Jenkins faces fight to be fit for final

CARDIFF Blues will give skipper Gethin Jenkins a late fitness test before finalising their side for Friday’s European Challenge Cup final against Gloucester in Bilbao.

Wales’ most-capped player is nursing a calf injury he suffered in the semi-final victory over Pau last month and is a major doubt for the showpiece clash in northern Spain.

“I’d say Gethin is a big question mark,” admitted head coach Danny Wilson at a press conference at the region’s training base at the Vale Resort yesterday.

“It is a calf niggle from the semifinal that hasn’t healed. We will have to wait and see, we will know more on Wednesday when we are back in training and it’s a final opportunity for him to prove his fitness.

“If he can’t prove his fitness then he won’t be available for selection.”

Losing a player of Jenkins’s biggame experience will be a significant blow to the Blues hopes of replicating their 2010 success in the competition when they stunned Toulon on a memorable afternoon in Marseille.

Jenkins was captain of the Blues side at the Stade Velodrome that day and, even at the age of 37, remains one of the most respected front-row forwards in the world game.

Wilson is at least set to have international back-up in Rhys Gill, who looks likely to take his place in the front row should Jenkins be ruled out.

Gill suffered a hairline fracture of his eye socket and cheekbone following a clash of heads with Josh Turnbull in the narrow Judgement Day defeat to the Ospreys and has had a metal plate inserted.

However, he took a full part in training yesterday and is set to be cleared to play against the Cherry and Whites..

“Obviously, Gethin’s leadership is second to none, he is the captain here,” added Wilson.

“But what we get from his captaincy we get on the training field right through the week, not just on game day.

“Obviously we would miss his leadership on game day because he is a very good captain; however, having said that, we have developed other leaders over the last two to three years and this year Ellis Jenkins has captained the side as much as Gethin Jenkins has.

“Although we will miss Gethin’s leadership, we have enough leaders in the group who have played enough rugby, enough big games this season and we have got two loose-heads in Rhys Gill and Brad Thyer, who have played really good rugby.”