Luke Charteris (born 9 March 1983) is a former

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 who played a s 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 ...

for the

Newport Gwent Dragons Dragons RFC ( cy, Dreigiau) are one of the four professional rugby union regional teams in Wales. They are owned by the Welsh Rugby Union and play their home games at Rodney Parade, Newport and at other grounds around the region. They play in ...

Perpignan Perpignan (, , ; ca, Perpinyà ; es, Perpiñán ; it, Perpignano ) is the prefecture of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France, in the heart of the plain of Roussillon, at the foot of the Pyrenees a few kilometres from the ...

Racing 92 Racing 92 () is a French rugby union club based in suburban Paris that was formed in 2001 with the collaboration of the Racing Club de France and US Métro. They were called Racing Métro 92 between 2001 and 2015, when they changed the name to ...

and Bath, as well as the Wales national team. He made 74 appearances for Wales between 2004 and 2017. Since his retirement from playing in 2019, he has served as Bath's line-out coach.

Club career

Charteris started his senior career at

in 2003. He went on to make over 140 appearances for the Welsh region and was appointed captain in 2011. In May 2012 Charteris joined French

Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...

club

USA Perpignan Union Sportive Arlequins Perpignanais, also referred to as USA Perpignan or Perpignan, is a French professional rugby union club founded in 1933 and based in Perpignan, in the Pyrénées-Orientales department. They compete in the Top 14, Franc ...

, staying for two years. On 6 June 2014, Charteris joined Parisian side

, then known as Racing Métro, on a two-year deal after

were demoted to the

Pro D2 Rugby Pro D2, also known as Pro D2 is the second tier of rugby union club competition division in France. It is operated by Ligue Nationale de Rugby (LNR) which also runs the division directly above, the first division Top 14. Rugby Pro D2 was in ...

. He stayed for another two years, after which he moved to England with Bath in 2016. Charteris retired at the end of the 2018/19 season and took up a new role as specialist line-out coach for Bath Rugby.

International career

Charteris made his debut for Wales versus

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

in 2004 having previously represented Wales at Under 19 and Under 21 levels. He was a feature of the Welsh national team for over a decade, touring regularly. He played in many Six Nations tournaments, including in 2010 and

2015 File:2015 Events Collage new.png, From top left, clockwise: Civil service in remembrance of November 2015 Paris attacks; Germanwings Flight 9525 was purposely crashed into the French Alps; the rubble of residences in Kathmandu following the Apri ...

. In August 2011, Charteris was named in the Wales squad for the

2011 Rugby World Cup The 2011 Rugby World Cup was the seventh Rugby World Cup, a quadrennial international rugby union competition inaugurated in 1987. The International Rugby Board (IRB) selected New Zealand as the host country in preference to Japan and South Af ...

in New Zealand, and his performances in the tournament were widely praised. Charteris also played in the

2015 Rugby World Cup The 2015 Rugby World Cup was the eighth Rugby World Cup, the quadrennial rugby union world championship. The tournament was hosted by England from 18 September to 31 October. Of the 20 countries competing in the World Cup in 2011, there was onl ...

. He ultimately gained 74 caps for Wales.

References

External links

Newport Gwent Dragons profileWales profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Charteris, Luke 1983 births Living people Cornish rugby union players Dragons RFC players English people of Welsh descent English rugby union players People educated at Ysgol Tre-Gib People from Camborne Racing 92 players Rugby union players from Cornwall Team Bath rugby union players Bath Rugby players USA Perpignan players Wales international rugby union players Welsh rugby union players Rugby union locks