NEW Gloucester signing Owen Williams has at last been recognised by his country, Wales, and included in their 36-man squad for the RBS Six Nations Championships which start in February.

Williams has put in some match-winning performances for current club Leicester Tigers, including a last-gasp penalty from half-way that gave his side a two-points European Champions Cup victory over Munster in December.

The fly-half signed for Gloucester last week and is one of seven uncapped players picked by stand-in Welsh national coach Rob Howley.

Another Gloucester ace, back row star Ross Moriarty, is also named in the squad. Moriarty has 12 Welsh caps to his name so far.

There is no place, though, for Gloucester’s 38-times capped Welsh hooker Richard Hibbard who, only last year, expressed his determination to win his place back from Scarlets’ Ken Owens and Ospreys Scott Baldwin.

Hibbard, who scored two tries in Gloucester’s bonus point European Challenge Cup victory over Benetton Treviso in the Italian cold last Saturday, said he wanted to play for Wales again in this current Six Nations in order to then win a place on the British and Irish Lions tour of New Zealand in the summer.

But that dream of facing the mighty All Blacks, though, now looks to be a very distant one for the hooker.

Wales play Italy in Rome in their opening Six Nations clash on February 5 before they face a blockbuster game in Cardiff against Eddie Jones’ England on Saturday February 11.