THREE young Ceredigion rugby players played their part as Wales Under 18s beat their Irish counterparts 27-19 at Terenure College RFC in Dublin over the weekend as they build up to the U18 Six Nations Festival.

Backing up victory against Scotland a week earlier at Ystrad Mynach, Richie Pugh’s side put in a strong defensive shift against a physical Irish side paving the way to a well-deserved victory.

Former Aberystwyth Rugby Club juniors Deian Gwynne and Steffan Jac Jones and Hartpury College student Caio James, from Llandysul impressed with Steffan sealing the win with a snap drop goal.

Pugh said: “I’m really pleased for the boys as it was a real arm wrestle of a match.

“We knew it would be a step up from last week against Scotland, especially with the physicality of the Irish teams. They are also smart in how they play but I thought our boys managed the game really well.”

He added: “The Welsh back row was key in giving us a physical platform with strong ball carrying and a huge defensive workrate.

“Caio James was really strong in his first start at seven,” said Pugh. “He was physically strong defensively and turned over a lot of ball and likewise Deian Gwynne worked hard at number eight with a solid ball carrying display.”