Joe Hawkins is keen to follow his old Swansea Valley football rival Rubin Colwill onto the full international stage, but is happy to bide his time.
Ospreys centre Hawkins and fellow 19-year-old Colwill – already a senior Wales football international after a breakthrough year at Cardiff City - used to play football against each other as 15-year-olds, until Hawkins gave his sole attention to rugby.
The pair were contemporaries making their mark in the Swansea Valley, although Hawkins went to Cwmtawe Comprehensive School just down the road, rather than Colwill’s Ysgol Gymraeg Ystalyfera.
“I played football against Rubin a couple of times for the school when we had some good battles between Cwmtawe and Ystalyfera,” says Hawkins, who caught the eye for Wales U20s in the summer.
“He’s doing really well with Cardiff City and Wales. When I came to year 11, I stopped playing football because the rugby became serious and I concentrated on that.
“But the amount of sports people who have come from the area is impressive. It’s a credit to both schools for the opportunities they provide. They give chances to everyone.”