Dafydd Jenkins (born 5 December 2002) is a Welsh international
rugby union
Rugby union, commonly known simply as rugby, is a close-contact team sport that originated at Rugby School in the first half of the 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand. In its m ...
player currently playing for
Premiership Rugby
Premiership Rugby, officially known as Gallagher Premiership Rugby, or the Gallagher Premiership for sponsorship reasons, is an English professional rugby union competition. The Premiership has consisted of thirteen clubs since 2021, and is the ...
side
Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an England, English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played i ...
as a
Lock
Lock(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
*Lock and key, a mechanical device used to secure items of importance
*Lock (water navigation), a device for boats to transit between different levels of water, as in a canal
Arts and entertainment
* ''Lock ...
. Jenkins has represented
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and
Wales U20.
Club career
Born in Bridgend, Jenkins began playing rugby for
Porthcawl RFC
Porthcawl Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team based in Porthcawl, Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Ospreys.
Porthcawl presently field a First XV team, Second XV, Women's XV, Youth X ...
juniors, where he progressed through the age groups.
Jenkins attended Porthcawl Comprehensive School before transferring to Hartpury College, where he also played rugby.
Prior to leaving Wales, Jenkins was part of the
Ospreys academy.
While playing for Hartpury, Jenkins was contacted by Exeter head coach
Rob Baxter
Robert Edward John Baxter (born 10 March 1971) is the Director of Rugby of English Premiership rugby team Exeter Chiefs. He previously played for the club for 14 years, 10 of them as captain. Baxter has also both captained and coached the Barb ...
, and he linked up with their team in 2021.
Jenkins studies sports sciences at the
University of Exeter
The University of Exeter is a public university , public research university in Exeter, Devon, England, United Kingdom. Its predecessor institutions, St Luke's College, Exeter School of Science, Exeter School of Art, and the Camborne School of Min ...
. He has played for their rugby team in the
BUCS Super Rugby tournament, and was named man of the match when Exeter won the tournament, defeating
Durham Durham most commonly refers to:
*Durham, England, a cathedral city and the county town of County Durham
*County Durham, an English county
* Durham County, North Carolina, a county in North Carolina, United States
*Durham, North Carolina, a city in N ...
14–13, scoring a try in the final.
On 13 November 2021, Jenkins made his
Exeter Chiefs
Exeter Chiefs (officially Exeter Rugby Club) is an England, English professional rugby union club based in Exeter, Devon. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded in 1871 and since 2006 has played i ...
debut in the
Premiership Rugby Cup
The Premiership Rugby Cup is an English rugby union knockout cup competition for teams in Premiership Rugby. It was created in 2018 to replace the Anglo-Welsh Cup after the withdrawal of the Welsh regions.
History
The Premiership Rugby Cup was ...
defeat to
Bristol
Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...
. On 15 January 2022, Jenkins appeared as a replacement in the
Champions Cup victory over
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
.
Jenkins first
Premiership start came in the Round 15 defeat to
Wasps
A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. T ...
on 5 February 2022.
On 12 November 2022, Jenkins set the Premiership record as youngest player named captain, at 19 years and 342 days old, in a victory over
London Irish
London Irish RFC is a professional rugby union club which competes in the Premiership, the top division of English rugby union. The club has also competed in the Anglo-Welsh Cup, the European Champions Cup and European Challenge Cup. While ...
.
International career
Jenkins was called up to the Wales under-20 squad for the first time ahead of the
2021 Six Nations Under 20s Championship, making his debut in the 25–8 victory over
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...
. On 28 January 2022, Jenkins was again called into the Wales under-20 squad for the upcoming
2022 Six Nations Under 20s Championship.
On 14 November 2022, Jenkins was called up for
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
as injury cover in the
2022 Autumn Internationals.
Jenkins made his international debut on 19 November 2022, coming off the bench against
Georgia
Georgia most commonly refers to:
* Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia
* Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States
Georgia may also refer to:
Places
Historical states and entities
* Related to the ...
.
On 17 January 2023, Jenkins was named in the Wales squad for the
2023 Six Nations Championship
The 2023 Six Nations Championship (known as the Guinness Six Nations for sponsorship reasons) was the 24th Six Nations Championship, an annual rugby union competition contested by the national teams of England, France, Ireland, Italy, Scotland a ...
. He made his Six Nations debut on 4 February 2023, coming off the bench against Ireland. The following week, Jenkins made his first start for Wales, against Scotland.
Personal life
Jenkins is the son of Hywel Jenkins, who played as a back row for
Swansea
Swansea (; cy, Abertawe ) is a coastal city and the second-largest city of Wales. It forms a principal area, officially known as the City and County of Swansea ( cy, links=no, Dinas a Sir Abertawe).
The city is the twenty-fifth largest in ...
and
Neath
Neath (; cy, Castell-nedd) is a market town and Community (Wales), community situated in the Neath Port Talbot, Neath Port Talbot County Borough, Wales. The town had a population of 50,658 in 2011. The community of the parish of Neath had a po ...
. Hywel represented
Wales A
Wales A , also known as Wales national rugby league team, Wales Dragonhearts, is an amateur international rugby league side that competed in the Skanska Amateur Four Nations. The players are picked from the Conference League South clubs and fro ...
and Wales in an uncapped match against the United States, but did not attain a full senior cap.
References
External links
*
Exeter profileWRU profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jenkins, Dafydd
2002 births
Living people
Rugby union locks
Exeter Chiefs players
People educated at Porthcawl Comprehensive School
Alumni of Hartpury College
Alumni of the University of Exeter
Welsh rugby union players
Rugby union players from Bridgend
Wales international rugby union players