The new lives and jobs of the Wales players who've left huge holes behind
After a nightmare start to Wales' Six Nations campaign, there is much talk about the number of experienced players the national side has lost since Warren Gatland returned to the hotseat for his second stint as Wales coach at the end of 2022.
Some of Wales' greatest ever servants have called it a day in the years that have followed, with hundreds of caps of experience suddenly no longer available to be picked. Many of those men have gone on to explore totally different new careers, leave Wales for new adventures, while others have stayed much closer to home.
Here's what happened next to those Wales stars who called it quits during Gatland's second stint.
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Alun Wyn Jones
In May 2023, former Wales skipper Jones announced he was retiring from Test rugby after a 17-year international career which saw him play a record 158 times for his country and in 12 Tests for the British & Irish Lions.
The shock announcement came after the then-37-year-old lock had been selected in Gatland's preliminary Rugby World Cup squad, but he said in a statement that he had made the decision to "step away from the international game" after "ongoing dialogue with the coaching staff and the WRU."
The lock - who is the most capped international player in history - then signed for Toulon as injury cover during the Rugby World Cup, and played his final match against Clermont Auvergne that November as captain. He was applauded off the pitch by both teams as he brought the curtain down on his glittering career.
Since then, Jones has released his own coffee-infused rum liqueur, Mimos Rwm Espiritu, which hit the shelves at Welsh branches of Tesco in the autumn. He developed the drink with the Cardiff Distillery, having been inspired by his favourite drink - a blend of tequila and coffee - being discontinued a few years earlier.
In retirement, Jones has also tried his hand at punditry and joined Swansea University as Strategic Advisor to the National Network for Innovation In Sport and Health (NNIISH).
He is also now an ambassador for the "Let's Talk Rhythm" campaign to raise awareness of atrial fibrillation, having been diagnosed with the heart condition shortly after he retired from international rugby. The condition, which causes an irregular heart rhythm, affects 1.4 million people in the UK but is symptomless.
"It was discovered when I underwent a full medical check, which included an ECG test, when I joined Toulon in July on a short-term contract as cover during the World Cup," he told The Telegraph."The cardiac doctor picked it up straight away. My heartbeat was like a galloping horse with six legs. It was all over the shop.
"The things that bring it on for someone my age is likely to be cardiovascular exercise and stress, it occurs in sports like rowing and endurance sports, but it was a shock because throughout my career I have always prided myself on my fitness. I have always been so committed to doing extras after matches, constantly working on my fitness and recovery from injuries."
Justin Tipuric
Tipuric confirmed his own immediate retirement from Test rugby on the same day as Jones, with Warren Gatland admitting the decision came as "a bit of a shock".
The openside flanker - who won 93 caps for Wales, won four Six Nations titles and was selected for three successive Lions tours - was being lined up for a key role in Gatland's World Cup squad, but Tipuric opted to walk away as he was "not 100 per cent right" and concerned his body would not hold up through the brutal pre-tournament training camps.
While he hung up his boots for Wales, however, Tipuric is still going strong with the Ospreys, with the 35-year-old still impressing in what will be his final season as a professional rugby player. The Neath-born star will call it a day in his playing career in the summer, but will stay at the Welsh region as a coach.
At the start of the current season, it was announced that then-coach Toby Booth would depart the Swansea.com Stadium at the end of the campaign, with Mark Jones to step up to the top job and Tipuric to retire from playing and become the region's defence coach.
In December, Booth quit the Ospreys with immediate effect after a poor start to the season, with Jones taking over as coach then and there. However, Tipuric will see out his playing career this season before taking on the coaching role under Jones.
Josh Navidi
The destructive blindside flanker was forced to retire at the age of 32 in April 2023, having suffered a "neurological" neck injury during Wales' tour of South Africa the previous summer.
Navidi was capped 33 times for Wales and made two appearances for the British & Irish Lions on their 2021 tour of South Africa, while he also made 184 appearances for Cardiff.
A specialist advised him to hang up his boots after being sidelined for months with the injury, but while the news came as a bit of a gut punch, Navidi admitted at the time he had no regrets about his playing career.
He has since thrown himself into retirement, running a successful car dealership named 'Cute Club' in Barry with his close friend Jack Wilkins.
A self-confessed car fanatic, Navidi previously told WalesOnline: "It started off with me just buying my own cars, driving them, and then selling them the next year because I've always been a petrol head.
"I've always had sporty cars but now I go for stuff with less fuel, and I've always changed my cars every year. I started going to auctions for my own stuff and then boys were asking me what's the best VIP deal with all these lease deals that we get offered.
