RHYS Fitzgerald has come in for praise from Cross Keys head coach Greg Woods after shining at openside while club captain Scott Matthews continues his comeback from injury.

Young flanker Fitzgerald is set to keep his place in the Keys starting XV for a Principality Premiership tier two encounter with Bridgend at Pandy Park tonight (kick-off 7.30pm).

Matthews, out for 16 weeks before substitute appearances in cup and league wins against Glynneath and Llanelli respectively, will again be among the replacements this evening.

Keys are keen not to rush Matthews back following such a long lay-off, and Fitzgerald has taken his opportunity to impress with both hands.

“Scott is still getting back into things and I don’t think he’s ready for a full 80 minutes just yet,” said Woods.

“We’re bringing him back slowly and he’ll have more game time off the bench tonight.

“Rhys has been playing very well at seven, and he’s quite similar to Scott. His defence is excellent, he makes lots of tackles and clears out really well.

“Scott knows he has got to earn his shirt back and Rhys will keep the jersey for Bridgend.”

While Bridgend began their tier two fixtures last Saturday by losing 25-14 at home to Newport, Keys edged a tight encounter with Llanelli 9-6 at Pandy Park.

“It wasn’t a great game,” added Woods. “We went backwards a bit after the Foster’s Cup and National Cup games but we did get the win.

“We didn’t make a good start to the season so it was important we got off the mark quickly in tier two.

“Llanelli were always going to react after their performance against Pontypool and we’re going to be looking for a reaction tonight because we need to perform better.”