Regan Grace named in Wales’ provisional squad for Nines World Cup

James Messenger 17 Sep 2019 4:00 PM

St Helens winger Regan Grace is one of four Super League players included in Wales’ provisional 23-man squad for their upcoming Nines World Cup campaign.

The 22-year-old, born in Port Talbot, bagged 22 tries in 32 appearances for the Saints during the regular season and was unlucky to miss out on a place in the recently-named 2019 Super League Dream Team.

He is joined in the squad by Huddersfield’s Chester Butler, Salford’s Gil Dudson and Wigan front-rower Ben Flower.

Following their relegation last weekend, London’s Elliot Kear and Rhys Williams have been included, while Mackay Cutters hooker Lloyd White is one of four players selected from Australia.

The inaugural nines event will take place at Parramatta Eels’ Bankwest Stadium in Sydney on October 18 and 19 and will feature 12 different teams.

The 23 players have been selected to take part in a short training camp in North Wales in late September and Kear will whittle the final squad down to 16 players ahead of the tournament.

Wales head coach John Kear said: “We’ve got plenty of quality in our squad for the 9s World Cup and we’re looking forward to giving it a good go.

“This format is going to be new to a lot of the players, but it’s an opportunity for them to go out to Australia, enjoy themselves and build on last year’s internationals.

“We’ve got a lot of young players coming through and it’s a chance for them to test themselves against some of the best players in the world.

“It’ll be good to have a couple of players returning to the frame this year and they’re all keen to be on board as we build towards the next European Championship and World Cup.”

Wales’ 23-man squad: Rhys Evans, Dalton Grant, Cobi Green (Bradford Bulls), Will Evans (Burleigh Bears), Connor Davies, Curtis Davies, Dan Fleming (all Halifax), Chester Butler, Josh Pinder (Huddersfield Giants), Jake Emmitt (Leigh Centurions), Elliot Kear, Rhys Williams (both London Broncos), Lloyd White (Mackay Cutters), Gil Dudson (Salford Red Devils), Regan Grace (St Helens), Daniel Brown (St Mary’s), Gavin Bennion, Mike Butt, Rhodri Lloyd (all Swinton Lions), Ben Evans (Toulouse Olympique), James Olds (West Brisbane Panthers), Steve Parry (West Wales Raiders), Ben Flower (Wigan Warriors).