"I was advising some of the Cardiff boys for years on how to get the best deals for cars, and some boys were asking for cars you couldn't get on the VIP scheme. They wanted all sorts like performance cars and one thing led to another.
"Boys started asking about finance and then it led me down that path, then into warranties, and then we would just meet people day to day." he added. "Now we have got a forecourt, and we are a car dealership which buys and sells cars."
However, cars are not his only passion, with the former flanker - who also does radio work for BBC Wales - also a well-respected DJ in Cardiff, having done a number of sets around the capital.
"It's something I really enjoy and it's something different compared to rugby," he explained. "Obviously when I'm fit and training it can be quite tough considering I'd finish Djing at 3am, by the time I get home it's 3.30am, and then I'm up at 7am for training again.
"When I'm injured it's easy but when I'm fit it's tough to find time to do it because the last thing you want to do is go Djing the night before a game.
"I have done it after a few Wales games in the past covering for my mate," he added. "I remember he asked me after one Cardiff game which we lost so I put a beany on to make sure nobody recognised me!"
Rhys Webb
After years in the international wilderness, Webb found himself back in the Welsh starting line-up at the 2023 Six Nations, with some fine performances seeing him tipped to take the starting No.9 jersey at the Rugby World Cup later that year.
However, just weeks later, the scrum-half revealed he had accepted an offer to play abroad and would be retiring from international rugby with immediate effect. The former Ospreys man walked away having won 40 caps for Wales and played two Tests for the British & Irish Lions, but never represented his country at a Rugby World Cup.
Webb then moved to second-tier French side Biarritz but the switch ended in disaster as, shortly after joining, he was suspended from rugby after returning a positive test for human growth hormone (HGH) during a training session.
He was later banned from rugby for four years by the French Anti-Doping Agency (AFLD), with the suspension effectively ending his career. Webb will be eligible to return to play in 2027, by which time he will be 38 years old.
These days, the Welshman - who has also modelled for a London-based agency since hanging up his boots - is based in Dubai, having started a role as Client Relationship Director for the Middle Eastern branch of 'boutique' recruitment agency Eden Rose.
"I am proud to work with professional service organizations in the Middle East, specializing in Tech and Transformation within the Financial Services Industry," he wrote on LinkedIn. "Backed by one of the UK’s largest elite recruitment companies, we connect businesses with exceptional talent to navigate and thrive in the rapidly evolving FinTech landscape."
Alongside his new career, Webb is also a qualified personal trainer and founded a new business - 'RW9 Performance - at the end of November, with the aim of "motivating children ages 7-18 to reach their full potential".
Dan Biggar
The fly-half announced ahead of the 2023 Rugby World Cup that he would be retiring from international rugby at the culmination of the tournament.
While he helped Wales to the quarter-finals, they then fell agonisingly short against Argentina, with Biggar admitting the early exit "knocked him for six" as his international career came to a sudden and brutal end.
"If I'm brutally honest I expected us to win that quarter-final," the 35-year-old - who won 112 caps with Wales and went on tour twice with the Lions over the course of his international career - later admitted. "I don't think I was quite prepared for it to end so abruptly.
"I've been around the block enough to know that storybook endings very rarely happen, but I also thought that the way that we went in that World Cup up until that quarter-final stage, I think we allowed ourselves to get carried away with that, which is why it probably knocked the absolute stuffing out of me afterwards and it was such a huge, huge low really afterwards."
Biggar still plays for Toulon in the French Top 14 but has struggled for game time this season, playing just seven times so far this season. However, he has kept himself more than busy with media work, working as a pundit for ITV during the Six Nations, writing a column for MailOnline and establishing a regular role on successful podcast The Rugby Pod alongside Jim Hamilton and Andy Goode.
He is also loving life out in Toulon, having been able to soak up the sun in the south of France alongside wife Alex and their two children. The couple are childhood sweethearts, with the rugby ace praising his "brilliant" wife, a former primary school teacher who is also an incredibly talented baker and has her own business, Biggar's Bakes.
Leigh Halfpenny
Following the World Cup, Halfpenny followed Biggar in announcing his international retirement, having featured just once at the tournament.
He bowed out from Test rugby following one final match against the Barbarians in Cardiff, as he brought the curtain down on a glittering international career that saw him win 101 caps for Wales, with his tally of 801 points leaving him third in the all-time Welsh point scoring records.
Shortly after his announcement, it was confirmed that Halfpenny would join New Zealand Super Rugby side Crusaders on a one-year deal after leaving Scarlets, jetting off to head Down Under in November 2023.
