Dai Young
Encyclopedia
David "Dai" Young is a Welsh former rugby union
and rugby league
player, presently Director of Rugby at London Wasps
.
Born in Aberdare
in 1967, Young lived in Penywaun
for many years, and was regularly seen training with his father on the local sports field, now occupied by the Welsh-language school Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun
.
Young played rugby union
at club level for Swansea
and Cardiff
. Having not been selected to play for Wales in the 1987 Rugby World Cup
, Young, then 19, travelled to Australia for the summer to play for Northern Suburbs. When Stuart Evans
broke his foot playing against Tonga
, Young was on the right side of the world at the right time and was called up to the Welsh squad. He made his debut for Wales against England in the quarter-finals.
Young played rugby league
for Leeds
and Salford
. When he moved to Leeds his transfer fee was a then world record of £150,000 (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £319,000 in 2009). He captained Wales in the 1995 Rugby League World Cup
.
Young won 51 caps for the Wales national rugby union team
, a record number for a prop, and three caps for the British Lions
. He is the only man to have toured with the British Lions
in three separate decades: 1989, 1997 and 2001.
After becoming head coach of the Cardiff Blues
, he resigned in summer 2011, and was made Director of Rugby at London Wasps
after payment of a compensation package.
Young formerly resided in the village of Cwmdare
, within two miles of where he was raised. He has now moved his base to London
.
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
and rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
player, presently Director of Rugby at London Wasps
London Wasps
London Wasps is an English professional rugby union team. The men's first team, which forms London Wasps, was derived from Wasps Football Club who were formed in 1867 at the now defunct Eton and Middlesex Tavern in North London, at the turn of professionalism in 1999...
.
Born in Aberdare
Aberdare
Aberdare is an industrial town in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales, situated at the confluence of the Rivers Dare and Cynon. The population at the census was 31,705...
in 1967, Young lived in Penywaun
Penywaun
Penywaun is a village in the Cynon Valley situated between Aberdare and Hirwaun, in the county borough of Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales.-Background:The population of Penywaun is approximately 3,300....
for many years, and was regularly seen training with his father on the local sports field, now occupied by the Welsh-language school Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun
Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun
Ysgol Gyfun Rhydywaun is a Welsh Medium comprehensive school in the Cynon Valley in the village of Penywaun, Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales.The school was established in 1995...
.
Young played rugby union
Rugby union
Rugby union, often simply referred to as rugby, is a full contact team sport which originated in England in the early 19th century. One of the two codes of rugby football, it is based on running with the ball in hand...
at club level for Swansea
Swansea RFC
Swansea Rugby Football Club is a Welsh rugby union team which plays in the Welsh Premier Division. Its home ground is St Helens Rugby and Cricket Ground in Swansea. The team is sometimes known as The Whites because of the primary colour of the team strip...
and Cardiff
Cardiff RFC
Cardiff Rugby Football Club is a rugby union football club based in Cardiff, the capital city of Wales. The club was founded in 1876 and played their first few matches at Sophia Gardens, but soon relocated to Cardiff Arms Park where they have been based ever since...
. Having not been selected to play for Wales in the 1987 Rugby World Cup
1987 Rugby World Cup
The 1987 Rugby World Cup was the first Rugby World Cup. New Zealand and Australia agreed to co-host the first ever tournament with New Zealand hosting seventeen pool stage matches, two quarter-finals and the final with Australia being the junior partner hosting seven pool matches, two...
, Young, then 19, travelled to Australia for the summer to play for Northern Suburbs. When Stuart Evans
Stuart Evans
Stuart Evans is a Welsh former rugby union and rugby league player. Born in Neath in 1963, Evans played for several rugby union clubs, including British Steel, for whom he once worked, Resolven, Swansea, Western Suburbs, Neath, and Barbarian F.C.. In September 1987 he switched codes, joining St....
broke his foot playing against Tonga
Tonga
Tonga, officially the Kingdom of Tonga , is a state and an archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, comprising 176 islands scattered over of ocean in the South Pacific...
, Young was on the right side of the world at the right time and was called up to the Welsh squad. He made his debut for Wales against England in the quarter-finals.
Young played rugby league
Rugby league
Rugby league football, usually called rugby league, is a full contact sport played by two teams of thirteen players on a rectangular grass field. One of the two codes of rugby football, it originated in England in 1895 by a split from Rugby Football Union over paying players...
for Leeds
Leeds Rhinos
Leeds Rhinos is an English professional rugby league football club based in Leeds, West Yorkshire. The club won the 2011 Super League and became the most successful club in the Super League era, beating St Helens 32-16 on 8th October 2011. Formed in 1890, Leeds competes in Europe's Super League...
and Salford
Salford City Reds
Salford City Reds are an English rugby league club based in Salford, Greater Manchester. Formed in 1873, they currently play in the Super League. They have won six Rugby Football League Championships and one Challenge Cup...
. When he moved to Leeds his transfer fee was a then world record of £150,000 (based on increases in average earnings, this would be approximately £319,000 in 2009). He captained Wales in the 1995 Rugby League World Cup
1995 Rugby League World Cup
The 1995 Rugby League World Cup was held during October in the United Kingdom. It was the eleventh staging of the Rugby League World Cup and was marketed as the Halifax Centenary World Cup, reflecting the tournament's sponsorship and the fact that 1995 marked the 100th birthday of the sport...
.
Young won 51 caps for the Wales national rugby union team
Wales national rugby union team
The Wales national rugby union team represent Wales in international rugby union tournaments. They compete annually in the Six Nations Championship with England, France, Ireland, Italy and Scotland. Wales have won the Six Nations and its predecessors 24 times outright, second only to England with...
, a record number for a prop, and three caps for the British Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
. He is the only man to have toured with the British Lions
British and Irish Lions
The British and Irish Lions is a rugby union team made up of players from England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales...
in three separate decades: 1989, 1997 and 2001.
After becoming head coach of the Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues
Cardiff Blues are one of the four professional Welsh regional rugby union teams. Based in Cardiff, the capital of Wales, the team have played at Cardiff City Stadium since the start of the 2009/2010 season and are owned by Cardiff Rugby Football Club....
, he resigned in summer 2011, and was made Director of Rugby at London Wasps
London Wasps
London Wasps is an English professional rugby union team. The men's first team, which forms London Wasps, was derived from Wasps Football Club who were formed in 1867 at the now defunct Eton and Middlesex Tavern in North London, at the turn of professionalism in 1999...
after payment of a compensation package.
Young formerly resided in the village of Cwmdare
Cwmdare
Cwmdare is a village near Aberdare, in Rhondda Cynon Taf, Wales. The village's history is intertwined with coal-mining, and since the decline of the industry in the 1980s, it has become primarily a commuter base for the larger surrounding towns of Aberdare and Merthyr Tydfil and Pontypridd, as...
, within two miles of where he was raised. He has now moved his base to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.