Davies to sign dual contract in place of Webb
GARETH Davies is set to further enhance his position as Wales’ first-choice scrum-half by signing a National Dual Contract with the Welsh Rugby Union.
Davies is out of contract at the Scarlets at the end of the season, but has agreed a deal to remain with the Champions Cup quarterfinalists with the WRU paying 60 per cent of his wages.
The rest of the 27-yearold’s pay packet will be funded by the Llanellibased region in what amounts to a good deal for Wayne Pivac’s side.
With Rhys Webb departing Welsh rugby for French giants Toulon at the end of the campaign, Davies will be awarded an NDC in his place.
Webb’s move and the fact he doesn’t meet the WRU’s new 60-cap rule means he will be unavailable for Wales selection for head coach Warren Gatland.
It leaves Davies in pole position to wear the Wales No.9 jersey at the 2019 World Cup in Japan, his awarding of an NDC reflective of that.
Davies has become an integral member of Gatland’s Wales side of late and has scored more international tries than any other scrum-half since the start of the 2015 World Cup.
Davies is set to lead a host of dual deal announcements in Wales in the coming weeks.
His Scarlets team-mates Jonathan Davies and Jake Ball, plus Dragons winger Hallam Amos, are all current Wales players on combination contracts which expire soon. All three are set to stay with their current regions.
Another player who has signed a dual contract is George North, who will announce his region of choice after the Six Nations, according to Scarlets coach Wayne Pivac.