2013 Lion Davies made Scarlets joint captain with McCusker

The Scarlets have announced British and Irish Lions centre Jonathan Davies as a joint captain for the 2013-14 season.

Davies joins 2012-13 skipper Rob McCusker, the Wales back-rower, as one of the Welsh region's leaders.

Scarlets head coach Simon Easterby said: "These two players will support each other very well, they bring different skill sets as well as having complementary qualities."

The Scarlets host Leinster in their Pro12 opener on Friday, 6 September.

Davies, 25, has made 36 Wales Test appearances and appeared in all three Lions clashes on their successful 2013 tour to Australia.

He came through the Scarlets ranks and has made 104 appearances for them.

And having starred on the Lions tour, the Scarlets hope Davies remains at Parc y Scarlets beyond the end of the forthcoming campaign.

McCusker, 27, has won six Wales caps and made 92 appearances for the Llanelli-based region.

However, McCusker was largely overlooked by Wales in 2012-13, returning for their summer tour to Japan while Davies and his fellow Welsh lions were in Australia.

Easterby added: "They are committed and ambitious professionals, with an exemplary work ethic and the ability and experience to take our team forward based on our themes of leadership and decision-making under pressure that came out of last season's review.

"They will set the benchmark for a number of our up-and-coming young players who look to senior players for vision and leadership during the more intense times in our season.

"Both expect very high standards and lead from the front in terms of their own performances.

"This will undoubtedly have a positive impact on the whole squad."