With Dupont, Sexton and Farrell gone – who is ready to step up and become leaders?

Jack Crowley isn't the only one under the gaze of rugby watchers in the Six Nations. Others are filling big shoes or ready to show they belong when given their moment.

Fri, 02 Feb, 2024 - 07:02

David Barnes

Dafydd Jenkins (Wales): The 21-year-old has taken over captaincy from the injured Jac Morgan of a transitioning Welsh side shorn of almost a dozen key players from the last decade, making him his nation's youngest skipper since the great Gareth Edwards (with whom his grandfather played at Welsh schoolboy level) back in 1968.

The Bridgend-raised and Exeter-based lock may have just 12 caps to his name, but his leadership pedigree includes breaking the Premiership record for its youngest-ever captain when he led his club to victory over London Irish in November 2022 aged just 19 years and 342 days. This season he has skippered a callow Exeter side well on several occasions, most notably during against-the-odds Champions Cup victories over Munster and Toulon.