Levan Maisashvili has made five changes to his Georgia side ahead of the Autumn Nations Cup Round 2 clash with Wales at Parc y Scarlets on Saturday.
The Lelos come into the match in Llanelli off the back of a 40-0 defeat to England last weekend, and Maisashvili has opted to shake up his starting XV in the hope of putting in a competitive performance against Wayne Pivac’s side.
Scrum-half Vasil Lobzhanidze comes into the starting line-up in place of Gela Aprasidze, with the Brive man returning to partner Tedo Abzhandadze in the half-backs.
Merab Sharikadze will skipper the side once again, and is paired with Giorgi Kveseladze in midfield, while Akaki Tabutsadze keeps his place on the right wing.
On the opposite flank, Sandro Todua is promoted from the bench to start, with Lasha Khmaladze continuing at full-back.
Jaba Bregvadze has earned himself a recall at hooker, with Mikheil Nariashvili and Beka Gigashvili the starting props, with this only the second time the trio will start together in an international match.
Kote Mikautadze comes in to start in the second row, where he will be joined by Grigor Kerdikoshvili, who will be earning just his fourth international cap.
Otar Giorgadze is the final change for the Lelos in the back row, where he will feature alongside the duo of Beka Saghinadze and Beka Gorgadze.
Maisashvili said: “I expect Wales to be more diverse in their attacks than they usually are. Although the Welsh team is practically the same as at the last Rugby World Cup, and though they don’t look as good as they used to – we should not let ourselves be misguided by their latest results.
“They have way more options in attack compared to England and we should expect more surprises in static phases, so we have to think more about defence too.”
Georgia team to play Wales:
15. Lasha Khmaladze (84 caps)
14. Akaki Tabutsadze (4 caps)
13. Giorgi Kveseladze (26 caps)
12. Merab Sharikadze (c) (68 caps)
11. Sandro Todua (87 caps)
10. Tedo Abzhandadze (17 caps)
9. Vasil Lobzhanidze (53 caps)
1. Mikheil Nariashvili (63 caps)
2. Jaba Bregvadze (60 caps)
3. Beka Gigashvili (15 caps)
4. Grigor Kerdikoshvili (3 caps)
5. Kote Mikautadze (64 caps)
6. Otar Giorgadze (27 caps)
7. Beka Saghinadze (14 caps)
8. Beka Gorgadze (29 points)
Replacements:
16. Giorgi Chkoidze (11 caps)
17. Guram Gogichashvili (16 caps)
18. Lexo Kaulashvili (2 caps)
19. Lasha Jaiani (3 caps)
20. Giorgi Tkhilaishvili (59 caps)
21. Gela Aprasidze (27 caps)
22. Demur Tapladze (3 caps)
23. Tamaz Mchedlidze (58 caps)
