After being draw into Group 4 with notables Russia, Germany and Finland, John Toshack knew the chances of qualifying for the World Cup would be an extraordinary challenge. However with a solid long term plan the Welsh side, packed with young talent is proving itself to be a formidable side.
For Wednesday's friendly against Poland in Portugal the manager has called upon the following players:
Goal
Wayne Hennessey (Wolverhampton),Boaz Myhill(Hull City),Owain Fon Williams (Stockport County)
Defender
Gareth Bale(Tottenham Hotspur),Neal Eardley (Oldham),Chris Gunter (Tottenham),Lewin Nyatanga (Derby County), Sam Ricketts (Hull City),Ashley Williams (Swansea City), Rhys Williams (Middlesbrough / Loan Burnley)
Midfield
Jack Collison (West Ham),Andrew Crofts (Peterborough),David Edwards (Wolverhampton),Carl Fletcher(Crystal Palace),Owain Tudur Jones (Swansea City),Joe Ledley (Cardiff City),Aaron Ramsey (Arsenal),David Vaughan (Blackpool)
Striker
Craig Bellamy (Manchester City),David Cotterill (Sheffield United),Ched Evans (Manchester City), Sam Vokes (Wolverhampton)
Originally named to the squad the following players have been ruled out due to injury:
Craig Davies (Brighton & Hove Albion)
Craig Morgan (Peterborough United)
Simon Davies (Fulham)
Robert Earnshaw (Nottingham Forest)
Jason Koumas (Wigan Athletic)
James Collins (WHU)
In related news the U21 match between Northern Ireland and Wales on Tuesday 10th February 2009 has been canceled due to poor weather conditions.