The truth about Wales' 25-cap rule: Who's banned and who's not amid confusion
Few things in Welsh rugby are the source of as much confusion as the much-maligned 25-cap rule.
For what should effectively be a hard-and-fast law, there's always been a lack of clarity surrounding it. Seemingly everything and nothing can be true about the rule at any one time.
Who wants it? Who's actually captured? What are the loopholes? What will happen next? Nothing ever seems certain.
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Take the discourse around Jarrod Evans at the minute. After another eye-catching performance for Harlequins, the question of why Evans doesn't feature for Wales has once again reared its head.
For some, the 25-cap rule is the first port of call. Take the BBC's Rugby Union Weekly podcast, with former England internationals Ugo Monye, Chris Ashton and even Evans' Quins team-mate Danny Care bemoaning the fact he is ineligible for Wales because he only has eight caps.
There is one problem with this narrative, however. It is not actually true.
The Jarrod Evans red herring
Ashton noted that the 25-cap rule needed to "go sharpish", with Care adding that Evans was an "international fly-half who unfortunately can’t play for his country".
Monye called the situation "silly", saying with the "issues Wales have, I couldn't believe he wasn't involved in the autumn".
"If South Africa or France did it, when they have the world's largest playing pool and can afford it, but I'm not sure Wales can," he added. "Of all the things they can control, this is a law within their gifts that they can change for the betterment of their game. I understand wanting to capture all their best talent and keep it. But that is something I would look it. I'm sure it's more complicated than that."
Of course, being Welsh rugby, it is indeed more complicated than that. In fairness to Care, Monye and Ashton, it is reasonable to assume a man playing outside of Wales with just eight caps to his name would be deemed ineligible by a rule that demands 25 caps or more.
But, even if it's yet to result in a Wales recall, Evans has actually been available for Test selection since he left Cardiff in 2023. It's a complicated one, with Evans seemingly unsure about his own availability until WalesOnline sought clarity last March - even going to the steps of informing the player himself that he could play for Wales.
When the cap rule was reduced from 60 to 25 following the proposed strike action during the 2023 Six Nations, the implementation of the new rule was seemingly hard and fast.
"The new system does not make any exception for capped players, with fewer than 25-caps, leaving to play outside of Wales after 31/03/2023," read a statement from the Professional Rugby Board at the time.
However, things were clearly relaxed the following year. A follow-up statement from the PRB explained that "in the scenario where a player does not receive a reasonable offer to play for a side in Wales and leaves as a result, but has fewer than 25-caps, the new arrangement allows for the Rugby Management Board (RMB) and PRB to consider the player’s eligibility to play for Wales".
Having either been offered an incredibly reduced deal by Cardiff amid a financial squeeze, or not even offered such a low deal out of embarrassment, Evans' case was considered by the Rugby Management Board and the end result was he was deemed eligible to play for Wales.
Of course, while that statement was made in March - and there had been reports prior he was available - Evans hasn't been picked, so it's easy to understand why some would believe he was affected by the rule.
So what about Rhys Carre?
Just as Evans was impressing in England, so too was another former Arms Park star. Wales prop Rhys Carre has been impressing for Saracens, leading former Wales second-row Dominic Day to question why he's not a part of Warren Gatland's squad.
"Wales have to get Rhys Carre back in the mix," said Day after watching the prop in action against Bristol. "He’s one of the biggest loose heads in the game, definitely the biggest Wales have and he gets through a lot of ball carrying. They need some monsters back in the team for the Six Nations.
"Rhys Carre is exactly the sort of player Wales are missing right now. Solid as a rock in the scrum, and just incredibly physical in the carry," wrote another, while a third added: "Rhys Carre performance for Saracens yesterday was excellent. He’s got to be back in with a shout of the Six Nations squad."
Of course, there's no chance of a recall. Beyond the fractured relationship with Gatland, after he was removed from Wales' World Cup training camp in 2023 for failing to hit "performance targets", he IS captured by the 25-cap rule.
Despite having more caps than Evans, Carre's 20 appearances for Wales mean he's not able to pull on the red jersey right now. Although, with his grandfather hailing from Guernsey, he could feasibly play for either England, Scotland or Ireland.
So who does it really affect?
Beyond Carre, the only other player really affected by the rule is Exeter centre Joe Hawkins. That has always been one of the defences against those who knock the rule - it actually impacts very few players.
The five-cap playmaker was the true test case of the 25-cap rule, having left the Ospreys shortly after the contractual freeze in 2023 had ended.
The capturing of the 22-year-old, who last played for Wales in the 2023 Six Nations, was contentious - not least because Welsh players were told categorically during that tournament that neither Hawkins nor second-row Will Rowlands (who had signed for Racing 92) would be available for that year's World Cup.
Of course, the rules were bent to ensure Rowlands won the two caps required to carry on playing Test rugby after moving to France. For Hawkins though, he was made an example.
That's not always something that has sat comfortably with Gatland, who has repeatedly said he would like Hawkins available to select.
During the autumn, Gatland had hinted that a captured player, understood to be Hawkins, could be available for the Six Nations amid rumours of a return to Wales. However, with reports of a move back to one of the Welsh sides going cold, it seems unlikely he'll feature in next week's Six Nations squad.
How else do players get around it?
While the defence that the 25-cap rule only affects a couple of players is a valid one, there are of course other Welsh players in England and elsewhere who in theory should be barred by the rule - if not now, then in the future - but are not. That only muddies the waters.
For years, Tomas Francis seemingly evaded the rule - back when it was 60 caps - with a rolling contract at Exeter. It's understood the likes of Tommy Reffell and Dafydd Jenkins have similar deals at Leicester and Exeter which could mean they might never need to play for a Welsh club.
Freddie Thomas, having been capped in the autumn, has since announced a new deal with Gloucester. That should, in theory, prevent him from playing for Wales - although, as other clubs have done in the past, Gloucester say the contract was signed before he was capped, thus meaning all is fine.
Looking at Gloucester's Welsh contingent, three of the five were capped while at Kingsholm - Thomas, Josh Hathaway and Max Llewellyn - while the other two - Tomos Williams and Gareth Anscombe - are past the 25-cap rule.
Logically, were those former three not to reach 25 caps before the end of their current deals, they'd have to return to Wales. It'll be interesting to see, following the examples of Francis and others, how many actually head back over the bridge.
During the contractual freeze in the 2022/23 season, there was one uncapped player who considered pulling out of a Wales squad with illness as he was in talks with an English club and didn't want to be captured by the rule.
Who wants the rule in place?
That last story probably sums up the players' point of view towards the rule. You'll go a long way before you find any player who wants it and understandably so.
For them, it's a bit like turkeys voting for Christmas. Why would they limit their options?
The man on the street, for lack of a better phrase, also seems against it. At the recent WRU AGM, few things had a better reaction from the floor than a call to scrap the rule.
Gatland himself has spoken out against it, joking in Australia last year that the players should go on strike to get rid of it. Counter-intuitively though, the Wales coach also speaks about the need for players to have more time in camp - with Welsh-based players having longer releases from their clubs.
So that doesn't quite add up. Nor does the fact that some around the Welsh professional sides make the point the rule is there more for the national team than their own benefit, even if they'd rather see the number of caps increased.
Sometimes, with something as confusing and contentious as the 25-cap rule, it seems like few are willing to defend it too strongly, with it being easier to distance yourself.
After the AGM and the reaction from the floor, those at the top of the Union admitted it would be reviewed. Could the rule even be that long for this world?