However, the move didn't go exactly as planned as he suffered a pectoral muscle injury in his debut for the club during pre-season, which left him sidelined for three months. After injury curtailed his game-time in New Zealand, he returned to Wales last summer and married his long-term partner Jess Tumelty in a stunning wedding ceremony in his home town of Gorseinon in August.
Days earlier, Halfpenny had signed for Gallagher Premiership side Harlequins in a shock move, with the Welshman enjoying life in London alongside a solid Welsh contingent including Jarrod Evans, Dillon Lewis and Wyn Jones. He is now roommates with Jones in Guildford after making the switch to Quins.
“Last season was frustrating through injury," he told WalesOnline after signing. "I was excited by that opportunity. I really enjoyed the experience of going to New Zealand. Because of the injury I didn’t get the game-time I would have liked.
“I’ve got that hunger and desire to keep playing and play a part for Quins in whatever way I can. I want to carry on playing. I have still got that competitiveness and that hunger in me to carry on playing. Alongside that then to work with some of the younger lads and mentor or give any kind of advice I can. But I am a player first and I can’t wait for that opportunity to play."
Louis Rees-Zammit
Arguably, nobody on this list has had a more eventful time of it since quitting Welsh rugby than Rees-Zammit, who stunned the sporting world in January last year when he announced he was walking away from the sport to pursue his dream of playing in the NFL.
After dropping the bombshell news moments before Warren Gatland was due to announce his Six Nations squad, the former Gloucester wing joined the the NFL's International Player Pathway programme and underwent a 10-week training camp in Florida in a bid to impress the sport's top teams.
Rees-Zammit received a lot of interest, with "over a dozen teams" wanting him to join them, but he soon chose to sign for the reigning Super Bowl champions the Kansas City Chiefs on a three-year deal. The stunning move saw him count superstars like Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelce among his new teammates and work under legendary coach Andy Reid.
With A-list teammates, a rumoured relationship with a swimsuit model, a handwritten letter from Taylor Swift and fans approaching him in the street for selfies, Rees-Zammit was living it up on the other side of the Atlantic. He went on to feature in three pre-season matches for the Chiefs, which he described as a "dream come true".
But with the Welshman playing catch-up against teammates who had played American football their whole lives, and with an extensive playbook to get his head around, he ultimately fell short of making the Chiefs' 53 man roster or practice squad as he was waive ahead of the start of the season.
He then signed for the Jacksonville Jaguars in August, joining their practice squad as a running back. The 23-year-old impressed coach Doug Pedersen with his athleticism shortly after joining and was told his "opportunity will come" in the active roster one day - but he ended the season having not played a single minute for the franchise, with the Jags missing out on the play-offs and Pedersen losing his job as a result.
Last month, Rees-Zammit was left a free agent after his contract with the Jaguars expired, leading to much speculation about where his future lay next. A few days later, he was made a new offer by the franchise, but it emerged that the former rugby star is "figuring out" his next move.
Despite all the uncertainty, however, it has not stopped the jet-setting Welshman from enjoying himself, having recently left the US for a "special" holiday in Thailand alongside his brother Taylor.
Ken Owens
The much-loved hooker announced his retirement from rugby last April, with his final game for Wales coming as captain during the Six Nations more than a year earlier.
A debilitating back injury had ruled Owens out of the World Cup and ultimately forced him to hang up his boots, having won 91 Welsh caps, represented the British & Irish Lions and played 274 matches for the Scarlets over the course of a successful 18-year career.
Since retiring. the now-38-year-old has joined the board of Welsh netball team Cardiff Dragons as a non-executive director, shortly after it was confirmed that the side would be one of eight new professional franchises competing in a revamped Netball Super League campaign.
Owens is a former chairman of the Welsh Rugby Players' Association and member of the International Rugby Players' Council and memorably acted as the spokesperson for Wales players when they threatened to strike over contract uncertainty in 2023. After his appointment with the Dragons was confirmed, he admitted the opportunity to work in sports governance again was "very exciting."
"I'm hugely interested in sports governance and the opportunity to go and work in a different sport, and gain new experiences and learn new things, is very exciting," he said. "Obviously, with the advent of the new era of Super League Netball, it's a great time to get involved.
"I'm newly retired now, so I'll have a lot more time on my hands to be able to contribute in whichever way I can and support their dream of becoming a fully professional outfit."
In retirement, Owens has also done some media work - working as a pundit for S4C during this year's Six Nations - and last year became the first male player in Wales to undergo a free brain health assessment, as part of a new initiative from the Welsh Rugby Union, Welsh Rugby Players' Association and World Rugby.
It was also confirmed in December that he had found another job since hanging up his boots, hearing disciplinary cases for European matches as part of an independent disciplinary committee.
