Since then suspension, a hand injury, a damaged ankle and shoulder surgery, which kept him out of this year's Six Nations, have all blighted his bid for regular rugby.

Having missed the first three months of this season, Jones is ready to take out his frustrations on the English champions. He said: "It's been a long time off, I have trained hard and I am just pleased to get back on the pitch. It's a big game for us and I want to take my chance.

"It doesn't get much bigger than Sale away and I'm only just coming back, so I need a big game to stake my claim to get back into the side. I'm feeling fresh and I've worked harder than ever to build the shoulder back up."

The Scarlets face a demanding Christmas fixture list with three Welsh derbies against the Dragons, Ospreys and Blues, in nine days.

Jones aims to remind national coach Gareth Jenkins he hasn't gone away with top performances against his rivals for the Wales shirt. He added: "Llanelli has to be the priority, but the Welsh derbies will help over Christmas: everyone will be playing their guts out to try and get in the Wales squad and the coaches will all be watching."

Llanelli Scarlets: B Davies, D James, R King, M Watkins, G Evans, C Thomas, C Stuart-Smith, I Thomas, A Gravelle, D Manu, V Cooper, S MacLeod, D Jones, J Bater, N Thomas
Replacements: J Davies, K Owens, A Jones, G Thomas, I Afeaki, L Davies, G Evans