Culture

Wales international’s ‘unbelievable’ younger brother blows away new team-mates

By Dylan James

Copyright walesonline

Wales international's 'unbelievable' younger brother blows away new team-mates

Dragons player Jac Lloyd has received high praise from ex-Wales star Alex Cuthbert and current international Dillon Lewis. The 23-year-old was part of the Bristol Bears academy, like brother Ioan, and has signed with the Newport-based region for the upcoming season. Lloyd impressed for Newport RFC in Super Rygbi Cymru last year, scooping up the Player of the Year award as the east Wales club clinched the title. Thanks to his classy performances in the SRC, Dragons offered him a contract. He’ll now get an opportunity to earn selection for Filo Tiatia’s side as they look to improve on a dismal 2024/2025 campaign. It seems as if Lloyd has already done plenty of impressing, too. Speaking on the latest episode of the Sportin Wales podcast, Cuthbert and Lewis discussed the youngster. “Jac Lloyd – on Tuesday, I was thinking, thank God he’s not playing for Ulster on the weekend,” began Lewis, who is Lloyd’s Dragons teammate. “Because he was absolutely carving up, he was unbelievable.” The pair then confirmed that Lloyd had won SRC Player of the Year. “He’s a very good player,” continued Lewis, before Cuthbert asked: “Is he like Ioan?” “Yes, very similar,” said Lewis, who confirmed Lloyd has been playing fly-half. He also noted that Lloyd had played at inside centre for Newport against Swansea , where they lost 42-40. Lewis continued to praise Lloyd: “On a Monday, they’ll do a highlight reel of all the players who got sent out on loan. And Jac Lloyd, the smallest man on the pitch by a country mile, his highlight reel was him picking men up and putting them on their head!” Lloyd spent his younger years with Bears in PREM Rugby, and honed his craft in the West Country. Having represented Bears from U15 to U18 age groups, he penned his first contract with the club’s academy ahead of the 2021/2022 season. Bears boss Pat Lam, who is still in charge of the club now, spoke highly of Lloyd after he signed the academy deal. “Jac is a fly half with great potential who perfectly fits the club’s long-term plan and vision for homegrown players,” said Lam. “The focus for Jac now will be to continue to grow and develop in all areas on and off the field which will enable him to compete and add value to the Bears. “If he consistently puts in the hard work, I believe the rugby programme and our team culture at the Bears High Performance Centre will provide him with the best possible chance to achieve his dreams.” In an action-packed SRC game over the weekend, Lloyd played well for Newport RFC but was unable to shift the fortunes of his team as they lost to Swansea in front of 900 spectators. Lloyd nailed all but one of his six conversions, with Swansea’s Josh Phillips pinging over the all-important penalty with four minutes to play. Reflecting on his Player of the Season campaign, Lloyd told Dragons : “Couldn’t really have been a better year. It started off quite slow but I just think towards the end it felt like it was meant to be – I know that sounds cliche! “It (SRC) was a good platform to play. Play week in, week out and not really have too much to worry about anything. The more you play, the better you’re going to get, and the more comfortable you’re going to feel. This is going to be a massive step up, and I’m not going to be naive to that.”