Cory Hill has been told he has a chance to stamp his leadership on Wales this weekend when he captains the tourists against Argentina.
Wales coach Warren Gatland has made Hill his skipper for the first Test versus the Pumas in San Juan on Saturday.
Wales’ other co-captain for the tour – Ellis Jenkins – led Wales to victory over South Africa in Washington last week, so this will be an opportunity for Hill to show he should keep the job for the second and final Test next weekend.
“It’s a great opportunity for Cory,” said Gatland. “Some players got a lot out of last weekend and Cory, as a senior tight five forward at the moment, had to step up.
“I am looking forward to seeing him lead the team after Ellis Jenkins did a great job last weekend.”
Dragons lock Hill, who was named his region’s captain last summer, has played in all 10 Tests this season. The 26-year-old was a late developer within the international game, but has seized his chance in the absence of the injured Scarlets lock Jake Ball.
It will be Hill’s first taste of international captaincy and he will pack down alongside Adam Beard in the second-row as one of eight changes from the side that beat the Springboks.
There is one change in the front-row with Wyn Jones coming into the side to start alongside Elliot Dee and Dillon Lewis.
Seb Davies and Ross Moriarty remain in the back-row and are joined by James Davies at openside flanker.
Scarlets half-backs Gareth Davies and Rhys Patchell are named with Hadleigh Parkes partnering Scott Williams in the midfield. George North, Josh Adams and Hallam Amos make up the back-three.
“We have made a number of changes for Saturday as we want to give as much opportunity to the squad as possible during this campaign,” said Gatland.
“Last weekend was an important result in difficult conditions up in Washington and we know we have got two big tests ahead of us against Argentina.
“They are a side that come together full of confidence and it is important we take our opportunities.
“There is a lot of exciting youth in this squad and Saturday is a chance for them to continue building their experience on the test scene and to put a marker down.”
Ryan Elias, Rob Evans and Tomas Francis provide the front-row cover on the bench with Josh Turnbull and uncapped back-row Aaron Wainwright completing the forward contingent. Aled Davies, Gareth Anscombe and Owen Watkin provide the back-line cover.
Wales: 15 Hallam Amos, 14 Josh Adams, 13 Scott Williams, 12 Hadleigh Parkes, 11 George North, 10 Rhys Patchell, 9 Gareth Davies, 8 Ross Moriarty, 7 James Davies, 6 Seb Davies, 5 Cory Hill (c), 4 Adam Beard, 3 Dillon Lewis, 2 Elliot Dee, 1 Wyn Jones
Replacements: 16 Ryan Elias, 17 Rob Evans, 18 Tomas Francis, 19 Josh Turnbull, 20 Aaron Wainwright, 21 Aled Davies, 22 Gareth Anscombe, 23 Owen Watkin
Date: Saturday, June 9
Venue: Estadio San Juan del Bicentenario, San Juan
Kick-off: 16:40 local (20:40 GMT)
Referee: Andrew Brace (Ireland)
Assistant referees: Jaco Peyper (South Africa), Mathieu Raynal (France)
Television match official: Marius Jonker (South Africa)
