The Welsh side of the Watkins family has always been strong and even though his dad, Dyson, was born in England after his parents moved across the Severn Bridge from their homes in Cowbridge and Blaengarw, the links to home remain strong.
Dyson and his wife Emma gave each of their three children Welsh names – Bryn, Gryff and Seren. And 18 months ago, Emma decided she would explore the possibility of Gryff leaving one of England’s leading rugby playing public schools, Eastbourne College, to further his rugby and general education in Wales.
It is a story that bucks an all too familiar trend of top Welsh rugby talent being lured to the likes of Clifton College, Millfield and Hartpury College at the age of 16. For Watkins, as well as a number of others in his team, the move the other way has been a triumph.
After his first training session last year the former Wales centre Aaron Warren, one of specialist coaches at Llandovery College, called director of rugby Nathan Thomas, another former Wales cap, to tell him about Watkins.
“We’ve got one here,” was Warren’s enthusiastic sentiment, “you’ve got to see him.” Watkins played throughout the season and helped his new side to make history by becoming the first school side to win the WSC U18 Rugby title at Principality Stadium.
They went through the tournament unbeaten and then capped it off with a 30-20 triumph against English schools’ giants Sedbergh. Watkins then went on to help Scarlets U18 win the Regional Age Grade title but missed out on a Wales U18 cap due to concussion.
He was made captain for this season and provided the scoring pass to replacement wing Harrison Burke to ensure his side beat Coleg Sir Gar 12-10 to reach the final for a second season in a row. They will defend their crown against Coleg Y Cymoedd at Principality Stadium on Thursday 5 December (7.30pm), a team they beat 47-27 in their Conference A league match.
The victorious Llandovery College team in 2023
“It was a big decision to leave Eastbourne College, a bit of a shot in the dark inspired by my mum. In the end we decided there was no harm in going and it opened up a number of different options for my rugby career,” said Watkins, who learned his rugby at Heathfield & Waldon RFC, the first club of England, British & Irish Lions and Harlequins star Joe Marler.
“There had been a cut in the funding for rugby at Eastbourne and the rugby programme wasn’t as good as it used to be. That certainly influenced my decision because the focus is much more on the rugby here.
“Even though I was born in Sussex I’ve always supported Wales. That is down to my grandparents and my dad – the dream has always been to play for Wales. Coming to Llandovery College has given me a much better chance of becoming a professional rugby player and perhaps achieving that dream.
“Llandovery is a smaller school in terms of numbers than Eastbourne (630 to 340) and my first thought about moving away from hoping was committing 100 per cent to the switch and getting involved as much as I could in the life of the school. The intimacy of the school, along with the rugby, was central to that and it became very easy to bed in and make friends.
“There were quite a few Welsh exiles who joined at the same time, and I’ve become involved in the recruitment process that’s run so well by Wayne Pugh. I’ve spoken to a lot of players who want to come to further their rugby education at Open Days and the numbers seem to be increasing.”
As well as being a poster boy for the on-going recruitment campaign at his new school, Watkins has turned into a superb leader on the field. Working in tandem with outside half Carwyn Leggatt-Jones he played a major role in last year’s final success against Ysgol Glantaf and has now set his sights on retaining the title.
“Last year just seemed too good to be true. We won all our games to reach the Principality Stadium and then Glantaf had a player sent off in the final. It seemed pre-determined that we would win, noting was going wrong for us.
“This season has been different. Carwyn missed a few games due to glandular fever, we were beaten by Coleg Sir Gar and then had to slug it out in the semi-final.
“In many ways the semi-final against Sir Gar was our final. It was probably the same for Cymoedd in their game against Glantaf. We were both away from home playing against a team that had already beaten us. Now it is all to play for at Principality Stadium.
“If I hadn’t taken the plunge and moved schools at 16 I would never have had the chance to play at the home of Welsh rugby or face top English schools such as Sedbergh, Millfield and Clifton, as well as play in top-flight of the Welsh U18 system.
“After WSC U18 and RAG U18 rugby there is a step up into BUCS Super Rugby at university and Super Rygbi Cymru. There seems to have been a realization that a focus on youth is the right way to go.
“That’s why the SRC is so appealing. Last year I played against some of the current Cardiff players Tom Bowen (Clifton), Steff Emanuel (Millfield) and Sion Davies (Glantaf), and Will Evans (Llandovery) played with me last season.
“The best next step for young players is SRC because of the shift in attitude to give more of them a chance to learn about the senior game. It’s really exciting.”
Watkins, who celebrates his 18th birthday later this month, is currently in talks with the Scarlets about potentially joining their academy and is looking forward to once again playing for them in the Academy U18 competition in the New Year. He has also been invited to a Wales U20 training week.
But all thoughts are currently fixed on Thursday night at Principality Stadium and holding onto the most prestigious trophy in Welsh schools and colleges rugby.
