RBS SIX NATIONS: Ireland v Wales
Venue: Croke Park, Dublin Date: Saturday, 13 March Kick-off: 1430 GMT
Coverage: Watch on BBC One, BBC HD channel, Red Button and BBC Sport website; Radio 5 live, Radio Wales and Radio Cymru; text commentary on BBC Sport website and mobiles

Martyn Williams made his Wales debut against the Barbarians in 1996

Martyn Williams will be honoured with the Wales captaincy when the open-side flanker breaks Colin Charvis' Welsh Test forward cap record in Ireland.

The 34-year-old replaces calf injury victim Ryan Jones as Wales skipper when he wins his 95th cap in their RBS Six Nations showdown in Dublin on Saturday.

Number eight Gareth Delve starts just his second Test in Jones' place as lock Luke Charteris replaces Deiniol Jones.

British and Irish Lions hooker Matthew Rees returns in place of Huw Bennett.

But Lions team-mate and Ospreys scrum-half Mike Phillips is out with a knee injury as Warren Gatland keeps Richie Rees at number nine, the Wales coach naming an unchanged backline for the third successive game.

Phillips, an unused substitute in the defeat to France after returning from an ankle injury, started his first game since October in the Ospreys' defeat at Edinburgh on Sunday but picked up a knock.

Lions loose-head prop Gethin Jenkins is still out - despite training on Monday - with a calf injury.

So Paul James continues alongside Lions tight-head Adam Jones and recalled hooker Rees, who has recovered from a serious groin injury, in the Wales front row.

Delve, the in-form Gloucester captain, is straight into the team as one of the three changes less than 24 hours after his 11th hour Wales call-up.

The 27-year-old will start his second Test alongside experienced pair Williams and Jonathan Thomas in the back row.

Delve - the 6ft 3in, 18st 2lb powerhouse - won the last of his nine caps in the 2008 summer tour to South Africa but goes from Wales outcast to starter at Croke Park on Saturday.

Deiniol Jones withdrew from Wales' Six Nations squad - joining fellow lock Lions star Alun Wyn Jones in Wales' treatment room - after injuring his ribs in the first-half of their 26-20 to France in Cardiff in Wales' last outing.

So Luke Charteris returns to the second-row alongside the impressive Bradley Davies.

Sale Sharks scrum-half Dwayne Peel replaces Phillips on the bench while experienced international Ian Gough takes the berth vacated by Charteris

"We have taken the decision not to include any players who are unable to take a full part in training in the build up to the Ireland game," said Gatland.

"This Ireland side will be meticulous in its planning and for this game in particular we need to get our preparation exactly right and once we had reached that conclusion a couple of selection decisions were really made for us.

"Ryan has been managing his calf but it has hampered his involvement in training and he needs to get it right for his own sake as well as for his region, who have some big matches of their own coming up, and for the sake of the national cause as we countdown to the World Cup.

"Mike (Phillips) is carrying a knock which he picked up on Ospreys duty at the weekend and so was not in contention.

"But this is an opportunity for Martyn, who is one of our key leaders, to captain Wales again and rise to that challenge after doing a good job against Scotland last year when Ryan was again forced to withdraw."

Williams, who has previously publicly stated he did not want to be a Wales captain, will lead his country for the seventh time.

The Cardiff Blues veteran and double-Grand Slam winner lost his first five games as Wales skipper in 2003 and 2004 but broke his captaincy hoodoo when he led Wales to a 26-13 win over Scotland at Murrayfield in 2009.

Lions star Stephen Jones, meanwhile, will equal Neil Jenkins' fly-half appearance record on Saturday when he wins his 87th cap in Dublin.

606: DEBATE Is Martyn Williams the right choice as Wales captain?

Gatland added: "This is also a great opportunity for Gareth Delve, who we have been keeping a close eye on and who is also a leader himself.

"We feel we have a loose forward trio here who can be competitive.

"Matthew (Rees) comes in for Huw (Bennett) and offers us his experience.

"We were please with Huw's performance against France, his stats around the field were fantastic, but we are looking for 50 or 60 minutes out of Matthew to maybe give us a little more stability in the set-piece.

"Ireland are an impressive and experienced side with a pack of players who have been around for a long time and who are tough players.

"We meet them after a good win against England and a loss to France by a score line which probably flattered the French.

"We know we need to improve but we do think we have the talent and ability in this squad to match any squad and confident we are good enough to win this match if we can get things right on the day."

Wales team to face Ireland in Dublin on Saturday:
Lee Byrne; Leigh Halfpenny; James Hook, Jamie Roberts; Shane Williams; Stephen Jones, Richie Rees; Paul James, Matthew Rees, Adam Jones, Bradley Davies, Luke Charteris, Jonathan Thomas, Martyn Williams (capt), Gareth Delve.
Replacements: Huw Bennett, Rhys Gill, Ian Gough, Sam Warburton, Dwayne Peel, Andrew Bishop, Tom Shanklin.

Wales' Six Nations squad:

Backs: Leigh Halfpenny, Tom James, Richard Rees, Jamie Roberts, Tom Shanklin (all Cardiff Blues) Dan Biggar, Andrew Bishop, Lee Byrne, James Hook, Kristian Phillips, Tom Prydie, Shane Williams (all Ospreys), Jonathan Davies, Stephen Jones (all Scarlets), Dwayne Peel (Sale Sharks).

Forwards: Ken Owens (Scarlets), Bradley Davies, Gethin Jenkins, Sam Warburton, Martyn Williams (all Cardiff Blues), Huw Bennett, Ian Gough, Paul James, Adam Jones, Ryan Jones, Jonathan Thomas (all Ospreys), Matthew Rees (Scarlets), Luke Charteris, Dan Lydiate (both Newport Gwent Dragons), Eifion Lewis-Roberts (Sale Sharks), Rhys Gill (Saracens), Gareth Delve (Gloucester).

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