Dwayne John Peel (born 31 August 1981) is a Welsh
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 ...
coach and former player. He was the most capped
scrum-half for the
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team ( cy, Tîm rygbi'r undeb cenedlaethol Cymru) represents Wales in men's international rugby union. Its governing body, the Welsh Rugby Union (WRU), was established in 1881, the same year that Wales played thei ...
with 76 caps, until his record was surpassed by
Mike Phillips on 16 March 2013.
Youth and early career
Peel was born in
Carmarthen
Carmarthen (, RP: ; cy, Caerfyrddin , "Merlin's fort" or "Sea-town fort") is the county town of Carmarthenshire and a community in Wales, lying on the River Towy. north of its estuary in Carmarthen Bay. The population was 14,185 in 2011, ...
, Wales. He started his rugby career playing for
Tumble RFC
Tumble RFC or Clwb Rygbi Y Tymbl (Welsh) is a rugby union club representing the village of Tumble, near Llanelli in Carmarthenshire, South Wales. The club is a member of the Welsh Rugby Union and is a feeder club for the Llanelli Scarlets.
Clu ...
at Under-8s level. He attended
Ysgol Gyfun Maes-yr-Yrfa in
Cefneithin
Cefneithin () is a village and community in Carmarthenshire, Wales, in the Carmarthenshire coalfield area. It lies just off the A48 road, 7 miles north west of Ammanford and 9 miles north of Llanelli. Its nearby community villages include Cross ...
, and is a fluent
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
speaker. He made his professional club debut for
Llanelli RFC
Llanelli Rugby Football Club ( cy, Clwb Rygbi Llanelli) is a Welsh rugby union club founded on 30 March 1872.
The club's historic home ground was Stradey Park in Llanelli, but they moved in 2008 to the new Parc y Scarlets in adjacent Pembert ...
before joining the
Llanelli Scarlets
The Scarlets () are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams and are based in Llanelli, Wales. Their home ground is the Parc y Scarlets stadium. They play in the United Rugby Championship and the European Rugby Champions Cup (which ...
region at its creation in 2003.
International
Peel made his international debut 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 ...
in 2001 against
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
. He was still on his geography degree course at the
Swansea University
, former_names=University College of Swansea, University of Wales Swansea
, motto= cy, Gweddw crefft heb ei dawn
, mottoeng="Technical skill is bereft without culture"
, established=1920 – University College of Swansea 1996 – University of Wa ...
at the time. During his time at Swansea University, he became friends with Edward Lewsey – a Welsh Under-21 international, and brother of England international
Josh Lewsey
Owen Joshua Lewsey MBE (born 30 November 1976) is an English former rugby union player who represented England and the British and Irish Lions. Lewsey is a former British Army Officer.
Background and early life
Lewsey was born in Bromley, L ...
. Peel has since scored five tries (25 points) scoring his debut Test try against Italy in 2003 for Wales.
In 2005, Peel was selected for the
British & Irish Lions tour to New Zealand, and was the youngest Lion on the tour. On 9 September 2007, Peel was captain for Wales when they beat Canada 42–17 in their opening match in the 2007 Rugby World Cup.
On 15 January 2008, it was announced by the Scarlets that Peel would be joining
Sale Sharks
Sale Sharks is a professional rugby union club from Greater Manchester, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
Originally founded in 1861 as Sale Football Club, now a distinct amateur club, they adopted the n ...
at the end of the
2007–08 season.
Peel joined, on a three-year contract, at the start of the 2008–09 season.
New
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 ...
coach
Warren Gatland
Warren David Gatland (born 17 September 1963) is a New Zealand rugby union coach and former player who is currently in his second spell as the head coach of the Wales national team.
As head coach of Wales from 2007 to 2019, he won four Six N ...
later stated that Peel would be an exception to his desired policy to select players from those playing for Welsh clubs, but on 19 January 2009 it was announced that Peel would not be part of the
Welsh
Welsh may refer to:
Related to Wales
* Welsh, referring or related to Wales
* Welsh language, a Brittonic Celtic language spoken in Wales
* Welsh people
People
* Welsh (surname)
* Sometimes used as a synonym for the ancient Britons (Celtic peop ...
squad for the
2009 Six Nations Championship
The 2009 Six Nations Championship, known as the RBS 6 Nations for sponsorship reasons, was the 10th Six Nations Championship, and the 115th international championship, an annual rugby union competition contested by the six major European national t ...
. Peel was subsequently called into the squad, however, as cover for injured
Gareth Cooper
Gareth Cooper (born 7 May 1979 in Bridgend) is a former Wales international rugby union player who played in the scrum-half position.
Career
Cooper started playing rugby with Pencoed before moving to Bath in the West Country.
Cooper made his i ...
and on 8 February 2009 played in the second half of Wales' opening match against Scotland.
In the 2012-2013 Premiership season, Peel was involved in the 32-9 win on 12 April against
Gloucester
Gloucester ( ) is a cathedral city and the county town of Gloucestershire in the South West of England. Gloucester lies on the River Severn, between the Cotswolds to the east and the Forest of Dean to the west, east of Monmouth and east ...
, scoring two tries. He was also named in the Barbarians squad for the 2013 Summer internationals, to play against
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and the
British & Irish Lions
The British & Irish Lions is a rugby union team selected from players eligible for the national teams of England, Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The Lions are a test side and most often select players who have already played for their national ...
.
Peel then signed for
Bristol Rugby
Bristol Bears (officially Bristol Rugby Club or Bristol Rugby) are a professional rugby union club based in Bristol, England. They play in Premiership Rugby, England's top division of rugby.
The club was founded as Bristol Football Club in 18 ...
for the 2014–15 season, being appointed club captain in the process playing alongside Welsh internationals Ryan Jones and Ian Evans.
International tries
Coaching
On 15 February 2017,
Ulster
Ulster (; ga, Ulaidh or ''Cúige Uladh'' ; sco, label= Ulster Scots, Ulstèr or ''Ulster'') is one of the four traditional Irish provinces. It is made up of nine counties: six of these constitute Northern Ireland (a part of the United King ...
announced Peel would join them as assistant coach from the start of the 2017–18 season on a two-year contract.
Peel was due to join the
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Rugby ( cy, Rygbi Caerdydd) are one of the four professional Welsh rugby union teams. They compete in the United Rugby Championship and in European Professional Club Rugby competitions.
Based in Cardiff, the team play at Cardiff Arms ...
for the 2021–22 season as senior assistant coach responsible for attack.
However, Peel joined the Scarlets as head coach for the 2021–22 season instead.
References
External links
profileat WRU.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peel, Dwayne
1981 births
Living people
Rugby union players from Carmarthen
Rugby union scrum-halves
Welsh rugby union coaches
Welsh rugby union players
Wales international rugby union players
British & Irish Lions rugby union players from Wales
Llanelli RFC players
Scarlets players
Sale Sharks players
Bristol Bears players
Ulster Rugby non-playing staff
Wales rugby union captains