 Luke Charteris was dropped by Wales after defeat by England |
Dragons coach Paul Turner has renewed his call for second row Luke Charteris to be returned to the Wales side. "You would have thought he would be starting against Ireland in Dublin," Turner told BBC Sport Wales. The 6ft 9in lock was dropped after Wales' loss to England and has since seen Jonathan Thomas, Bradley Davies and Deiniol Jones chosen ahead of him. With Jones and Alun Wyn Jones injured and Thomas playing flanker against France, Charteris could be back in. Wales are due to name their team for the Croke Park showdown at 1300 GMT next Tuesday. "Luke played well for us in Ravenhill a couple of weeks ago [in the 22-22 Magners League draw with Ulster]," said Turner.  | It would be good if [Wales] started throwing the ball near to him and he could win the odd line-out |
"It would be great if he can put in another performance against Munster [on Saturday]. "He played out of his skin [for Wales against France] on Friday night [when he replaced the injured Deiniol Jones] and should go straight in [against Ireland]. "His work rate is second to none, his general work rate and defence are very good. "It would be good if [Wales] started throwing the ball near to him and he could win the odd line-out." | 606: DEBATE |
Charteris was Wales' first-choice lock in the autumn, but came under pressure after a poor display against Australia and became one of the fall guys after the opening Six Nations defeat at Twickenham. That annoyed Dragons coach Paul Turner who claimed that the reasons given for dropping him ahead of the win over Scotland were "not good enough". "They just wanted a different combination and the line-out didn't go too well," said Turner. "But he's not calling the line-out and he's got thrown to once and that's not a good enough reason for me." Scrum V Ulster v Dragons analysis Charteris then produced a man-of-the-match display for the Dragons against Ulster, prompting ex-Wales captain Robert Jones and other leading pundits to praise him. The lock was widely expected to win a recall against France, but Deiniol Jones was Wales coach Warren Gatland's surprise choice. The Blues stalwart lasted just 25 minutes against Les Bleus, Charteris coming off the bench and producing a prominent display in the 20-26 defeat. Extended highlights - Wales 20-26 France
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