Deian Gwynne expects to see a few familiar faces in the England side when he co-captains Wales in the opening round of matches in the 2026 U20 Six Nations.
The Aberystwyth-born flanker is setting his sights on back-to-back wins over the auld enemy when the two sides clash at Franklin’s Gardens, in Northampton, on Friday night having been a key character in the 23-13 win at the Arms Park last season.
That triumph denied England a Grand Slam and they will definitely be hoping to put the record straight when they host Gwynne and co this weekend.
There are five Gloucester Rugby players in the England squad – Will Knight, Freddie Ogden-Metherel, Kealan Freeman-Price, Olly Allport and Harry Wright – who train and play alongside Gwynne and his fellow west Walian Caio James, so it could get a bit chatty and lively at the bottom of a few rucks.
“It’s very exciting for all of us to be playing England in the first game of the championship. We know what we did last year in Cardiff and we will be going into Friday night quite confident,” said Gwynne.
“It doesn’t get much bigger than a game against England and it was very emotional with the crowd behind us at the Arms Park last year. The fans were really special on that occasion and they really were like out 16th player.
“I hope we get a few Welsh fans travelling to Northampton this week because their support does make a huge difference to us. We are very grateful for their backing – it makes us all feel proud.”
Wales wing Josh Hathaway proved to be a pioneer for Gwynne and James when he left Aberystwyth for Hartpury at the same age two years before them. He then went on to play for England U20 before being capped by Wales from Gloucester.
As well as the three Aber boys, Gloucester are captained by Wales and British & Irish Lions scrum half Tomos Williams, have Wales centre Max Llewellyn on their books as well as Wales second row Freddie Thomas.
“It’s great having such a strong Welsh group at the club – Jac Morgan and Dewi Lake will be joining next season, while Williams is heading to Saracens – and I’ve learned a lot from Josh and Tomos,” added Gwynne.
Having made his senior Gloucester debut in the PREM Cup at the age of 18, and played in the EPCR Challenge Cup last season, he made his first PREM Rugby start this season in a win over Harlequins. He has come a long way in a short period of time, but never forgets his roots.
“I started going to Aberystwyth rugby club when I was about six and I played there up until U16 level. Then I had a big decision to make in my life and career,” said Gwynne, whose father Dewi captained the club and grandfather was a prominent figure for a number of years.
“I had played for Ceredigion Schools and the Scarlets West U16 sides but then got the chance to move to Hartpury College for my sixth form years. It was a really big decision to take to leave home at that age.
“I rolled the dice and decided to move away from Aberystwyth. Living in Aber, where you are three hours away from anywhere, you get used to doing a lot of travelling.
“It was tough, but it’s not a decision I regret and the life skills I learned from leaving home and having to fend for myself have been very important for me.
“My rugby took a step up playing in the ACE competition and I was also able to play for Scarlets U18. Then I got offered a Gloucester Academy contract, which I simply couldn’t turn down after being in the area for two years.”
Gwyne is co-captain of the Wales U20 squad for the Six Nations, sharing the job with Cardiff Rugby centre Steff Emanuel.