As a host of Welsh internationals continue to shine for their Premiership clubs, the impact of their exploits abroad is being keenly felt back home in the four regions
KINGSHOLM STADIUM — When the names of the try-scorers are Williams, Llewellyn and Hathaway, and they are playing in bright red jerseys in front of a noisy crowd in a rugby-mad town, you could close your eyes and smile and imagine all was right with the sport in
What are these players doing representing an English club rather than their home regions Cardiff, Dragons, Ospreys and Scarlets in the United Rugby Championship ? And is it a problem or a benefit?in France – think Jack Willis, Kyle Sinckler and Joe Marchant among others – and numerous Australians, South Africans, New Zealanders, Argentinians and Pacific islanders earning a living outside their own country.
The main way of dealing with it is the “25-cap” rule – a rule so complicated Harlequins fly-half Evans has never seemed certain if he is still eligible for Wales, although the Welsh professional rugby board has stated he is. Evans and his fellow Welsh Quins – Wyn Jones, Dillon Lewis and Leigh Halfpenny – might be paid less at home or be subject to other conditions that wouldn’t suit them.
“A world-class finish,” said former England wing Chris Ashton on the TV coverage – and Williams, who was Wales’s first-choice No 9 for most of the 2023 World Cup and 2024 Six Nations, is now being talked of by pundits in terms of “Tom is world class at that; his ability to flip the switch between the two is great. And hopefully for lots of our young lads, like Caolan Englefield, his influence will rub off on them.”
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