The European governing body EPCR often lean upon former players to take part in hearings, and Owens was thrown straight into action as he oversaw the case of Stade Francais lock Baptiste Pesenti, who ended up with a two-week ban for a dangerous tackle on Munster scrum-half Craig Casey.
The French second-row had been sent off after picking up Casey in a 'WWE-style' tackle before driving him into the ground during the Champions Cup clash, with the committee of Owens, judicial officer Roddy MacLeod and Gordon Black determining that "Pesenti had tackled Casey in a dangerous and reckless manner that warranted a red card".
George North
After a phenomenal Test career, North announced in the final week of Wales' 2024 Six Nations campaign that he was retiring from international rugby.
However, he did not bow out in the way he had planned to, as he was carried off the pitch in the final minutes of Wales' defeat to Italy in Cardiff - his 121st cap - having suffered a serious Achilles injury. He left the field to rapturous applause, but departed as his side fell to their fifth defeat at the tournament to pick up the dreaded wooden spoon and sufffer a first Six Nations whitewash since 2003.
His injury kept him out of action for 10 months, in which time he left Wales to start his new life in France, having signed for Pro D2 side Provence after leaving the Ospreys. He returned to action last month and was given an incredible welcome by fans as he made his home debut against Grenoble, with thousands of supporters waving banners and flags with his face on as he ran out onto the pitch.
He has already made quite the impression both on and off the pitch in France, with his head coach Maricio Reggardio praising him for the impact he has had on the squad in the months he has been with them.
"I am lucky to train a great player," said Reggardio. "He must be in the top three of the best players that I have been able to train. He is very easy to coach. He is a great professional, a guy who has incredible humility.
"After four months, he learned French and he encourages all the foreigners to speak the language. At the end of training, he keeps the youngsters to work on skills. It is a big added value in rugby and in team life."
While North is embracing life in France, however, he still has business dealings back in Wales, having recently opened a new locaton for his motor inspired coffee shop Baffle Haus.
Gareth Davies
Scrum-half Davies announced his international retirement ahead of the recent autumn campaign, having failed to replicate his fine performances at the 2023 Rugby World Cup in last year's Six Nations.
He won 77 caps for Wales over the course of his career, winning two Six Nations titles and helping to knock England out of the 2015 World Cup with a memorable try. Davies also toured twice with the British & Irish Lions during his international career but admitted in October that it was "the right time for me to step away".
However, the 34-year-old is still going strong for the Scarlets, having featured 13 times for them so far this season. That is not to say he doesn't have one eye on the future, however, having also launched a new career in business.
In May last year, Davies launched a start-up estate agency called 'Blackbear Property' in Haverfordwest, with the business aiming to "bring a fresh take on the traditional estate agency".
"Blackbear represents a very exciting opportunity for me," the half-back explained. "I have a good few years left on the pitch yet but if professional sport has taught me one thing, it is never too early to think ahead.
"I intend to be involved in my family business which involves Cawdor Cars and Davies Developments. So along with Blackbear I am very excited about what the future holds post-rugby."
Jonathan Davies
The Scarlets legend had not been involved in a Wales squad for some time when he announced his retirement from rugby in October, but there is no doubting that he is one of the major figures Welsh rugby has lost in recent years.
'Foxy' made the announcement several months after leaving the Scarlets, having initially been seeking one more playing opportunity. However, the centre - who won 96 Wales caps, and appeared on two Lions tours - decided to hang up his boots to spend more time with his young family having become a father for the first time.
In a statement, he wrote: "After taking time away from the game following the end of my last season with the Scarlets, I have come to the decision to call time on my professional rugby career.
"I have enjoyed a break and a summer at home with my family, and been lucky enough to spend quality time with my newborn son, alongside my wife, as we embark on this new chapter together as parents."
Since retiring, Davies has tried his hand at punditry with the BBC and S4C, while he also regularly shares photos on Instagram of him jetting off around the world with his wife Louise, with recent destinations including New Zealand, Greece and Mexico.
He has also recently become an ambassador for Welsh trekking company Evertrek UK, which aims "to help people achieve their adventure travel bucket lists."
Sharing news of his new role online, Davies wrote: "Travel and adventure has always been a big part of my life, whether it’s climbing the Grouse Grind in Vancouver, trekking to the top of the falls in Yosemite, or hiking in the snow in the Brecon Beacons.
"I thrive on the physical challenge and love the reward you get from being in the outdoors, as well as experiencing somewhere new. I’m really excited to work with the EverTrek team whose aim is to help people achieve their adventure travel bucket lists, whether that’s reaching Everest base camp, climbing the Himalayas, or Mount Kilimanjaro."
