Damien Neill has included 15 Malta-based players in his 28-strong squad which is preparing for next Saturday’s European Nations Cup clash against Sweden at the Hibs Stadium.

This number, however, will have to be reduced by six players tomorrow, when he will be announcing his 22-man squad for the match.

Addressing a news conference yesterday, Neill said some players will certainly be disappointed as only 22 will make it to the final squad line-up. “We have two newcomers in the form of James Morris of Hartpury College and Daniel Apsee of Rumney RFC. We will be taking a good look at these two players who will certainly bolster our squad, especially for the future, where we are expecting a very interesting two to three years,” he said.

Neill added that he was absolutely glad that there were no injuries at present. He said: “It is probably the first time that we have a full squad at our disposal. This is another reason why I feel confident that we can beat our opponents on Saturday.

“So far we have met three times. We have beaten them twice and they have won on the other occasion. I am really looking forward for Saturday’s clash where we can all draw a lot of satisfaction.”

Earlier, MRFU president Martin Galea launched an appeal to local enthusiasts to attend Saturday’s match and give their full support to the locals. “We are convinced that our fans’ vociferous support will help the players to get more motivated in the hope of achieving another victory,” he said.

Galea thanked the sponsors, especially, Farsons, Mediterranean Bank, Gasan Mamo Insurance, Melita and Bortex, saying that their financial support had enabled the Union to cover most of the expenses involved in the organisation of the matches.

Malta squad

Alistair Livesey, Dragan Cerketa, Vince Stivala, Harry Collins, Tom Holloway, Joss Howland, Daniel Holliday, Mark Davey, Max Galea, Tome Pace Moore, Rob Holloway, Malcolm Attard, Clayton Cassar, Toby Quarandon, Charlie Sammut, Mike Bonavia, Kyle Mason, James O’Brien, Daniel Apsee, Dominic Busuttil, James Morris, Matt Camilleri, Luke Watts, Roderick Borg, Joseph Cutajar, Nathan Gatt, Oliver Sacco, Darren Deguara.

The referee of the match will be P. Murinello of Portugal. The match commissioner is P. Mariaud of France. Touch judge (1) is Lional De Silva of Malta and (2) Marc Harding of Sweden. The 4th official is Don Hewer of Malta.