and eager to get the competition underway. Pre-season has been productive and there has been the right amount of time for us to prepare, often you can go into a season wanting more time, but there is a real desire to get out there and play this year which is really positive for us.
"Whilst we still have a couple of niggles and feel the frustration of players like Joe Simpson [hamstring], John Hart [shoulder] and Christian Wade [wrist] who were all very much in contention for this game, we are confident in the depth of this squad and look forward to seeing our new signings mark a make alongside our regulars.
"With over 70,000 fans at Twickenham there is no better way to open a season and we know it will be a highly competitive game against our local rival Quins."
London Wasps: 15 Mark Van Gisbergen, 14 Richard Haughton, 13 Ben Jacobs, 12 Dom Waldouck, 11 Tom Varndell, 10 Riki Flutey, 9 Nic Berry, 8 Andy Powell, 7 Tom Rees (captain), 6 Joe Worsley, 5 Richard Birkett, 4 Simon Shaw, 3 Phil Vickery, 2 Rob Webber, 1 Tim Payne.
Replacements: 16 Tom Lindsay, 17 Zak Taulafo, 18 Ben Broster,
19 Dan Ward-Smith, 20 Serge Betsen, 21 Charlie Davies, 22 Dave Walder, 23 Jack Wallace.
Date: Saturday, September 4
Venue: Twickenham, London
Kick-off: 16.30 (15.30 GMT)
Referee: Chris White
Assistant referees: Roy Maybank, Robin Goodliffe,
TMO: Geoff Warren
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