TORFAEN Tigers duo Liam Silver and Jake Thomas have been included in the 15-man Wales rugby league squad that will compete in the Commonwealth Games exhibition tournament next month.

The nine-a-side competition for players under the age of 23 takes place just north of Brisbane on February 23-24 – there won’t be any Welsh representation in the women’s event.

Wales won bronze in Glasgow in 2012 when it was an under-19 competition and four players from that success – Ben Jones, Morgan Jeffries, Paul Edwards and Zak Williams – feature again.

With six full Wales caps and 89 appearances and 37 tries for South Wales Scorpions since his pro debut aged 17, Connor Farrer is the principality’s most experienced player in the travelling party.

Farrer, who only just missed out on a place in last year’s World Cup squad, is one of 12 who came through the development system in South Wales.

Two squad members, Blake Turner of Rochdale Hornets and Daniel Crabtree of Ulverston, have played community rugby league in North Wales.

West Wales Raiders, who make their debut in League 1 on the day the team flies out to Australia, provide six players, more than any other club.

Wales Under-23 head coach Shane Eccles said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for these young players to challenge themselves on a big international stage.

“It has been a tough process to select a final 15-man squad as we had interest from lots of players of a high standard and it was very difficult to make the final selections due to the quality of players identified as potential squad members.

“This alone shows the growth of the sport in Wales and looks to continue into the future.

“Now that we have selected the squad, we are starting to focus on the competition and prepare for what promises to be an exciting event.”

Wales squad: Cobi Green (Bradford Bulls), Liam Rice-Wilson, Zak Williams (both Coventry Bears), Blake Turner (Rochdale Hornets), Liam Silver, Jake Thomas (both Torfaen Tigers), Daniel Crabtree (Ulverston ARLFC), Rhys Gant (Valley Cougars), Karlin Claridge, Connor Farrer, Macauley Harris, Morgan Jeffries, Ben Jones, Aneurin Walker (all West Wales Raiders), Paul Edwards (unattached).