Joe Westwood is hoping to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather, Keith, by facing New Zealand when Wales U20 kick-off their World Rugby U20 Championships in South Africa against the Baby Blacks this weekend. Keith Westwood played for the Combined Abertillery & Ebbw Vale side that faced Wilson Whineray’s 1963 All Blacks at Abertillery Park in a game the tourists won 13-0. A fine player for Ebbw Vale and Newbridge, he went on to become a legendary coach at Newbridge. 

Wales international hooker Scott Baldwin has announced his retirement from playing and will take up a coaching role at Gallagher Premiership club Newcastle. Baldwin, 34, made more than 180 appearances for the Ospreys, in addition to spells in the Premiership with Harlequins and Worcester. He also won 37 Test caps, and featured three times as a replacement during Wales’ Guinness Six Nations campaign last season.

Global brewing giants Heineken are to step down as title sponsors of rugby’s Champions Cup, leaving tournament organisers with a big financial gap to fill before their two tournaments kick off in December.

The Welsh Rugby Union was responsible for a “serious failure of governance” and missed opportunities to act on concerning behaviour within the organisation, a report has found. A committee of Senedd (Welsh Parliament) members noted “systemic failures in the culture” of the WRU following allegations of racism, misogyny, sexism and homophobia.

Former Cardiff Blues second row stalwart Macauley Cook has become the latest high-profile recruit at Pontypridd for next season. The 31-year-old is returning to Wales having spent the last three seasons playing for Jersey in the English Championship. He last played for Ponty in a British & Irish Cup game in 2013.

Abbie Fleming and Robyn Wilkins will line-up against their Wales teammates Beth Lewis, Sisilia Tuipulotu, Kelsey Jones, Lleucu George and Lisa Neumann in the English women’s rugby show piece final. The Allianz Premier 15s final will see Fleming and Wilkins’ Exeter Chiefs face the Gloucester-Hartpury Welsh quintet at Kingsholm on June 24.

Scarlets coach Dwayne Peel has welcomed the confirmation that his team will play the Barbarians this autumn in a fundraising memorial match in honour of Phil Bennett. A year on from his death last summer at the age of 73, the Wales and Llanelli legend has been remembered by the announcement of the September fixture.

Former Ospreys flanker Sam Underhill has made England’s initial 28-player Rugby World Cup training squad – despite not having played for his country for almost a year. The Bath forward has been included in the group named by head coach Steve Borthwick alongside former Cardiff Met No.8 Alex Dombrandt.

Gareth Thomas is backing Tommy Reffell to fill the void left by the ‘outstanding’ Justin Tipuric and play a key role in Wales’ World Cup charge. The emergence of flanker Reffell was one of the bright spots of Wayne Pivac’s reign as Wales boss but the Leicester Tigers man started just one match during the 2023 Six Nations following Warren Gatland’s return.

Cory Hill followed the path taken by Rhys Webb when he decided to put family ahead of World Cup glory with Wales. Hill increased the chaotic nature of the preparation for the tournament when he became the fourth player to withdraw from the preliminary training squad.

Wales U20s scrum-half Archie Hughes has signed a new contract with the Scarlets. Having started his rugby journey with Tenby RFC juniors, Hughes burst onto the senior stage with two tries on his debut in a pre-season game against Nottingham at Parc y Scarlets two years ago.

What do you get when you add Bradley Davies to James Hook, Paul James and Andrew Bishop? A ‘Dream Team’ of coaches to help bring through the next generation of Ospreys stars. After 66 Welsh caps and more than 210 professional games for Cardiff Blues, Wasps and Ospreys, the 36-year-old Davies is all set to become the latest international ex-pro to be attached to the backroom staff at his old region after hanging up his boots.

Former Newport RFC star Simon Raiwalui has named a strong 45-man Fiji training squad as they continue their preparations for the Rugby World Cup in France – including a key clash against Wales.

Former Scarlets trio Harri Williams, Griff Evans and Iestyn Rees have all joined English Championship outfit Ampthill. Scrum-half Williams is set to play for Wales U20 at next month’s World Junior Championships in South Africa, while lock Evans and back row man Rees will join him in adding further Welsh flavour to Paul Turner’s Ampthill mob next season.

The rugby season in Wales wouldn’t be the same without the final curtain coming down with the staging of the Old Penarthians Sevens on Saturday, 10 June. This year’s 72nd edition will take place at their Cwrt-y-vil home in Penarth with 10 teams lined up to take part in the men’s competition, and a further five in the women’s tournament.

Alisha Butchers is back and ready to push for honours with Bristol Bears as the Allianz Premier15s reaches the business end of the season. The 39-times capped flanker, who celebrates her 26th birthday this month, hadn’t played since damaging her knee in the opening game of the World Cup in New Zealand last October.

Alun Wyn Jones has confirmed he will not be an Ospreys player next season. The former Wales and British and Irish Lions captain announced his retirement from international rugby last month after making a world-record 170 Test match appearances.

Jasmine Joyce will be joined by Morgan and Tom Williams in competing for Team GB in Rugby Sevens at the Kraków-Małopolska 2023 European Games between 21 June-2 July. Team GB have selected a squad of 178 athletes to compete at the third staging of the event, with Rugby Sevens making its debut. The winners of the men’s and women’s sevens tournaments will qualify for the Paris Olympic Games next year.

It was a chance to relax, to briefly escape the political and economic ills besetting, along with much else in British life, rugby union in Wales. A bright, warm evening completely unlike the last full international at St Helen’s, an atrociously cold and sodden encounter with Tonga in 1997.

Rhys Carre has become the fourth drop out from Wales’ 54-strong World Cup training squad in two weeks. Following on from the shock international retirements of Alun Wyn Jones, Justin Tipuric and Rhys Webb, the giant Cardiff prop has been axed by Warren Gatland ahead of the formal gathering of the full squad next week.